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At first glance, the housing challenges in our two states couldn’t seem more different. California’s economy ranks as the world’s fifth largest and is home to several of the most expensive housing markets in the nation. Michigan, on the other hand, is often cited as the standard for rust belt decline. Its major cities and small towns are still recovering from the disruptions of the global economic shifts that led to de-industrialization and job loss. Yet, when we look a little deeper, we find that our states are more alike than they are different. While it is true that housing costs in California are significantly higher than in the Great Lakes state, housing affordability is a major challenge in both places. Follow this link to read more. Sourced from: Cities Speak

Regardless of where you sit within a municipality, you will inevitably find yourself in a position of responding to human needs. Isn’t that what public service is all about? Isn’t this what we signed up for? Of course, it is not always easy to fully understand the breadth and depth of a problem our colleagues or constituents are facing. Whether you’re going through a strategic planning process, coming up with your annual budget, or managing organizational change, human needs, motivations and behaviors can be hidden and unclear, but they ultimately drive the outcomes you are seeking. Follow this link to learn more. Sourced from: Cities Speak

In late 2016, the Extension Committee on Operations and Policy (ECOP) charged a small team of Cooperative Extension Service (CES) and non-Land Grant University professionals (referred to as a Rapid Response Team) to examine the current capacity of CES to respond to the need for dialogue to promote racial understanding and healing, and to provide recommendations to build CES capacity in this area. Following the April 2017 report to ECOP, the Rapid Response Team explored training options for civil dialogue on race relations to meet the need to expand capacity. Recently, a team of 23 professionals both within and outside the Land Grant University system have identified, organized, and refined a training process designed to prepare teams in participating states to serve as trainers within their own states. The Coming Together for Racial Understanding project team is launching its second train-the-trainer cohort on October 7-11, 2019, in Bloomington, MN. Teams of three per state are invited to participate, with priority given to states that did not participate in the first event last August. A preview webinar is scheduled for August 13, 2019 at 11 a.m. ET. Follow this link to learn more about Coming together for Racial Understanding Project. Follow this link to join the webinar August 13, 2019. Sourced from: Southern Rural Development Center