Tag: population

When taking population into account, the rate of COVID-19 cases is just as high, if not higher, in counties outside of the seven-county metro. By Kelly Asche May, 2020 Counties outside of the seven-county metro have some of the highest COVID-19 case rates in the state. But this so far hasn’t translated into a similarly ...

  In the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, with unemployment claims in Minnesota hovering at around 20% of the labor force, it might seem strange to talk about a workforce shortage. But just last winter (that seems so long ago, doesn’t it?) that’s exactly what we were talking about. As a follow-up to last year’s ...

And in related news, this from The New York Times… EXCERPT: “When I talk to undergraduate students about their postgraduate plans … the answer inevitably reveals a common assumption: Big cities are where highly educated people must go to succeed economically and socially….But these preconceptions are not only incorrect, they are also unduly limiting the ...

What is “Letters to the New Governor”? A compilation of essays giving insights and recommendations by experts from around the state writing on issues of importance to Greater Minnesota. They comment on the ideas and motivations behind some of our most difficult policy questions facing our state, including the region’s changing demographics, the rural economy, the ...

  Our research associate Kelly Asche can tell you all about the State of Rural Minnesota in 2019, the Center’s latest report, and our newly updated Atlas of Minnesota. Listen to his recent interview on KAXE/KBXE Bemidji-Grand Rapids-Brainerd-Ely.

  Reed Anfinson, owner of the Swift County Monitor and Grant County Herald newspapers and a CRPD board member, joins us this week to talk about the fact that the new governor of Minnesota is from Greater Minnesota, something that hasn’t happened in 30 years. Gov. Walz’s job now, says Reed, will be to balance ...

Each year, the Center for Rural Policy and Development provides a brief update on various economic and demographic data in rural Minnesota. As policy discussions concerning rural Minnesota unfold, it is important to understand the past, present, and potential futures of rural regions. This report provides historical data points, illustrating how rural conditions have changed ...

  Kelly Asche, research associate at the Center, has just completed an article that gets to the heart of the question of why it’s so hard to get housing built in rural Minnesota. While rural communities recruit workers to alleviate the workforce shortage, they find they don’t have the appropriate housing for workers they would ...

  In the third and final installment of our talk with the Center’s Kelly Asche on the State of Rural Minnesota, we cover the economic picture. Most of Greater MN weathered the Great Recession well thanks to agriculture, which also bolstered the state as a whole. On the other hand, there’s the rise of job vacancies, ...