International Visitors
The CCRI regularly hosts and invites overseas researchers to work within the Institute in order to share research with members of the CCRI. Current and recent visitors include:
In May 2008 the CCRI hosted Dr Jeffrey Hyde from Penn State University, USA, in connection with his work on value-added agriculture in the UK.
In November 2008, the CCRI welcomed the Vice-Minister of the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment Mr. Cao Viet Sinh, together with a ministerial delegation from the Vietnam Chia Se programme which is concerned to develop poverty alleviation strategies, particularly in Vietnam's poorer rural regions. More information can be found on their website http://chiase.mpi.gov.vn/Default.aspx?alias=chiase.mpi.gov.vn/en
The delegation was principally concerned to visit government departments and agencies in England, such as the Commission for Rural Communities and Natural England, to listen to examples of good practice in rural development, and to discuss local inclusion in rural development in Vietnam. They specifically asked to meet with the CCRI to understand more about different approaches to rural development in an academic context. Professors Nigel Curry and Malcolm Moseley gave presentations on community and asset based approaches to rural development, and Professor Michael Dower explained his approach to the implementation of a rural development training programme that he had developed in Vietnam and discussed its relevance, particularly to the remoter mountainous regions of North Vietnam.
Matthieu Ansaloni, a PhD student from the Institut National de Recherche Agronomique (INRA), visited the CCRI to work with Dr Janet Dwyer on the subject of his Doctoraal thesis relating to the greening the Common Agricultural Policy.
Dr Roel van Raaij from the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, the Netherlands, visited for discussions regarding sustainable rural development. He was particularly interested in the changing nature of agriculture and food, including the role of policy and research. Dr Damian Maye, Dr John Powell and Jane Mills met with him to talk about on-going research in the CCRI and to compare experiences in the UK, the Netherlands and also extension services in the US.
Professor Shinji Aoki from Toyo University, Japan (not to be confused with Tokyo!)visited in 2007. During his stay, Professor Aoki explored alternative tourism and countryside management in the United Kingdom, in particular focussing on the quality assurance systems for the farm bed and breakfast business.
Dr Ingrid Sarlöv Herlin has worked closely with CCRI
on a number of projects, particularly in the area of rural
development and landscape. She is from the Department of
Landscape Architecture at the Swedish University of
Agricultural Sciences. Her main interests are as a landscape
researcher in integrated planning and management of
landscapes and how landscape policy (particularly the
European Landscape convention) affects planning and
management of landscapes. In addition, Ingrid received a
fellowship grant in 2005/6 from the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development Co-operative
Research Programme: Biological Resource Management for
Sustainable Agricultural Systems, which enabled her to
spend thirteen weeks in the CCRI working under the
supervision of Professor Bill Slee.
Jesus Regidor is Professor of Agrarian Economy and Rural Development at the Autonomous University of Madrid. He is an adviser to the Spanish government on legislation and policies for rural development, and has made several visits to CCRI, for exchange of ideas and research into British approaches to Rural Development. In return, Visiting Professor Michael Dower visited Madrid in summer 2007 to contribute to a postgraduate course on European Rural Development which is organised by Professor Regidor.
