Prosperity through Collaboration: Review of Regional Development Models and Potential Applications to the Burin Peninsula

This paper identifies four regional development models from Canada, the United States, and the European Union: Municipalité Régionale de Comté, Liason Entre Actions de Développement l’Economie Rurale (Leader), Regional Competitiveness Model, and the Community Collaboration Model. Each model was selected because they have been deemed succesful in some regional development literature and collectively represent a diverse collection of regional development models. In discussion with the Burin Peninsula Regional Council the list of regional development models was finalized. An overview of each model is providing, highlighting key indicators for success, when available. Using the commentary received from community residents of the Burin Peninsula regarding collaborations an initial statement of potential application is provided. This statement should not be considered prescriptive; rather, an initial exploration. Further discussions among community residents, community-serving organizations, governments, and businesses should be conducted to further explore and validate the notions presented. Although a number of regional development models have been utilized throughout rural communities in Canada and internationally, gathering evaluative information on these models can be challenging. In constructed this document, evaluative information about the models, assessments of critical success factors, and lessons learned through the experience were not always publically documented. This lack of documentation hinders the ability to transfer knowledge and models to new rural regions