A major goal of the experiment was to develop a network to serve the needs of the communities, as well as professionals in community development (education, health, communications and community economic development.)

Ancillary goals included promoting public awareness and participation in community communications; establishing and legitimizing the job description of community communications facilitator; promoting internet technologies as a tool for community development professionals; using internet technologies to network with other community development facilitators in Atlantic Canada; contacting expatriate Newfoundlanders through the internet; replicating the program outside the region, and strategizing ways to continue the program beyond the project completion date.

Sharing Our Future has 27 partners, all of whom have contributed. The project was administered by the Community Education Network (CEN) and coordinated by Ryakuga Grassroots Communication. Active members of the steering committee include representatives of CEN; Communities In Schools; Sir Wilfred Grenfell College; College of the North Atlantic; the Long Range Regional Economic Development Board, and Ryakuga.

Contributions to the project have included human resources; computer, radio and video equipment; office spaces and meeting rooms; internet servers; transportation; food and lodging, and communication. A distinctive feature of this experiment is the sharing of resources.

According to our basic principles, all residents of the communities are targeted as learners. But specific subgroups would include youth community media teams; local SOF facilitators; community development professionals; community organizations, and expatriates.

The major events of SOF included four training/networking conferences and a variety of community forums/cultural events.

Our last major event, at the end of the project, was the first time youth community media volunteers from rural Newfoundland communities were gathered together for training and networking.

Major innovations developed during the project included "the virtual office" and streaming audio (internet radio) from rural communities. Another was the use of special event community radio as a tool for community communication events. The traditional tool in Newfoundland since 1979 has been local television. Expatriates began to listen to our community webcasts.

Community communications was promoted throughout the region by the facilitators. More people attended the forums as well as being given the opportunity to be a participant on radio, television or internet.

We also developed tools for a community communications facilitator, including a job description.

The entire project - reports, guides, photos, videos and audio - is archived on the internet.