KY/TN Institute for
Sustainable Development
George Smith, Jack McDaniel, Kim Smith, Joe Griffy, University of
Tennessee
Rick Maurer, Lori Garkovich, Debra Cotterill, University of Kentucky
Gae Broadwater, Kentucky State University
Alan Barefield, Southern Rural Development Center
Purpose
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To provide training for county agents
in community and economic
development – concepts and skills
To provide an opportunity for county
agents to gain graduate credit by
completing an application project
during the training time frame
To share ideas on what works
Structure of the Institute
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Based on the Southern Regional
Community Development Institute
materials and organizational structure
3 days of training in April followed by 3
days in October
Training outline
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General community and economic
development principles
Track on capacity building
Track on economic development
General Community and Economic
Development Principles
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What is sustainable development?
Creating new paradigms in sustainable
development
Our roles in controversial development
projects
Rural versus urban development
Conflict resolution
Natural resource management and
economic opportunities
General Community and Economic
Development Principles
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Challenges and opportunities of
community and economic
development programs
Engaging new audiences
Engaging other parts of the university
in community economic development
Building partnerships
Track 1 – Capacity Building
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Asset mapping
Nurturing leadership
Natural resources from a community’s
point of view
Community infrastructure and
services
Smart growth
Advanced conflict resolution topics
Track 2 – Economic Development
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Business retention and expansion
E-commerce
Local economic development strategies
Economic opportunities of natural resources
Entrepreneurial coaching
Land use issues
Agri-tourism
Multi-function agriculture
Participants
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Total of 40 participants in first Institute
Agents from Kentucky and Tennessee
Agents and administrators from West
Virginia
Half also enrolled for graduate credit
which required completion of an
application project and presentation of
results
Sample Projects
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“An autumn walk by a stream, a natural resource
leadership retreat for women organized by
Gwenda Adkins, Elliott County (KY) Extension
agent
“Elements in the development of a farmer’s
market” by Karla Kean, Clarksville, TN Extension
agent
Application of principles of leadership
development and conflict resolution to Agricultural
Development Board members training – Robert
Amburgey, Jessamine County (KY) Extension
agent
Brittany Edelstein,
Shelby County KY Agent
Sample
Project
Becky Nash,
Taylor County KY
Agent
Sample Project
Homeplace on
the Green River
Participants Comments –
The strength of the Institute was:
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Collective experience of all the participants
together
Multi-state dynamism
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It’s a great idea to break state boundaries
Collaboration among states
Learning about other states and what they do
Interaction with people from other states
Participants Comments –
The strength of the Institute was:
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Informal networking
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Opportunity to discuss issues with other
agents and to look at what other
organizations are doing
Sharing of programs and ideas and
stories
New faces, new ideas
Hearing about different programs and
how agents use partnership
Challenges to Multistate Cooperation
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Travel
Coordinating workable dates
Variations in community economic
development responsibilities among
agents
Variations in community settings and
state policies, programs, and
regulations
Opportunities from Multistate Cooperation
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Diversity of innovative ideas
Recognizing that despite differences in
state conditions, there are fundamental
common challenges to community
economic development
Spread the SRDC CDI materials to agents
who would not likely travel to a regional
training – cost effective
Opportunities from multistate cooperation
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Builds on the community economic
development assets of participating states
Captures the value of specialists’ expertise
Some participants drew on the expertise of
others in developing and implementing
programs – within and cross-state sharing
Produced a CD-Rom of training materials
and presentations so information can be
shared
Broader Issues
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How to implement continuous training
in community economic development
for agents when
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Most agents do not have professional
backgrounds in community economic
development
Most agents do not have community
economic development in their title or as
an explicit program responsibility
Great discoveries and
improvements invariably involve
the cooperation of many minds
Alexander Graham Bell