I find I now spend some of my spare time on the internet and find forums a good source of information. Usually its farming, enterprise or rugby related; there you know all my interests now!
This got me thinking - have these forms of communication, along with social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, replaced the chats at market or down the pub? I suspect not quite yet but can foresee the day that they will.
The difficulty in many rural areas of Devon and Cornwall is that access to a decent broadband connection is often difficult and in some places impossible. All that is about to change, Cornwall has already embarked on a super fast broadband programme and the recent announcement of £50 million from BDUK for Devon and Somerset will mean those areas will see dramatic improvements in broadband speeds over the next couple of years.
This will allow people and businesses in the rural areas the chance to compete on equal terms with urban areas and will encourage businesses to locate anywhere they choose. It always amazes me when I talk to people located in the Okehampton Business Centre to find they do almost all of their business “virtually”; whether that’s environmental waste management in Manchester, data management for the Scottish nuclear power industry or the supply of wood fuel nationally. Super fast broadband will undoubtedly improve the area’s economy by increasing the business opportunities, allowing people to work from home (reducing travel to work costs) and being able to market to the world.
Internet forums may well be responsible for huge leaps forward in agricultural practices. At the beginning of the 20th century they would have had no weekly farming magazine, no internet, no television and no radio. They simply had the wisdom and experience of their forefathers handed down through the generations; and had access to the thoughts and ideas of their neighbours at market and social gatherings and drew on their own experiences too. Given very few people like change, preferring to stay in their comfort zone, if a farmer developed a new farming practice 100+ years ago the majority of his neighbours would reject it initially, sticking to what they know. With the Internets instant communications new techniques and methods can be viewed by the world in minutes, if it’s good it will be taken up and if it’s a bad idea it will be dismissed in no time at all.
That’s the positive side, but whilst this will mean most people will be “connected” in a virtual sense, they are becoming increasingly isolated in many rural areas, no more so than in the agricultural community. Trips to market are now rare as direct selling and the distance to the remaining livestock markets increase, very few agricultural supply firms can afford an army of reps driving down farm lanes. Many farmers now also work on their own as they cannot afford employees. This is compounded by most farmers’ wives having to go out to work to support the family income. Further, the closure of village shops, schools, and pubs all limit the opportunities for the odd chat with the local community support network.
For those that find times difficult there are a number of support initiatives, including the Farm Crisis Network, Church Support groups and ARC Addington. They came into their own in 2001 and continue to do fantastic work.
Recently the Commission for Rural Communities have announced they are researching how people in rural areas are socially isolated. The Commission aims to make firm recommendations to the government and other bodies about the services provided to isolated rural people. It’s good to see the issue of isolation is being recognised and the introduction of super fast broadband can go some way to alleviate its effects, but I doubt there’s anything better than a chat over a pint or a cup of tea.
Why not share your thoughts on the subject and visit BIP’s forum and go to the Business Discussion topics.
This got me thinking - have these forms of communication, along with social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, replaced the chats at market or down the pub? I suspect not quite yet but can foresee the day that they will.
The difficulty in many rural areas of Devon and Cornwall is that access to a decent broadband connection is often difficult and in some places impossible. All that is about to change, Cornwall has already embarked on a super fast broadband programme and the recent announcement of £50 million from BDUK for Devon and Somerset will mean those areas will see dramatic improvements in broadband speeds over the next couple of years.
This will allow people and businesses in the rural areas the chance to compete on equal terms with urban areas and will encourage businesses to locate anywhere they choose. It always amazes me when I talk to people located in the Okehampton Business Centre to find they do almost all of their business “virtually”; whether that’s environmental waste management in Manchester, data management for the Scottish nuclear power industry or the supply of wood fuel nationally. Super fast broadband will undoubtedly improve the area’s economy by increasing the business opportunities, allowing people to work from home (reducing travel to work costs) and being able to market to the world.
Internet forums may well be responsible for huge leaps forward in agricultural practices. At the beginning of the 20th century they would have had no weekly farming magazine, no internet, no television and no radio. They simply had the wisdom and experience of their forefathers handed down through the generations; and had access to the thoughts and ideas of their neighbours at market and social gatherings and drew on their own experiences too. Given very few people like change, preferring to stay in their comfort zone, if a farmer developed a new farming practice 100+ years ago the majority of his neighbours would reject it initially, sticking to what they know. With the Internets instant communications new techniques and methods can be viewed by the world in minutes, if it’s good it will be taken up and if it’s a bad idea it will be dismissed in no time at all.
That’s the positive side, but whilst this will mean most people will be “connected” in a virtual sense, they are becoming increasingly isolated in many rural areas, no more so than in the agricultural community. Trips to market are now rare as direct selling and the distance to the remaining livestock markets increase, very few agricultural supply firms can afford an army of reps driving down farm lanes. Many farmers now also work on their own as they cannot afford employees. This is compounded by most farmers’ wives having to go out to work to support the family income. Further, the closure of village shops, schools, and pubs all limit the opportunities for the odd chat with the local community support network.
For those that find times difficult there are a number of support initiatives, including the Farm Crisis Network, Church Support groups and ARC Addington. They came into their own in 2001 and continue to do fantastic work.
Recently the Commission for Rural Communities have announced they are researching how people in rural areas are socially isolated. The Commission aims to make firm recommendations to the government and other bodies about the services provided to isolated rural people. It’s good to see the issue of isolation is being recognised and the introduction of super fast broadband can go some way to alleviate its effects, but I doubt there’s anything better than a chat over a pint or a cup of tea.
Why not share your thoughts on the subject and visit BIP’s forum and go to the Business Discussion topics.
