21 Nov

Three Events we don’t want you to miss!!

Here is our no-excuses offer! FREE REGISTRATION with the PROMO CODE below!! If any or all of the final three days program appeals to you scroll down to register.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26th @6.30-pm EST: TECH + YOU: Technology access – both in terms of how we increase it for the general public and how we restrict and regulate it to prevent harmful outcomes – is central to creating an equitable and progress-focused future. As we move further into the 21st century, we invite you to reflect on what has, and hasn’t, worked well regarding access to technology, and imagine how technology might serve the world of tomorrow. This workshop aims to explore the impacts of access to technology as it stands today and leverage speculative thinking to imagine access frameworks for the future.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27th @6.30PM EST: SHINDIG FRIDAY: a time to network, share ideas, have a virtual beverage with guests and presenters and have your say at SPEAKER’S CORNER – an evening of sharing and caring about where you are, where we are, and where you see us going.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 28th @9AM EST: LIBRO SATURDAY: A day devoted to community, environment, and climate action. We begin with a discussion with our lead partner Libro Credit Union, a B Corp, an organization that understands the importance of community engagement/investment and how it impacts on the rural environment. And announce the Libro Credit Union People’s Choice Award for the best End of the Lane Conversation video.

Senator Rob Black addresses the delegation starting with his G2G bike ride this summer, then discussing how he sees rural unfolding in the near future. How rural community can accelerate its participation with regards to climate action.

The G2G Rail Trail will present their story following the Senator – this unique infrastructure project contributes to mental and physical health, is fully accessible, and inclusive, and allows anyone to walk, ride, run, through some of the choicest farm land and natural environments in Canada. The discussion will also touch down on how the G2G contributes to a healthier physical environment and is a part of the positive change in climate change.

Samantha Casey, and Miranda Baksh, two young women from Community Climate Council, a non-partisan, youth-led not for profit promoting climate literacy and political advocacy, will make a pair of presentations on the work they are doing to make our one and only home a healthier place not just for us, but for future generations. This is a call to action by tw0o young Canadians who are passionate about climate action.

Dr. David Lobb from the University of Manitoba will close the morning session with a presentation on the importance of soil as it pertains to climate. He will touch down on riparian edges, wetlands, how major shifts in land ownership have impacted climate, and how a healthy soil not only contributes to a sustainable food supply but it is one of the greatest carbon absorbers available to us.

A question will be asked right before lunch: “So what are you going to do to make the place a better place – starting today?

12.30-1.30 – our virtual lunch as designed by Chef James Eddington will take place. James will talk about the food, and the recipe – setting the table for us to zoom into our meal with zest. Check out how to make this delicious recipe with James video HERE and find the written recipe attached right here!

Save the FREE promo code FreeR2R2020.
Go to https://r2r2020.eventbrite.ca 
See you there!

20 Jun

Welcome to the virtual KITCHEN TABLE

…a place to gather, converse, share ideas, and build a citizen’s assembly for inclusive and progressive change.

It’s an opportunity to participate in our democracy, to create voice, to challenge assumptions, to collaborate with new and old partners.

FORMAT: each gathering runs 70 minutes and will feature a ten minute presentation on an issue or issues with a conversation to follow. Each Table will be recorded and be available along with posts/information/links at www.ruralcreativity.org

THE NEXT KITCHEN TABLE: June 25 at 7PM ET

FOOD FOR THOUGHT…

“Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next. We can choose to walk through it, dragging the carcasses of our prejudice and hatred, our avarice, our data banks and dead ideas, our dead rivers and smoky skies behind us – or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world.”

Author – Suzanna Arundhati Roy

“There are different ways of knowing. Empirical scientific investigation, while powerful and extremely useful, nevertheless, is the devil that got us into the present crisis — our use of scientific information without wisdom.”

Physicist – David Bohm

Title drawing credit – Chris Dove, architect
05 May

The CCRC in Ottawa

read the full release here

Photos by Allan Thompson


Peter Smith, with The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage

 

 

 

 

 

 

May4 – Minister of Small Business and Tourism Bardish Chagger

Treasury Board president Scott Brison with Peter Smith

May4: l-R: Alecia Anderson, Karen Stewart, Gil Garratt, Chris Lee, Peter Smith, Steven Sparling, Genny Smith and Allan Thompson

02 May

CCRC goes to Ottawa

A delegation from the Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity will be in Ottawa this week to reach out to MPs and Senators and the broader parliamentary community about the centre’s exciting mission to create a hub for rural revitalization in the village of Blyth. The visit will include key meetings with government officials as well as outreach with MPs, Senators and media.

Team Blyth will include Peter Smith, director of the Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity, Karen Stewart, the centre’s director of operations, Steven Sparling, Genny Smith, Austen Chaffe and Alecia Anderson from project partner Cowbell Brewing Co., Gil Garratt, artistic director of the Blyth Centre for the Arts, David Peacock from Regional Tourism Organization 4, Chris Lee from the Guelph to Goderich (G2G) Rail Trail and Allan Thompson, journalism professor at Carleton University and a member of the project’s campaign cabinet.

The delegation will be in Ottawa on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday for a series of meetings and events. The highlight will be a reception being held on Parliament Hill on Thursday, from 5-7 p.m. in Rm 238-S of the Centre Block. The reception, dubbed A Taste of Rural, will provide the Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity and its partners with a chance to engage with Parliamentarians about the project’s exciting and innovative work. Cowbell Brewing Co., will be offering some its award-winning beers and there will also be other rural treats, including some products from Blyth Farm Cheese, The Whole Pig, and The Garlic Box. The reception is kindly being hosted by MPs Kim Rudd (Northumberland-Peterborough South) and T.J. Harvey (Tobique—Mactaquac), the recently-elected chair of the Liberal party’s rural caucus.

03 Aug

Top 10 reasons to attend R2R Conference

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1. Talk Rural – Join Canadian ruralists, from farmers and artists to healthcare providers and community builders, for this unique opportunity to discuss solutions to rural issues and challenges. Learn more.

2. Keynote Speakers and Expert Presenters – Connect with more than 60 speakers and presenters who will share their expertise on topics in arts & culture, food & farm, community revival & development, and sustaining & growing rural populations. Meet our keynotes and presenters confirmed to date.

3. Arts & Culture – Learn how to give voice to our rural stories and how the way telling these stories is evolving. Also explore fibre arts through panel discussions and hands-on activities. Click here for full agenda

4. Food & Farm – Hear from rural experts on how to create jobs through processing local food and farm products, how to overcome road blocks on the way to market, how to raise capital for your business venture, and more. Click here for full agenda

5. Community Revival/Development – Community revitalization, building vibrant rural communities, and reimagining rural tourism lead the topics discussed in this learning stream. Click here for full agenda

6. Sustaining and Growing our Population – Are we prepared for new Canadians? How do we engage, support and retain our youth population? How do rural communities achieve their goals for growth and development while maintaining their distinctive rural character? Join our guest speakers for discussions on these questions and more. Click here for full agenda

7. The Pitch/The Catch – Support rural innovators as they take to the stage to pitch their best business ideas to a handful of catchers eager to invest in growing the local economy. Learn more

8. The Food – September is harvest time in Huron County and we will bring together our top chefs who will feature the best food the county has to offer. Click here for full agenda

9. Kitchen Table Conversations – Great ideas often come from conversations had around a kitchen table. Kitchen tables will be found throughout the conference to provide a spot to delegates to informally discuss innovative solutions to the challenges facing rural communities. Do you have a kitchen table to share?

10. Rural Fun – Rural folks know how to have a good time and we've made lots of room in the conference agenda for delegates to do just that. We will feature local entertainment alongside a good old-fashioned pig roast and bonfire complete with s'mores. Click here for full agenda

04 Jul

Blyth Hosts Rural + Creativity Conference


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For Immediate Release: July 7, 2016

Contact: Karen Stewart, 519-441-7629

 

BLYTH BREAKING NEW GROUND WITH RURAL + CREATIVITY CONFERENCE

BLYTH:  From September 28th – 30th 2016 the Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity will host the first Rural Talks to Rural Conference.  Ruralists are invited to Huron County to network, share knowledge and meet other innovators from across Canada.   From farmers to artists and healthcare providers to community builders we’ll inspire collaborative and creative thinking to discuss solutions to rural issues and challenges.

The Conference will focus on four different categories including Arts & Culture, Food & Farm, Community Revival/Development, and Sustaining & Growing Our Population. Each of the goals or issues will have panels, conversations, and presentations.  For example, Arts & Culture will feature a panel on why we need our stories told and from Fibre to Fabulous – fashion from the ground up. Under Food & Farm there will be a panel on creating jobs through processing local food and farm products as well as raising capital for your business venture. Community Revival/Development will have presentations on Rural Health & Wellbeing as well as The Creative Economy – reimagining rural assets and return on investment. And, one of the Sustaining & Growing Our Population presentations will be on Youth Entrepreneurship while another explores immigration – Are we prepared for New Canadians?  Are we welcoming?  Are we friendly?

To get the ideas flowing many events have been organized for the conference. These include The Pitch, The Catch (an opportunity for entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas to potential investors), Kitchen Table Conversations (an informal setting to encourage dialogue and connections), tasting events, a pig roast and a Gala Dinner where delegates will enjoy the bounty of the County, and many more great opportunities for creativity and engagement.

Pricing on the conference will range from $350 for all three days sessions, meals, hospitality, and entertainment: $200 for one full day (Sept. 28th or 29th), or $45 for dinner, keynote, and evening entertainment (either date – Sept. 28th or 29th).   Students are encouraged to participate too – $225 for full 3-day conference.

For more information or to register please visit www.ruralcreativity.org

Rural Talks to Rural 2016 is presented by the Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity and generously supported by the County of Huron, the Township of North Huron, Huron Business Development Corporation, The Rural Voice, Rural Ontario Institute, Huron Food Action Network and the University of Guelph.

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The Canadian Centre for Rural Creativity (CCRC) was developed to build a unique cultural hub that addresses issues facing rural communities and accelerate economic growth and social renewal in Huron County and beyond.  The CCRC will inspire people through art and nurture creative thinking in order to identify new economic, creative, and recreational opportunities.  The CCRC operates within the mandate of its parent company Blyth Arts and Cultural Initiative 14/19 Inc. as a not-for-profit charitable organization working in partnership with the community to develop a cultural strategy that provides unique educational and artistic opportunities, meaningful employment, and increased quality of life for all through culture and art.

 

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