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E Pluribus Unum: Diversity and Community in the Twenty-first Century

"Ethnic diversity is increasing in most advanced countries, driven mostly by sharp increases in
immigration. In the long run immigration and diversity are likely to have important cultural,
economic, fiscal, and developmental benefits. In the short run, however, immigration and ethnic
diversity tend to reduce social solidarity and social capital. New evidence from the US suggests
that in ethnically diverse neighbourhoods residents of all races tend to ‘hunker down’. Trust
(even of one’s own race) is lower, altruism and community cooperation rarer, friends fewer. In
the long run, however, successful immigrant societies have overcome such fragmentation by
creating new, cross-cutting forms of social solidarity and more encompassing identities. Illustra-
tions of becoming comfortable with diversity are drawn from the US military, religious institu-
tions, and earlier waves of American immigration."

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Mankato CityArt Walking Sculpture Tour 2011

The downtown core of Mankato and North Mankato – deemed the City Center – is currently undergoing a dramatic revitalization. Through the past couple decades, business and vivacity in the City Center has declined. In 2007 a City Center Renaissance Plan was drafted by numerous stakeholders who had a passion for ensuring that our downtown core would not stagnate, but instead would flourish and thrive as the unique signature of our community – the part of our city that sets us apart and holds the foundation of our identity.

These community plans recognized the need to enhance the aesthetics of the City Center while developing a vibrant arts economy as a cornerstone of the area. A primary initiative that came forward was the need for more public art, and the Sioux Falls SculptureWalk program emerged early on as the model for a public art initiative to replicate in the City Center.

Contributor

Twin Rivers Council for the Arts
2011-07-07 17:34
1 Comment

Cooperatively Moving Minnesota Forward

"Minnesota leads the nation in cooperative business development, with at least 1,016 Minnesota-based co-ops accounting for nearly 42,000 jobs and $1.5 billion in wages. Growing out of their agriculture roots, co-ops have developed into sustainable business models for the state’s entrepreneurs, workers, and consumers. They cross 16 industrial sectors from farming and biofuels to insurance and banking to education and daycare, according to University of Wisconsin figures..."

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Community Capacities and Community Necessities

"There is a new worldwide movement developing, made up of people with a different vision for their local communities. They know that movements are not organizations, institutions or systems. Movements have no CEO, central office, or plan. Instead, they happen when thousands of people discover together new possibilities for their lives. They have a calling. They are called. And together they call upon themselves.

In many nations, local people have been called to come together to pursue a common calling. It would be a mistake to label that calling “ABCD” or “Community Building.” Those are just names. They are inadequate words for groups of local people who have the courage to discover their own way — to create a culture made by their own vision. It is a handmade, homemade vision. And, wherever we look, it is a culture that starts the same way..."

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Minneapolis Neighborhood and Community Relations

"NCR is part of the broader City Coordinator department and will both serve residents directly and support all other City departments with enterprise guidance in the realm of strong neighborhood and community relationships.

NCR is charged with strengthening our City’s quality of life through vigorous community participation, resident involvement in neighborhood and community organizations, and supporting clearly defined links between the City, City services and neighborhood and community organizations."

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Seven Ways to Engage Teens in Civic Problem Solving Online

"The burning questions that seem to be on everyone's mind when it comes to teens' online civic engagement or any civic engagement are: How do we get a lot of participation? How do we sustain it over time? These are the first questions the Citizens League hears from adults as we embark on new Students Speak Out (SSO) initiatives.

This report conveys seven strategies the teens emphasized as most important for any seeking
authentic and useful information from them in an online setting.

1. Provide sincere, transparent experiences that give teens authentic opportunities to contribute to real discussions and projects. Otherwise, don’t bother.
2. Rethink your definition of participation. Worry less about increasing the number of actual posts on a topic and instead be satisfied with getting teens thinking.
3. Assume teens can handle and want to tackle meaty, complicated topics.
4. Invest in adults who facilitate, coordinate, motivate, and validate.
5. Make it easy for teens to spread the word and participate via Facebook.
6. Create a space that challenges people to consider a variety of perspectives and backgrounds.

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Students Speak Out

"Students Speak Out (SSO) is a social network (both online and offline) where teens influence policy conversations by co-defining public problems and co-creating solutions. It is a project of the Citizens League.

On SSO, teens like you participate to be heard, build solutions, and influence change. Teens' contributions here influence real public conversations. We believe that people affected by public problems need to have a say in how they are solved. Without your voice, that is, it's unlikely we'll really be able to solve the problems.

Likewise, we believe that having places like SSO where you can be involved at the forefront of policy and program design could help avoid many public problems in the first place. So, we work with partners to ensure that your work on SSO influences actual dialogue about policy design and problem-solving."

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Management & Technical Assistance Program (MTAP) for Nonprofits

"MTAP for Nonprofits is designed to help nonprofit organizations that serve urban communities build capacity and enhance their performance and effectiveness. The program will consist of three primary service components: the Convening component, the Technical Assistance component and the Executive Leadership Development component.

The Convening component will conduct symposiums, seminars and/or conferences that focus on topics such as "best practices," "nonprofit politics and funding" and "team building."

The Technical Assistance component will use students and faculty to provide management and technical assistance to participating organizations, in areas such as finance, marketing, strategic planning, human resource administration, program development, research and technology.

The Executive Leadership Development component will provide leadership training and development for board members, nonprofit executives and key employees within their organizations."

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Coworking Wiki

"Coworking is redefining the way we do work. The idea is simple: that independent professionals and those with workplace flexibility work better together than they do alone. Coworking answers the question that so many face when working from home: “Why isn’t this as fun as I thought it would be?” Beyond just creating better places to work, coworking spaces are built around the idea of community-building and sustainability. Coworking spaces agree to uphold the values set forth by those who developed the concept in the first place: collaboration, community, sustainability, openness, and accessibility."

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Lac qui Parle Computer Commuter

Increasing digital literacy in a rural county of west central Minnesota was the primary goal of the LqP Computer Commuter, a handicapped accessible mobile computer lab that weekly travels to six communities within Lac qui Parle County. Twelve local partners from the public and private sector came together to create a project that provides free access to computers and broadband with personalized assistance from an onsite trainer. Increasing the availability of technology and broadband access with the intent to improve digital literacy for all ages, the LqP Computer Commuter targets the following groups: low-income, low-skilled workers, unemployed, underemployed, persons with limited or no technology access, and those wishing to improve their computer skills. Collaborative partners for this project included: Farmers Mutual Telephone Cooperative, Frontier Communications, City of Bellingham, City of Boyd, City of Dawson, City of Madison, City of Marietta, City of Nassau, Minnesota River Valley Adult Education Services, TDF Foundation, Blandin Foundation, and Lac qui Parle County Economic Development Authority.

Contributor

Andrea Lewis
2011-07-07 10:52
1 Comment
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