The recommendations of community members in the Rural Dialogues helped catalyze community collaboration by identifying opportunities for shared action and policy initiatives. We worked with local partners and political leaders to identify resources and other forms of assistance to move community recommendations forward.
See what the Dialogues accomplished.
Stevens County
- In June 2014, the Jefferson Center and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy hosted the Morris Area Climate Dialogue.
- The University of Minnesota-Morris and the City of Morris are working together to develop plans for community renewable energy implementation at residential, municipal and business scales.
- The City of Morris has replaced public lighting with LEDs; public push for Otter Tail Power to transition the public lighting they own.
- The Morris City Council signed a sister city, climate protection, and technical assistance agreement with Saerbeck, Germany to explore the development of clean energy.
- The Morris Area High School began incorporating climate change into its curriculum.
- The Federated Church is working with project partners and communities of faith to promote awareness and discussion of climate and extreme weather issues among their members.
- A partnership of community churches, student groups, and area leadership development programs hosted a community education event in April 2015 featuring a deliberative discussion of community recommendations and a screening of the film “Chasing Ice.”
- Dialogue partners secured funding from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to work on Dialogue recommendations through 2016.
- The Morris Model was launched to encourage energy conservation, renewable energy, and community resilience.
- Local leaders convened the Extreme Weather Action Meeting (EWAM), modeling the deliberative approach of the Morris Area Climate Dialogue, to begin considering extreme weather in emergency management strategies and other areas.
- Community members receive Environmental Initiative award in 2015 for community action.
- Morris was chosen as a finalist for the Minnesota Clean Energy Community Award from the Department of Commerce.
- The University of Minnesota-Morris purchases an electric vehicle and installs a charging station.
- Morris has begun planning to expand district heating between the university campus, local public school buildings, and the hospital.
- Delegates from Morris and Germany continue to visit each other’s communities to discuss clean energy and economic development.
- The Morris Model wins a “Local Government Award” from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs in December 2017.
Itasca County
- In May 2015, the Jefferson Center and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy hosted the Itasca Climate Dialogue.
- The Grand Rapids High School Green Team and the Interact Club are partnering to design, install and educate the community on green infrastructure, including installing a rain garden on the school grounds.
- The Itasca Clean Energy Team and the Grand Rapids Public Utilities are in advanced stages for installing a community solar garden.
- The Itasca Clean Energy Team secured a $5000 grant to use for a feasibility study among available community solar options.
- The Grand Rapids Public Utility held a community meeting during 2018 Public Power Week to hear about the proposed community solar garden and identified key information, top priorities, and top concerns about the project.
- The Grand Rapids Public Utility has entered into an agreement with Minnesota Power, which supplies the public utility with their energy, to manage the proposed 1MW of solar and 2 MWh of battery storage.
Winona County
- In March 2016, the Jefferson Center and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy hosted the Winona County Climate Dialogue.
- Rural Climate Dialogue participants presented Dialogue results at a Winona County Commission meeting in July 2016.
- Dialogue partners receive a Minnesota Pollution Control Agency grant to carry out Dialogue recommendations through 2019.
- The City of Winona receives Minnesota GreenStep Cities designation.
- Local partners initiate community-wide energy conservation and water conservation competitions.
- Local partners register as a formal 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Sustain Winona.
- The City of Winona adopts a formal Community Energy Plan, with plans to become carbon neutral.
- Dialogue partners initiate a first of its kind community-utility partnership to perform energy audits for low or fixed-income individuals.
- Xcel and SEMCAC partner to perform energy audits, dramatically increasing the local capacity of certified energy auditors. Partners initially planned to complete 30 audits and have since performed more than 200.
Check out the project timelines in Itasca, Stevens, and Winona County to dig deeper into the ways Dialogue communities are implementing community recommendations!
