Rural Opportunities - just open your computer and connect

These days more and more people are turning to the Internet for work, social activities and starting new businesses.  The Internet levels the playing field so to speak.  People living on a western short grass prairie near a town of 300 have access to the same web-based information as a Wall Street Investor from the Big Apple, thereby opening opportunities for folks everywhere. 

Internet access is especially important to rural youth.  They use it as a tool for work and play; it's truly become a necessity for many folks.  Ever Young Entrepreneurs, a Boston Globe article, highlights stories of young folks creating business opportunities using their computer.

To keep web-based information open to all, rural places need broadband access.  A memo Rural Broadband Internet Use (2/06), reports that only 24 percent of rural adults have high-speed Internet access while 39 percent of urban/suburban adults have this access. This disparity adds to the challenges rural people face, and must be resolved as rural development polices and laws are created.

Related Links:

Rural Broadband Coalition

Rural Broadband Access Loans and Loan Guarantees

The US Rural Broadband Crisis

Rural U.S.: Doomed to Dial-up?

Local politics for bigger change

One can find politics everywhere: the county board, state legislature, Presidential races and even the  local church council.  In a Common Dreams article, Russell Mokhiber writes about using local politics and local civic engagement as part of change on a larger scale. 

Morgan County USA is a great example of one county using the web as a tool to organize, share resources, and increase engagement in a local area.  As Mr. Mokhiber writes, if every county did something similar the country would improve. 

Rural Films

Looking for some rural shows?   The Rural Route Film Festival offers a place for folks to submit videos about "rural."  Rural Route travels around and shows the films at various venues.  Check their site for event locations.

Can't make it to a film festival? Then check out videos from some rural youth at on the web.  These young folks share why rural is important to them and discuss the challenges they face when trying to live a rural life.  We'd love to hear from you too.  You're invited to join this You Tube group and submit your own video. 

Agroecology Summit

The sun pierced through the clouds, soon to dry the dew soaked grass that now dampened my socks.  I couldn't help but enjoy it.  After all, I just spent the night on a beautiful porch overlooking Fish Lake while a chorus of crickets sang me to sleep. 

I was well rested and on my way to help ready the big old diary barn for the days event, the Agroecology Summit.  The Summit is an annual event hosted by Windom area farmer Tony Thompson.  This year's event provided over 70 attendees the opportunity to discuss the increasing competition for land use across the rural landscape and its impacts on the future of farming.  Panelists covered topics on energy, agronomy, ecological function and recreation.  The afternoon tour included a stop at nearby POET energy, a corn ethanol plant, and a farm owned wind cooperative.  This tour was, of course, after a walk through the farm learning about the various sustainable crop production methods used, native prairies restored and lots of networking. 

All the food was local - I can attest to staying up late the night before pulling edamame beans off the stalk!  Truly an educational, fun and social day, I thought as I enjoyed the last kernal on my locally grown corn cob at dinner that evening.

Thank you Tony and all the folks at the farm for the opportunity to truly enjoy a day at the farm.

Local Food Systems Assessments

Last Friday, Kate Clancy, Senior Fellow at the University of Minnesota, met with some folks from the Willmar community to discuss food systems assesssments.  Ms. Clancy has worked in nutrition and food systems for a number of years and her expertise is beyond measure.  We enjoyed hearing her talk about past work and current developments on food systems. 

Over a hot cup of coffee in the upstairs room of an old house turned coffee shop in downtown, Ms. Clancy shared some key elements in conducting a food system assessment.

• Food must be part of community planning: Planners and Economic Development folks should include food in the work they do.
• Decide as a steering commitee what questions you want answered before designing your food system evaluation.  There are many topics such as energency preparedness, access to food, hunger, agricultural opportunities, nutrition, and so many more.  You may need to choose a section to do first, then come back and do the rest later. 
• Examine who is at the planning table and who needs to be invited.  Be sure you have your target audience represented and have brought in your local community leaders.
• Anticipate the questions you will receive from folks.  What will they ask and how can you have the answers ready?
• Know your community laws and regulations, organizations working in food systems areas and history of what's been done in the past.
• Food systems are not new. For years, many other countries and local communities have been exploring food systems and conducting food system assessments.  Do some research.

If you are interested in what other countries and communities are doing, here are some sites to get you started.

Counties and Local Food Systems - a report from National Association of Counties

Community Food Security Coalition

Discovering the Food System A Primer on Community Food Systems:Linking Food, Nutrition and Agriculture

Community Food Systems Bibliography