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Regional development links with USA
Dr Paul Collits, Research Fellow with the Regional Development Program at RMIT
University Hamilton, has been awarded two separate research grants.
The first, an $8,000 grant from the RMIT Emerging Researcher Grant Scheme, was
awarded to Dr Collits for a research project titled “The Heartland Project”.
This project aims to establish a network of Australian and American rural/regional
development researchers to investigate the key drivers of rural community survival
and decline in “heartland” regions in the two countries.
The grant will enable Dr Collits to investigate demographic changes in the Southern
Grampians Shire – what motivates people to move into or out of the area. This
project will start in early 2009.
It also allowed Dr Collits to undertake a three-week study tour of Nebraska, Missouri
and Kansas in the USA, where similar studies on population movements and rural
development have been undertaken.
The second research grant of $10,000 is linked to the Heartland Project and was
awarded to Dr Collits by The United States Studies Centre at the University of
Sydney.
The Centre works with the Lowy Institute, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute
and other leading Australian and US institutions to generate new ideas and dialogue
on major policy issues in the United States and Australia.
Dr Collits was awarded one of 10 grants, selected from nearly 90 applications from
universities across Australia – some with international collaborators.
This grant will provide for a rural development conference to be held in Hamilton in
2009, which will feature a number of North American rural development experts as
well as regional leaders, Australian researchers, policy makers and regional
development practitioners.
Themes at the conference will include rural entrepreneurship, regional innovation,
youth retention strategies and population attraction to rural areas.
RMIT University Hamilton will host a visit from the US by a Minnesota rural
development practitioner in March as part of the Heartland Project.
For interviews or comment: Dr Paul Collits, (03) 5572 0537.
For general media enquiries at RMIT University Hamilton: Dinah Hallam,
Communications Project Officer, (03) 5572 0505. A picture of Dr Collits is
available on request.
12 December, 2008
MEDIA
RELEASE
Media and
Communications
Tel. +61 3 9925 2807
Fax +61 3 9662 2739
MELBOURNE
BRUNSWICK
BUNDOORA
FISHERMAN’S BEND
POINT COOK
HAMILTON
HO CHI MINH CITY
HANOI
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