Course Desciption

Rural communities are experiencing extreme decline and change. Rural depopulation, technology-based deskilling, and changes in agriculture have led to high unemployment, closures of schools and grain elevators, family violence, and substance abuse among other problems. Nonetheless, some rural communities such as Clearwater, a 100-person community located in southwestern Manitoba, are showing great resilience and are in the process of reinventing themselves. Clearwater plans to develop the closed primary school as a location of skills training and a site for small business. Also, there is an interest in turning a local farm into a location of programming in environmental education.

The course takes place in Clearwater, Manitoba, where students will visit farms and explore the relationship among farm operations, rural culture, and the environment. Conducted over a two-week period, the course will combine lectures and farm visits, along with course projects. Specifically, students will gain an awareness of pressures facing rural communities and environments, insight into evolving rural cultures, experience in a diversity of farming and gardening operations, and experience with riparian forests and prairie research.

University Of Manitoba Course Information