Dr. Leonard Pluta
Coady Institute shares with great sadness the death of Dr. Leonard Pluta. A former St. Francis Xavier University Economics professor, Leonard worked closely with Coady Institute during the 1970s and 1980s conducting field research and teaching around the world. He also co-authored The Big Picture: The Antigonish Movement of Eastern Nova Scotia along with Dr. Santo Dodaro in 2012.
In December 1973, Leonard and Professor Walter Kontak spent 25 days in the West African states of Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone gathering material for a research project meeting with many Coady graduates studying how aspects of the Antigonish Movement were being used by graduates. A StFX University Research Council grant made the survey possible.
He also facilitated three refresher courses overseas, plus a seminar in Kitwe, Zambia at the Mindola Ecumenical Centre where he was joined by Norman Riley and Dr. Eric Amit during the winter of 1974. The seminar explored the theme of human resources, co-operatives, and economic development. Leonard took part in the summer session on Social Development later that year. The work with Coady in 1974 occurred while Leonard was on sabbatical from StFX.
By February 1975, he was back at work and facilitated a three-week session in Accra, Ghana. The regional seminar focused on development problems, human resource development, and the use of credit unions and other forms of cooperative endeavours. Leonard, Coady Director Father George Topshee, Dr. Eric Amit, and Dougal MacDougal who had been seconded to the project by CUNA Mutual Insurance Society worked with participants from Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon. Several Ghanian dignitaries and the Canadian High Commissioner were present for the opening of the sessions.
Leonard and Eric Amit (Assistant Director, Overseas Programs) also conducted a study to evaluate the effectiveness of an estimated 40 development centres that promoted the Antigonish Movement in the early 1980s. Some of these centres had been established with the assistance of Coady, while others were staffed at the senior decision-making levels by graduates. Centres studied included ones in Dominica, Sierre Leone, Sri Lanka, and Taiwan. This was a first step to identify, document, and evaluate the effectiveness of such development centres particularly around whether these centres could play a role in the enhanced effort by Canada in working towards a solution for the world food problem. The Science Council of Canada financed the major costs of the project.
The study showed that the four centres engaged in programs for development of institutional and human resources and shared common problems in mounting their programs. Linking similar organizations at a regional and international level would strengthen and increase their potential. As a follow-up additional consultations were scheduled for Asian, African, and Latin American centres with directors gathering to share experiences and to map out a program for mutual support and growth with Coady playing a supportive role. Leonard and Coady Director Dr. A. A. MacDonald facilitated the African workshop at Silveira House, Zimbabwe with representatives of 20 organizations from Zambia, South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Mauritius, Sierre Leone, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Botswana, The Gambia, and Malta present.
The Big Picture: The Antigonish Movement of Eastern Nova Scotia is available to check out, along with more than 12,000 other books, at the Marie Michael Library at Coady Institute. To learn more about Leonard Pluta, read his obituary online.
