Group IX – Community Economic Development Seminar

The Community Economic Development Seminar was held in the Eau Claire area on November 6-9, 2001, co-chaired by Steve Deller, Professor, Agricultural & Applied Economics, UW-Madison and Agricultural & Applied Economics, UW-Cooperative Extension and William Pinkovitz, Associate Professor, Center for Community and Economic Development, UW-Cooperative Extension. A special thanks to our seminar sponsors, Badgerland Farm Credit Services, Eau Claire Press Company, Country Today, and Eau Claire Energy Coop.

The goal of the seminar was to help participants know if their community is on the right track for positive economic development by recognizing the issues through an examination of what other communities have done.Seminar Objectives included:

• Gaining a better understanding of successful community economic development.
• Gaining insight into community economic development issues.
• Gaining an appreciation of the tools and methods that can be employed to better the economic development of communities.
• Exploring how the seminar information relates to their community.

Group IX participants examining data from the community they explored the day before.  A special dinner was held on Wednesday evening for Group IX participants and alumni.