Minnesota Rural Summit 2001 Review

The Community Development Society, Minnesota Rural Partners, and the National Rural Development Partnership joined with community development practitioners, researchers, policy makers, and citizen leaders from around the world to a host a joint international conference to which was held in Duluth, Minnesota, USA, from July 21st-26th, 2001.

The Times-they-are-a-changing joint international summit on community and rural development attracted 1,200 participants to Duluth, Minnesota. Forty-seven U.S. states and 15 countries were represented. The conference highlighted the policy, research, and practice implications of forging . Working partnerships designed to build viable rural and urban communities. The conference focused on the process of building "outcome directed" partnerships involving the cooperative efforts of business, government, tribal, non-profit, higher education, and citizen groups to strengthen-rural and urban communities.

This conference embraced common efforts to foster meaningful collaborations, extended community development networks, and holistically integrated community-based research, policy, and practice toward the goal of building healthy and sustainable communities. It provided a valuable opportunity to sharpen professional skills, discuss critical issues, and interact with colleagues.

Conference Theme: The conference highlighted the policy, research and practice implications of forging working partnerships designed to build viable rural and urban communities. The conference focused on the process of building outcome directed partnerships involving the cooperative efforts of business, government, tribal, non-profit, higher education and citizen groups to make rural and urban communities better places in which to live, work, play, and achieve human potential.

This event offered participants an unprecedented opportunity for networking and developing partnerships to support viable rural communities. Rural development leaders, who often only have time to consider one framework-practice, research, or policy-in doing their work, were exposed to all three aspects of rural development. By integrating the three, leaders can better equip rural and urban communities rural to work together in meeting the challenges of a new century. MRP led the policy focus, with the International Community Development Society and the National Rural Development Partnership providing leadership in the research and practice sides of the triangle.

Summit History
2001 Summit
2002 Summit
2003 Summit
2004 Summit
2005 Summit