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NEWSLETTER 2000 |
THE ARKLETON TRUST
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[CONTENTS] [NEXT PAGE] |
The TrustThis has been an eventful year for rural development in Europe and here in the UK, with the implementation of rural development measures proposed in Agenda 2000 (the new Rural Development Regulation, LEADER plus, and the reformed Structural Funds) and a flurry of green and white papers in many member countries, including the UK and Ireland. How much of this represents real progress in the development of an integrated, locally based, and sustainable rural policy, and how much rhetoric, remains to be seen. This indeed was a question raised by the Trust's Programme Director in a series of keynote papers for conferences in Quebec, Finland and British Colombia - Is there a new rural policy? The fact is that while the framework does appear to be improving, the reality of implementation lies some way behind the rhetoric. And this at a time when rural people and rural places are experiencing, perhaps, unprecedented pressures for change and adaptation in response to external market and policy shifts.The Trust has played an active role in bringing academics, practitioners and policy makers together to address problems of rural change, development, and education for over 20 years. The means have been many and various, including international seminars and workshops, study tours, fellowship and exchange programmes, research and general networking. We think there is a growing, not diminishing, role for an independent charitable trust to play in this endeavour. Our past two international seminars have sought to involve actors from, and concerned with, the rural development issues and programmes in the Central and Eastern European countries applying to join the EU, as well as those from existing EU members. The Arkleton Centre for Rural Development Research at the University of Aberdeen has built on this by organising a major international conference this summer on European Rural Policy at the Crossroads, which has over 100 delegates from 23 countries, including most of the CEEC's and a number of senior officials from OECD, CEC, and national Governments. In 2001, the Trust will bring together a group of academics and practitioners for an international seminar to discuss the current issues of rural health, education and community development, and to address related quality of life issues; this is partly an effort to secure their better integration which is entirely consistent with the Trust's objectives and approach. It is intended that the results will feed into a further major international conference planned for June 2003.
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