Betty Kelly

Research Assistant

Phone:  204-243-2463

Email: kellyb@brandonu.ca

Betty Kelly brings a passion for rural communities, rural organizations and rural people to her work with RDI. She has over 30 years’ experience working with community based groups in rural and northern communities as a provincial Child Care Coordinator. She worked directly with community groups across rural, northern, First Nations and urban communities. While working, Betty completed her Masters of Rural Development and a Certificate in Adult Education. Her thesis “Strengthening Rural Communities by Strengthening Social Service Boards” included an in-depth study of just under 100 social service agencies across rural Manitoba. During her studies, Betty also co-authored a research report for Rural Development Institute and Rural Team Manitoba entitled “Changing Needs of Rural and Northern Women”. Betty has been consulting with rural non-profit organizations on integrated, collaborative governance models to strengthen service provision in rural communities. Betty has an interest in understanding the implications of public policy and serves as a member of the MB Agri-food and Development Council, 2008 – present. Betty also teaches Business and Human Resource Management courses at RRC, Portage Campus on a part time basis. Thru this work she has gained an added appreciation of rural employment issues and business development challenges. Betty grew up on a mixed farm, and she and her husband raised and showed Simmental cattle for a number of years. Thus her current work with the AGGP project is an especially good fit. Together with her studies in the MRD program, each of these experiences has strengthened and enriched Betty’s passion for the complex realities of the rural environment, the rural economy and rural life.

Research interests:

• The role of non-profit organizations in building community capacity and sustaining rural communities
• Climate change, environmental sustainability and the implications for agricultural communities.