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Just in Time Research: Resilient Communities

Preface

This is the second edition of Just in Time Research, a University of Minnesota publication designed to provide timely, research-based articles to Minnesota policymakers. This edition includes research and recommendations related to issues that are critical to the resilience and vitality of Minnesota’s communities.

The overall theme, Building Resilient Communities, grew from a scan of several recent reports and various listening sessions developed and conducted by several public and nonprofit Minnesota organizations. Other sources for the theme included studies done by the University of Minnesota faculty and attention to priorities set by the University of Minnesota Extension Service. The papers for this volume were chosen based on their relevance to the theme.

This year’s theme, Building Resilient Communities, deliberately crosses a broad spectrum of community topics including housing, community and economic development, immigrants and minority populations, and children and youth. The articles explore areas of interest and concern and make recommendations in the context of resilience being the capacity to manage internal and external changes both efficiently and effectively, capitalizing on assets and enduring strengths while serving the public interest.

We are fortunate to include an introductory piece by Dr. Cornelia Butler Flora, formerly Senior Fellow and holder of the College of Agriculture Endowed Chair in Sustainable Systems at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Flora is Director of the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development, Iowa State University. Her work on the changes facing communities and the forms of capital important to community development apply to rural, urban, and suburban communities of all types. Dr. Flora’s introduction provides a framework for further consideration of the questions, findings, and recommendations appearing in the articles of this publication.

The Just in Time Research project is a joint effort of the university’s Extension Service and Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, both of which provided substantial support for this project. Funded by the Extension Service, this project builds on collegiate collaborative efforts and interdisciplinary work encouraged and supported by the Extension Service in the interests of outreach and enhancing the future of Minnesota’s communities.

We encourage you to contact any of the authors should you want more information on any of the topics or policy implications under consideration. We also invite you to contact the University of Minnesota Extension Service or the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs with any questions, comments, or interest in programs or further studies on these or related topics.

Barbara A. Warren

Collegiate Liaison and Project Director
University of Minnesota Extension Service
and the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs

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Produced by Communication and Educational Technology Services, University of Minnesota Extension.

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