Wiring the state to bring high-speed sophisticated communication technology to every citizen is widely recognized and supported as important to economic development. Technology as a tool for civic engagement is cited less often as an argument. Perhaps it should be. The rural-urban forums demonstrated the interconnectedness of multiple factors affecting communities, whether they be rural or urban. This reminds us that everything is related to everything else, which is the simple but clear premise for systems thinking.
Civic engagement is about making the connections to first envision and then create a better future.
The Minnesota delegation maximized the opportunity not only to link with participants from other states, but also to advance a plan for continuing the rural-urban conversation in Minnesota. The possibilities are many for people to work together. Sustaining strength by surmounting obstacles is empowering . In order to move forward there must be two way understanding. Not impossible yet very challenging.