“New Ways in an Old Continuity”

The World Commission on Environment and Development declared in 1987 that “Sustainable development should meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. It implies a process of change in which the use of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development, and the structure of organizations reflect both the present and future needs. Based on the tenets of equity and sound stewardship, it also implies wiser and more productive use of existing human, financial, and natural resources. Simply put, qualitative improvements over quantitative expansion.

Activities that are socially sustainable should also be more people focused and responsive to human needs. Normally, asking people what they need, rather than telling them what they can have will lead to development strategies that are more widely supported and provide benefits to a greater number of people. This can only work, however, if people accept that change is inevitable and embrace it as a potential means to keep their community and region viable.

Focussing on options that simultaneously promote cultural, economic, environmental, and social gain is the key to avoiding past mistakes. Developing a new vision of the future - one that is not only economically secure but is also culturally and environmentally restorative, is pivotal to the development process and must never be far from the minds of those affiliated with community rebuilding, restructuring, or development.

As pointed out by the Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation in 2005, “laissez faire development approaches can ruin rural communities and their quality of life. Without better consultation and planning, the well-being of rural communities is, and will continue to be, at the mercy of random development, ad hoc initiatives and, at best, short-term economic success”.

For almost twenty years I have been repeatedly saying that overcoming entrenched problems in rural regions of the Province requires developing a culture of innovation and learning. Old responses and behaviors will keep a community stuck with old problems. To move beyond the comfort zone of familiar ideas, our communities must engage people in new ways to process and stimulate new ideas.

Exposure to new and innovative ideas and a raised awareness of a community’s need for new direction is an essential first step in any development process. Providing learning opportunities that both expand a community’s vision and dispenses concrete knowledge of successful practices is absolutely essential.

Shorefast Foundation, a Canadian registered charity working with the people on Fogo Island and Change Islands, may well be an excellent example of my premise. The backbone of this foundation is built on a set of principles that support the inherent qualities and strengths and character of the people in the community. They focus on the importance of roots and heritage… and that looking at what has formed us in the past is essential to building a strong future. It believes there is a future for rural communities and that future is built on innovation, resilience, optimism and the ability to adapt.

The reality is that they may not be able to accurately forecast the future but they feel that they have some responsibility for it. In order to take that responsibility seriously they appear to have considered the implications of current development initiatives and how they may impact future sustainability.

Historically, we have often under-estimated the importance of long-term thinking on effective planning in this province. Essentially, we have been driven by short-term projects as a means of addressing immediate, day-to-day needs. I am not convinced that much has changed in that respect, but the insightful and opportunistic attitude of Zita Cobb, Shorefast co-founder and native Fogo Islander, has captured the attention of politicians and bureaucrats as she endeavours to turn Fogo Island into a magnet for the arts and a retreat for wealthy world travellers.

Shorefast Foundation has strategically set a conservative target for the number of tourist it needs to attract annually (one for every inhabitant living on the islands) to turn a profit. Considering there are well over 10 million people around the globe who are classified as U.S. dollar millionaires it should not be difficult to generate a marketing scheme to satisfy its principles, attract eco-friendly clientele, and still protect the overall integrity of the local environment.

Cobb sees realistic opportunity on this eastern edge of barren rock jutting into an endless ocean. Not the kind of opportunity, maybe, that Skipper Douglas Payne dreams about as he sits silently at the base of Brimstone Head. Although both are married by heritage and history and culture and family, they represent two different generations that have simply been connected by heritage. One looks back and longs for what use to be while the other looks beyond the horizon and dreams of “finding new ways in an old continuity”.