The 2012 Rural Community Conference is less than a month away – register today!

What characteristics must communities develop and maintain in order to flourish? What legacy will be left to our rural communities? What will the population of Montana look like in the future, and how can these changes be addressed?

This is your chance to share, learn, connect and mobilize with others dedicated to creating a bright future for rural Montana. Find solutions, share success stories, adopt new tools, and leave ready to move from waiting to leading, from talk to action.

Please save the date for May 15-16, 2012 at Montana State University in Bozeman, MT. Scholarships http://www.ruralcommunityconference.org/scholarships.html are still available and cover the registration fee and a one night hotel stay. Visit the conference website at http://www.ruralcommunityconference.org to check out the exciting lineup of keynote speakers and workshops http://www.ruralcommunityconference.org/descbios.html and to arrange lodging http://www.ruralcommunityconference.org/logistics.html .

Here is a sample of some of the great workshops that are taking place at the conference:

· Rural Entrepreneurship Panel: featuring Sarah Calhoun of Red Ants Pants, Cindy Kittridge of the Montana Arts Council, and Jan Tusick of Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center

· A Windshield Tour of Community Change During a Boom: featuring Brent Moore of CTA Architects & Engineers

· Healthcare in Frontier Communities: featuring Mary Helgeson, Lawrence L. White Jr., Lisa Benzel, and Kristin Juliar – MT Area Health Education Center Directors

· Coming Together to Expand Montana’s Tourism Story: featuring Victor Bjornberg of the MT Office of Tourism

· Developing a Complete Streets Toolkit for Rural Montana Communities: featuring Cathy Costakis of the MT Nutrition and Physical Activity Program and Joe Gilpin of Alta Planning & Design

· Putting Transfer of Wealth into Practice: featuring Don Macke of the Rural Policy Research Institute Center for Rural Entrepreneurship Description: Description: