Benefits To Our Partners

Specific Activities and Outcomes of the Chair include:

• Annual Extension Tour – to visit rural areas and engage in dialogue with community leaders and entrepreneurs regarding tourism and sustainable rural development
• Series of “How to” Manuals – developed to address commonly asked questions about tourism and sustainable rural development (e.g. Resort Development, The Good, The Bad & The Ugly, Community Signage)
• Student Research – linking students with community research projects (e.g. Hornby Island tourism planning)
• Access to Expertise & Resources – provide research expertise to rural communities (e.g. Port Alberni Quality of Life Survey)
• Annual Research Forums – bringing researchers, practitioners and students together to learn from one another (e.g. Parks and Protected Areas, North Island Tourism)
• Video Series – developed to showcase “best practices” in tourism and sustainable rural development (e.g. Realizing Our Full Potential)
• Tourism Workshops – designed to deal with specific rural community tourism issues and opportunities (e.g. regional partnerships)
• Q & A Newsletter – developed to respond to burning questions on tourism development
• Industry Profiles – compilation & dissemination of various industry profiles within the rural tourism sector
• Sector Panels – development of rural tourism “expert” sector panels to provide ongoing advice & trend analysis
• Research Reports, Data Bases & Resources – collection and dissemination through a web portal
• Annual Case Study Collection – collection & dissemination of rural tourism case studies in electronic & hard-copy formats
• Research Program – ongoing research program that focuses on strategies for promoting local leadership in rural communities, land-use conflict resolution strategies, visitor profiles, product development strategies & planning for successful rural tourism
• Incubator Without Walls – provide support for new rural tourism operators & those operators that wish to expand their businesses

“The Chair is a lifeline for a rural community.” (Community Partner)