FARM RADIO FORUM PROJECT = 19[41-65]

Farm Radio Forum, [1941-65], was a national rural listening discussion group project sponsored by the Canadian Association for Adult Education, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and CBC.

The project is also called by the Canadian listening group project, the Farm Radio Forum, was the subject of great praise in its 25 year history before its demise in April, 1965.


The project was established in 1940 because of converging influences through a working agreement between three organizations—

•The Canadian Association for Adult Education,
•The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation,
•And the Canadian Federation of Agriculture.

Up to 27 000 persons met in neighborhood groups Monday nights, November through March, using half-hour radio broadcasts, printed background material and pre tested questions as aids to discussion of social and economic problems.


Farm Forum provided an antidote to the hard times of the 1930's economic depression, and meeting and discussing new ideas in neighbors' homes helped restore rural confidence, often leading to positive group action in the community. Farm Forum innovations included a regional report-back system, whereby group conclusions were collected centrally and broadcast regularly across Canada, occasionally being sent to appropriate governments.

In addition, discussion - leading to self-help - resulted in diverse community "action projects" such as co-operatives, new forums and folk schools. Farm and community leaders claimed that the give-and-take of these discussions provided useful training for later public life.

In 1952, UNESCO commissioned research into Farm Forum techniques. Its report was published in 1954, and consequently India, Ghana and France began using Canadian Farm Forum models in their programs.

Hasan Md. Shariful Haque [aranya]