The overarching goal of the Regional Workforce Development in Rural BC project1 , funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada’s (SSHRC) Community and College Social Innovation Fund, is to collectively assess comparative workforce development strategies in ways that inform future policy, planning, and action in the Columbia Basin-Boundary region of southeast BC.

Led by Dr. Terri MacDonald, BC Regional Innovation Chair in Rural Economic Development, and facilitated by Selkirk College and College of the Rockies through the Kootenay Workforce Development Initiative,  the project brings together the region’s educators, elected officials, policy makers, economic development practitioners, industry, students, and leading scholars to:

• examine workforce development challenges and opportunities;
• facilitate and mobilize knowledge, analysis and emerging discussions;
• generate new research questions and dialogues; and
• provide opportunity for the engagement, networking, and capacity building of highly qualified personnel.