Rockies Tourism Intelligence is powered by the Rural Tourism Knowledge Cluster located at College of the Rockies in Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada.

The Rural Secretariat, in partnership with the Association of Canadian Community Colleges, is testing the usefulness of rural knowledge clusters in supporting community and regional economic diversification in three different rural areas of Canada.

Knowledge Clusters bring together the local community college, community organizations, government, employers, workers and others to create a hub of expertise in a specific industry.

College of the Rockies has been chosen to develop the knowledge cluster model, which will be used to help diversify the region’s economy by further developing the tourism industry.
 

Who uses the Rockies Tourism Intelligence Resource Information Centre?

Users include tourism business owners and managers, tourism researchers, teachers, librarians, administrators, government policymakers, instructors and students in tourism programs, the media and community organizations and the general public.

 

Site Administration

The Rockies Intelligence Website is managed by the Learning Resource Centre at College of the Rockies and is part of the Gateway to the Rockies website.

Copyright 1999 - 2010 College of the Rockies. All rights reserved.

 

What is a Rural Knowledge Cluster?

Background: The Rural Knowledge Cluster model, adopted from the United States, evolved from a variety of industry clusters developed in the 1990s as an economic development strategy for rural regions.

The American community college system has examined how community colleges can support emerging cluster-based economic development strategies. Within a rural context, community colleges and universities in the U.S. have provided technology and specialized workforce training to support these clusters, which have become examples of high performance rural economies.

Rural Knowledge Clusters bring together the local community college, community organizations, government, employers, workers and others, to create a hub of expertise in a specific industry. They foster a competitive advantage for the region by helping local businesses and entrepreneurs develop a rich base of skilled workers and local entrepreneurial culture.

Model Description: The Rural Knowledge Cluster model is an innovative approach that offers rural communities a solution for diversifying their resource-based economies. The Association of Canadian Community Colleges and three member colleges will develop, adapt and implement the model within each of the regions serviced by the colleges.

The model will focus on three economic areas:

• value-added forest products (Collège Boréal, Northeastern Ontario),
• geomatics innovation (Nova Scotia Community College, Annapolis, Digby Counties and District of Clare, Nova Scotia)
• tourism (College of the Rockies, East Kootenay Region, B.C.).

These activities will help to build an economy that creates quality job growth and regional economic development. Other key goals are to raise awareness of Rural Knowledge Clusters, research the knowledge transfer process, evaluate the workforce development, and identify and deliver support services in accordance with the needs of communities.

Project Funding: The Rural Secretariat will fund this project with $1,165,000. Funding for this research initiative is derived from the five year, $55-million renewal of the Canadian Rural Partnership, announced in June 2002.

Research Objectives: Evaluate how a college-led Rural Knowledge Cluster model can contribute to rural community capacity building and development, and determine how colleges can be catalysts for the development of community growth.

The research activities supported by the Rural Secretariat's Models for Rural Development and Rural Community Capacity Building Program (The Models Program) will contribute to the understanding of what approaches (models) to community development and capacity building work in rural, remote and northern communities. The information collected will be useful for all levels of government to support their decisions on programs and services for rural Canadians, as well as future policy directions.

Community Sites: The model will be implemented at three sites: Northeastern Ontario; the Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia and East Kootenays, BC.

 

For more information, contact:
Brian Bender, Project Coordinator
Association of Canadian Community Colleges
200-1223 Michael St. North
Ottawa, Ontario K1J 7T2
Tel.: 613/746-2222 ext.3127
Fax: 613/746-6721
E-mail: bbender@accc.ca