For the Press
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CONTACT: Tim Marema, 865/748-5736, tim@ruralstrategies.org
Rural Assembly will address need for broadband
FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn will be one of the featured speakers at the 2011 National Rural Assembly, June 28-30 in St. Paul, Minn.
Rural communities across the nation lag behind urban communities in download and upload speed availability as well as in access to broadband, according to a recent Broadband Statistics Report from National Broadband Map.
"People may not think of high-speed Internet access as a necessity," said Dee Davis, chairman of the National Rural Assembly steering committee. "But if your community doesn't have it, your businesses are not going to be able to compete, you're not going to get access to the same heath care, and your kids are going to be at a disadvantage in school."
Commissioner Clyburn is an advocate for expanding broadband and wireless access to marginalized communities. Clyburn will be the featured lunch-time speaker on Wednesday, June 29.
In less than two years on the federal regulatory agency, Clyburn has participated in major actions such as the release of the National Broadband Plan and the vote on open networks – both of critical importance to rural communities. She is expected to address FCC reform of the Universal Service Fund, another issue with big implications for rural communities.
Clyburn’s speech and the ensuing panel discussion will be one of many presentations during the two-day Assembly looking at federal policy changes needed to unleash rural America’s vast potential – changes that would spur rural entrepreneurship and improve educational and social opportunities in rural communities.
More than 300 rural leaders from across the country will be focusing on policies relating to rural youth retention, health care, housing, transportation, community development, immigration and broadband access, among others during the Assembly.
The 2011 National Rural Assembly will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel-St. Paul Riverfront, in downtown St. Paul, Minn. For more information on the Assembly visit www.ruralassembly.org.
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PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Tim Marema, 865/748-5736, tim@ruralstrategies.org
Leaders Seek Rural Resurgence
More than 250 leaders from across the country will gather in St. Paul, Minn., at the end of the month to advance a new policy agenda for rural America.
The June 28-30 National Rural Assembly will focus on health reform, housing, transportation, immigration, broadband access and opportunities for young people.
“We can stand pat and just get more of the same in rural America, including the highest rates of child poverty and the hollowing out of our towns,” said Dee Davis, chairman of the Assembly’s steering committee. “Or we can start down a different rural path toward sustainable energy, local food production, and internet connectivity that can help the whole country get back on its feet.”
Among the speakers at the National Rural Assembly will be Federal Communications Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, an advocate for expanding broadband and wireless to marginalized communities. Since joining the federal regulatory agency, Clyburn has participated in major actions such as the release of the National Broadband Plan and the vote on open networks – both key rural issues.
Also addressing the Assembly will be Navy Capt. Wayne Porter and Marine Col. Mark Mykleby. The officers co-authored a recent paper on national security for the Joint Chiefs of Staff that promotes building strong local communities as a security priority.
In addition to policy discussions, the Assembly will hold a special session June 29th focusing on the experiences of rural Americans who have served overseas in the U.S. armed forces.
“It’s a fitting topic for the Rural Assembly because rural men and women enlist in the armed forces at higher rates than those in metropolitan areas,” said Niel Ritchie, chairperson of the host committee for the meeting and director of a Minnesota nonprofit, League of Rural Voters.
The session will include a screening of clips from the documentary film, “Where Soldiers Come From,” along with a panel discussion with the film’s director and a young man from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula featured in the film. The film is slated for national PBS broadcast this fall.
The 2011 National Rural Assembly will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel-St. Paul Riverfront, in downtown St. Paul, Minn.
Registration for the event is open to individuals and organizations interested in the future of rural America. More information is available online at 2011.ruralassembly.org.
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Tim Marema, 865/748-5736, tim@ruralstrategies.org
Rural America Key to U.S. Turnaround
Policy change tops agenda for 2011 National Rural Assembly
With 55 million residents and 80 percent of the land area, rural America has a big role to play in helping the nation overcome its current economic difficulties.
"The whole country is going through a rough patch now," said Dee Davis, chairperson of the steering committee of the National Rural Assembly. "The question is whether we are going to have policy that lets everybody contribute, or are we going to keep doing the same old thing?"
Rural leaders from across the country will gather for the 2011 National Rural Assembly in St. Paul, Minn., June 28-30 to discuss rural assets and how the nation can create more opportunity for rural communities.
"Rural America can be part of turning things around: greener energy, local food, and broadband connections to people who are currently outside of the loop," Davis said.
The 2011 National Rural Assembly will focus on building consensus around more effective rural policy. This will occur in four areas: education, health, investment in rural communities and stewardship of natural resources. Within these areas, leaders will focus on such topics as broadband access, rural youth retention, health care, housing, transportation, community development and immigration.
Participants at the 2011 Assembly will represent community development corporations, local governments, schools, health clinics, tribal entities, libraries, businesses, youth groups, faith-based organizations and others working and living in rural areas.
The 2011 National Rural Assembly will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel-St. Paul Riverfront, in downtown St. Paul, Minn. For more information on the 2011 National Rural Assembly, visit www.ruralassembly.org.
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