[ Overview ] [ Communities of Practice ]

Competitive farms are increasingly among the most sophisticated users of computer and sensory technologies. Computer and Internet technologies open up a wide range of new possibilities for learning and for practical applications. Every rural community will need to initiate multiple approaches for keeping abreast of 21st century trends in rural development efforts.

The NARFI Communities of Practice program will stimulate the creation of grassroots-based special interest groups in rural communities and will facilitate communication and develop local expertise in emerging knowledge areas essential to future rural economic sustainability.

Each Community of Practice will:

• serve as a community of shared interest - to facilitate individual and community-based learning that will help local communities recognize and take advantage of emerging trends in rural business and community development,
• have a technology and knowledge outreach program to ensure that the best practices identified by the Communities of Practice will have a mechanism for adoption by local communuties and rural businesses.

Community of Practice subject matter experts identified as innovative thinkers from the northcentral Hi-Line region, the state of Montana and North America will form the core of a Community of Practice (CoP) for major areas of rural future concerns. These would include economic development, community development, education, out-migration, agriculture, digital-divide, health, housing, cultural preservation, environmental preservation, energy, and more.

Core CoP team members will develop a network of local, regional, state, national, and continental stakeholders:

• to assess emerging trends, to examine potential scenarios for their impact on rural areas,
• to select the most promising innovations for rural economic sustainability, and
• to seek appropriate grants and funding to initiate field tests of a select few as innovation models for the wider rural regions of North America.

Ther current NARFI Communities of Practice are:

• The Rural Entrepreneurism CoP is focused on supporting existing rural entrepreneurs as well as helping to envision new models of entrepreneurship that will contribute to sustainable rural economies. To learn more, please read this press release.