Side by Side

In this episode, Ellen talks with Lucas Grindley from Next City and Richard Young from Civic Lex. Lucas and Richard discuss their respective organizations and their dedication to strengthening urban and rural areas through solutions journalism and transforming civic engagement. They also share about their collaboration on the 2024 Next City Vanguard Conference in Lexington, Kentucky, which explored rural-urban interdependence, its complexities and opportunities. Conference discussions focused on themes such as rural-urban balance, using Lexington's unique urban service boundary as a case study, the importance of reckoning with historical context, and the need to transform regional planning efforts beyond government institutions.

More Information:
Richard Young Bio, https://www.rbryoung.com/civiclex
Lucas Grindley Bio, https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucasgrindley/
CivicLex, https://civiclex.org/
Next City, https://nextcity.org/
Lexington, KY Urban Service Boundary, https://civiclex.org/big-issues/urban-service-boundary
2024 Next City Vanguard Conference

Episode Highlights:
03:00 Next City and CivicLex

08:57 Lexington's Unique Urban-Rural Dynamics

16:23 Historical and Cultural Insights

21:53 Urban Service Boundary Explained

29:22 False Dichotomies in Growth and Preservation

33:59 Regional Planning and Economic Development

38:42 LGBTQ+ History and Rural-Urban Connections

42:17 Changing Perceptions of Kentucky

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Ellen talks with Extension foresters, Eli Sagor and Angie Gupta, about the significant impact forests have on rural and urban communities. Eli and Angie discuss the importance of collaboration and mutual understanding between urban and rural areas in maintaining healthy and productive forests, which are crucial for both economies and ecological balance. They also share their participatory science work that helps communities track environmental changes amid climate shifts. 

Episode Highlights:
03:21 Forestry and Climate Ready Woodlands

09:44 Forestry in Rural Areas

17:46 Urban and Rural Forestry Connections

24:55 Climate Change and Forestry

30:09 Community Engagement and Participatory Science

More Information:
Angie Gupta Bio, https://forestry.umn.edu/people/angela-gupta
Eli Sagor Bio, https://forestry.umn.edu/people/eli-sagor
Climate Ready Woodlands, https://z.umn.edu/ClimateReady

Extension Participatory Science, https://z.umn.edu/ParSciTIPS

iNaturalist, https://www.inaturalist.org/
Sustainable Forests Education Cooperative, https://sfec.cfans.umn.edu/

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Ellen talks with Chris Estes, co-executive director of Aspen Institute's Community Strategies Group, which supports rural communities, particularly those that have historically been overlooked. Chris emphasizes a shift from a deficit-based approach to an asset-based approach in community development and the benefits of rural-urban regional collaboration. He highlights successful strategies and models for regional cooperation that foster local ownership and nurture the intrinsic value of rural areas and their contribution to urban areas.

Episode Highlights:
03:07 Asset-Based Community Development

04:45 Interdependence of Rural and Urban Areas

06:38 Challenges in Rural Economic Development

15:19 Innovative Regional Models

20:04 Wealth Building and Local Ownership

26:25 Thrive Rural Framework

29:26 The Importance of Rural Data

More Information:
Chris Estes Bio, https://www.aspeninstitute.org/people/chris-estes/
Aspen Institute Community Strategies Group, https://www.aspeninstitute.org/programs/community-strategies-group/
Thrive Rural Framework, https://www.aspencsg.org/thrive-rural-development/
Four Principles for Fostering Community Well-Being with Asset-Based Development, https://www.aspencsg.org/four-principles-for-fostering-community-well-being-with-asset-based-development/

Questions, comments, want to get in touch?  Email us at [email protected]. We share your feedback with funders and stakeholders about the value of this podcast and how you engage with the insights and information.

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In this episode, Ellen talks with journalist Nora Hertel and her news initiative, Project Optimist. Project Optimist, founded by Nora, aims to bring positive and constructive perspectives through solutions-based journalism, addressing regional issues with an evidence-based approach. Nora explains how the challenges faced by local newspapers and the rise of digital media prompted her to start Project Optimist, emphasizing how these factors contribute to a lack of understanding between rural and urban areas. Nora shares her extensive experience in journalism and provides her perspective on the sensationalism in national cable news and the loss of community connection due to the decline of robust local journalism. Nora also discusses the complexities of modern journalism, how her efforts to foster community through “Shades of Purple” dialogues on divisive issues, and how more nuanced, solutions-focused reporting can help bridge the understanding between different areas.

Episode Highlights:
05:07 Challenges in Journalism

11:57 The Rise of Solutions Journalism

16:41 Project Optimist's Mission and Impact

24:17 The Fractured News Ecosystem

28:52 Future of Journalism

More Information:
Nora Hertel Bio
Project Optimist, https://www.projectoptimist.us/
Shades of Purple: Dialogue Across Difference, https://www.projectoptimist.us/conversations/

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Ellen talks with Tim Marema, editor of The Daily Yonder, a digital news platform that provides news, information, and storytelling about rural America. Tim shares how the news ecosystem has changed since he started as a journalist 30 years ago and how it has become much more fragmented and nationalized as news deserts in rural areas increase and local journalism overall declines. Tim reflects on how the loss of local news impacts the way rural and urban communities see each other, what today’s news ecosystem does get right, and why a new model of nonprofit news organizations is bridging the information gap between rural and urban communities.

Episode Highlights:

03:25 Challenges in Rural Journalism

10:03 Evolution of Local News

23:42 The Role of Nonprofit News Organizations

More Information:
Tim Marema Bio, https://nationalpress.org/speaker/tim-marema/
The Daily Yonder, https://dailyyonder.com/

Questions, comments, want to get in touch?  Email us at [email protected]. We share your feedback with funders and stakeholders about the value of this podcast and how you engage with the insights and information.

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Ellen talks with Camden Blatchley, a data analyst with the Center on Rural Innovation (CORI). Camden discusses the complexities of defining rural and urban areas in the United States, and describes the differences between the two most commonly used definitions: one developed by the Census Bureau and the other by the Office of Management and Budget. Camden explains how these differing definitions can paint different images of rural America and reinforce narratives about rural and urban areas as a binary, when in reality they are a complex, diverse, interconnected continuum of geographies, people, and economic conditions. Camden also highlights his work on the Rural Aperture Project and the necessity for more accurate storytelling and policymaking that reflect the true state of interdependence of rural and urban areas.

Episode Highlights:

03:51 The Many Definitions of Rural

10:25 Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Rural America

15:42 Economic Realities and Misconceptions of Rural America

18:09 Rural-Urban Connections

More Information: 

Center on Rural Innovation, https://ruralinnovation.us/

The Rural Aperture Project, https://ruralinnovation.us/resources/mapping-and-data-analytics/the-rural-aperture-project/

Defining Rural America, The Consequenes of How We Count, https://ruralinnovation.us/blog/defining-rural-america/

Who lives in rural America? How data shapes (and misshapes) conceptions of diversity in rural America, https://ruralinnovation.us/blog/who-lives-in-rural-america-part-i/

Who lives in rural America? The geography of rural race and ethnicity, https://ruralinnovation.us/blog/who-lives-in-rural-america-part-2/

The reclassification of rural counties and what it means for rural America, https://ruralinnovation.us/blog/the-reclassification-of-rural-counties-and-what-it-means-for-rural-america/ 

Questions, comments, want to get in touch?  Email us at [email protected]. We share your feedback with funders and stakeholders about the value of this podcast and how you engage with the insights and information.

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In the first episode of season 2, Ellen talks with David McCullough III, co-founder and CEO of the American Exchange Project (AEP). David discusses the origins and objectives of AEP, a program that sends high school graduates on week-long exchanges to different parts of the country. The program, inspired by international exchange initiatives after World War II, aims to foster cross-cultural understanding among rural, urban, and suburban students by building personal connections, which are key to overcoming prejudice, ignorance, and othering.

Episode Highlights:

02:54 How the American Exchange Project (AEP) Works: Activities and Experiences

12:11 The Impact of AEP on Students

22:37 The Historical Importance of Exchange Programs

More Information:
https://www.americanexchangeproject.org/

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In this special bonus episode, Ellen takes a break from working on season two to chat with her siblings, Megan and Keith, about their experiences growing up in rural Montana and North Dakota and their journey to urban spaces. Megan, Ellen, and Keith reminisce about their unique childhood from being the only girl in fifth grade to walking home from school with the cows and loving the wide open lands. They ponder why they all ended up in cities, the stereotypes and misconceptions people have about both rural and urban spaces, and how community building looks very similar no matter where you live.   

Little Megan, Ellen, and Keith

Megan, Ellen, and Keith's "backyard" growing up

Megan, Ellen, and Keith's "driveway" growing up

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In the final episode of Side by Side's first season, Ellen talks with photographer John Noltner, founder of ‘A Peace of My Mind,’ a storytelling project that captures personal stories and portraits to foster dialogue across divides. John discusses the human tendency to avoid challenging preconceived notions and how storytelling deepens our understanding of each other and breaks down stereotypes. John reflects on his experiences from Skid Row in Los Angeles to the deep South of Mississippi and border towns in Texas, highlighting the interconnectedness of rural, urban, and suburban spaces and the immense pride that individuals have for their communities. 

Episode Highlights:
03:44 John's Background and Origins of "A Peace of My Mind"

07:51 The Impact of Feeling Seen

10:50 Common Ground in Rural and Urban Communities

18:46 The Danger of a Single Story

20:40 Surprising Stories from Mississippi and LA

27:45 Sharing Stories and Creating Impact

More Information:
A Peace of My Mind, https://apeaceofmymind.org/

Stories from New York Mills, MN:

https://apeaceofmymind.org/2023/12/20/belonging-2-0/

Stories from skid row in Los Angeles, CA, https://apeaceofmymind.org/2021/07/06/vincent-turner/

Stories from Oxford, MI, https://apeaceofmymind.org/2023/04/18/duncan-gray/

Questions, comments, want to get in touch?  Email us at [email protected]. We share your feedback with funders and stakeholders about the value of this podcast and how you engage with the insights and information.

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In this episode, Ellen welcomes colleague Brigid Tuck, an economist at the University of Minnesota Extension, who sheds light on a 2011 study demonstrating economic interdependence between rural and urban areas in Minnesota. Conducted in collaboration with Minnesota Rural Partners, the study highlights how economic changes in either region can significantly impact the other, particularly in the agribusiness and manufacturing sectors. Brigid describes how Minnesota's urban areas benefit economically from improved prosperity among its rural neighbors and vice versa. Additionally, the discussion covers the ever-evolving definitions of 'rural and 'urban' that affect research methodologies and policy decisions. Brigid also shares her insights into what people get wrong about rural and urban communities in Minnesota.

Episode Highlights:

05:04 Key Findings from An Economic Rural-Urban Interdependence Study

11:22 Defining Rural and Urban Areas

18:09 Common Misconceptions About Rural and Urban Areas

More Information:
Brigid Tuck Bio, https://experts.umn.edu/en/persons/brigid-a-tuck

Urban vs. rural? More like urban and rural together, study says | UMN Extension, https://extension.umn.edu/vital-connections/urban-vs-rural-more-urban-and-rural-together-study-says

Greater Minnesota and Twin Cities 7-County Metro Area Jobs by Industry, 2024, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wEhyR3CMPD7E91dYdNzj9W_8ky00yL4j/view?usp=drive_link

Questions, comments, want to get in touch?  Email us at [email protected]. We share your feedback with funders and stakeholders about the value of this podcast and how you engage with the insights and information.

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