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CCN acts as a convener bringing together groups and people with divergent points of views and interests. By providing a safe neutral forum, we assist people to look at the wider issues and seek common ground and complimentary solutions.
CCN helps to break rural isolation by networking people, information and activities. Networking also provides moral support for overworked volunteers.
CCN recognizes that effective leadership is critical for ensuring vital, healthy sustainable rural communities. Thus CCN provides skills development opportunities in areas identified by rural citizens.
CCN strives to conduct research on issues that are identified by our membership, as being critical to rural development. Our research is community based, in that it is in response to a community need and is conducted with community members and the results are given to communities for their use.
People travel from all parts of rural and small-town Nova Scotia to come together and discuss both new opportunities for, and rising threats to, our communities. We share information about things that work, and about things that don't. Members may bring forward new concerns and, together, members create action plans to address identified issues. We also feature one or two presentations on current issues or solutions for rural and small-town Nova Scotia. The meetings are generally held the first Wednesday of the month at the Howard Johnson Inn in Truro at 10:30 a.m. To learn more about past presentations see our hot topics section. To gain a snapshot of what's going on in rural Nova Scotia see our community heartbeat section.
Each fall we hold a one day skills development day with four workshops with the experts. Topics are chosen from needs identified by non-profit groups. We allow an hour and half for lunch in order that divergent groups can network.
Each April, we spend a wonderful weekend together renewing ourselves and our communities. The weekend features workshops on a wide range of issues important to people active in their own communities. There are also skills development workshops and guest panels and plenty of time and opportunities for networking. . The event also features fun activities like our Radical Rural Bingo, the Great Nova Scotia Trivia Contest , our Silent Auction and of course our Talking Circle.
The NSRT is a gathering of 25 provincial and federal departments that meets bi-monthly. Members of the NSRT recognize that the task of working horizontally - that is, across a number of organizational mandates and personal sets of values and goals - is a significant challenge, one that requires excellent communications and collaborative skills and processes. Citizen representatives have also been members of the NSRT, and this has created a wonderful opportunity to bring the concerns and realities of our communities directly to people in government. CCN is one of six community representatives on the NSRT.
CCN member identify an issue that has wide implications for rural Nova Scotia. CCN convenes as many sectors as possible who are affected by this issue and plays a facilitation role to identify common actions. For example CCN has brought divergent groups together around issues of wharves; retention of health professional in rural areas,; lighthouses; tourism strategies; and fishing issues.
Projects are developed in response to requests from CCN member organizations, though it may often take some time to get funding in place for them. Past projects have included cross-cultural work among Mi'Kmaq, Black, Acadian, and other Nova Scotians, skills-development workshops, intense media training, and a series of province-wide seminars to gain input on what is needed for community economic development. For more information, see CCN publications.
Through its regular monthly meetings, conferences, workshops, committees, regular magazines, media and public relations activities and numerous special events the activities of the CCN add up to a large voice for rural Nova Scotia.
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