2024 Wisconsin Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference

May 2024 – On May 30-31, over two hundred rural economic developers, community leaders, and entrepreneurs descended upon Platteville, WI, a small town in southwestern Wisconsin, population of 11,840, for Wisconsin’s first Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities (CEC) Conference. Known as a conference “about small towns, for small towns,” the CEC conference offers programming, discussion, and networking for stakeholders in Wisconsin’s rural business development. Other Midwestern states such as Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Nebraska hold the CEC Conference on an annual basis as part of their rural economic development strategy. 

Business Owners of Color in Wisconsin: Trends & Outcomes

In recent years Wisconsin has seen massive spikes in business ownership among nonwhite entrepreneurs yet the state continues to have an overall low number of businesses owned by people of color. These findings are among those compiled in a new report “Business Owners of Color in Wisconsin: Representation, Profitability, and Growth”. This webinar focuses on the trends and outcomes for business owners of color in Wisconsin.

WIndicators Volume 7, Issue 1: Wisconsin Farming: Insights from the 2022 Census of Agriculture

Every five years the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) undertakes a detailed inventory of farming operations across the country. The most recent, the 2022 Census of Agriculture, aims to provide a detailed snapshot of the nation’s farming economy, including information on farm demographics, production practices, land use, and economic trends. The intent of this issue of WIndicator is to provide an overview of recent trends in Wisconsin farming using the Census of Agriculture. We pay particular attention to the changes since the last Census in 2017 to understand trends in key metrics for Wisconsin agriculture with some references to longer term trends (1997 to 2022).

2024 Wisconsin Rural Economic Summit

Using the latest research and data specific to Wisconsin’s rural communities and regions, this summit focuses on the Wisconsin rural economy. The summit includes an overview of the latest economic and demographic trends across rural communities, and an examination of rural health care, housing, and broadband. Conversations will include what rural communities can do to foster economic growth and development.

Rural Pharmacies an Overlooked Piece of the Rural Health Care System

This webinar explores the pivotal role of rural pharmacies in providing vital healthcare services, especially in areas affected by hospital closures. Learn why the decline of independently owned rural pharmacies is a pressing concern, affecting medication access and downtown vitality.

Willingness to Pay for Broadband Internet

The UW-Madison EDA University Center conducted a statewide survey of Wisconsin residents on broadband access and affordability, with the goal of estimating the willingness to pay for broadband. As the state makes significant investments in broadband infrastructure, attention is shifting to the willingness, or ability, of people, particularly lower income people, to pay for broadband subscriptions.

Using Labor Market Information to Address Rural Workforce Challenges

This webinar highlights several rural workforce challenges and the role that university extension can play in addressing these challenges. It also introduces the Future Opportunities for Rural Workforce and Rural Development (FORWARD) curriculum designed by the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development (NCRCRD) at Purdue University and the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities (APLU)—a curriculum intended to support extension professionals in their efforts address some of these rural workforce challenges. The webinar gives particular focus on how labor market information (LMI) and other types of socio-economic data can be more effectively woven into rural workforce planning efforts.

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