Activities

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Jefferson Center

Making participation more deliberative, and deliberation more participatory
A few weeks ago, we attended the Innovations in Participatory Democracy Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. The conference, which we were excited to support as both participants and presenters, brought together community leaders, government officials and staff, practitioners, researchers, funders, youth leaders, and technologists to explore innovations in government participation. We led a workshop on Citizens Juries, Assemblies, […]
Annie Pottorff
Electrifying the Local Energy Discussion
This article was co-written by Tara Ritter (IATP) and Annie Pottorff. Improved energy storage, clean energy jobs, and energy efficiency projects are reshaping the energy landscape around the world. Stevens County, Minnesota, a rural community of around 9,000, is at the forefront of this transformation. The community touts a public university, lots of land for […]
Annie Pottorff
Using Conversation to Build Collaboration Between Newsrooms and Communities
Last fall, we launched Your Voice Ohio, the second phase of an ongoing collaborative effort to help Ohio newsrooms better understand and respond to the needs of their communities. Our 38 Your Voice Ohio partner newsrooms are exploring new ways to connect with their communities and to communicate critical information more effectively. We’re looking at a […]
Annie Pottorff
Building Resilience in Winona County
We read a lot in the news these days about the large scale effects of climate change, from melting glaciers to intensified tropical storms. But many people are also noticing shifts in their own backyard, like the residents of Winona County. Higher temperatures, increased thunderstorms, and frequent heat waves have led to big changes in […]
Annie Pottorff
Turning Ideas into Community Action in Stevens County
It’s been almost 3 years since the Jefferson Center and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy kicked off our very first Rural Climate Dialogue in Stevens County, Minnesota! The 3-day long public deliberation gathered 15 citizens to discuss how their community could adapt to climate change and extreme weather events. Adapting to Change People […]
Annie Pottorff
Rebuilding Trust Through Dialogue
In the past year, common narratives about democracy have hinged on one main focal point: a severe absence of trust. We’ve heard that American trust in government fell to historic lows and that trust in the news media eroded as a result of social media echo-chambers and partisan news outlets. Knowing this, it’s easy to […]
Annie Pottorff
Our Energy Future: Stevens County Questions Answered
On December 6th, we cohosted the event Our Energy Future with the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy in Stevens County, Minnesota. We kicked off the evening by reviewing the basics of the energy system, presented by local experts. With this information in mind, residents broke up into small groups where they discussed what excited them about […]
Annie Pottorff
Community Energy Conversations: Working Together to Answer Complex Questions
This blog is part of an ongoing series where we interview community members, experts, and partners that have participated in our projects. Sydney Bauer, a junior at the University of Minnesota Morris and intern at the campus sustainability office, shares her experiences at “Our Energy Future: Stevens County” When I began my internship at the […]
Annie Pottorff
Em(power)ing the People: How Stevens County is telling a different energy story
This article was co-written by Tara Ritter (IATP) and Annie Pottorff. Driving through Morris, Minnesota, a rural community in the west-central part of the state, you can see wind turbines, solar panels, a biomass facility, and LED streetlights. For a small town with a population of around 5,000, the energy initiatives Morris has undertaken are […]
Annie Pottorff
Imagining Our Energy Future
There’s been a lot of national discussion recently about the future of our energy system. Saving coal jobs. Adding wind and solar energy. Electric vehicles. Pipelines. The list goes on and on. Much of that conversation ignores what’s happening in local communities across the country. And it rarely includes perspectives, concerns, and ideas from community […]
Annie Pottorff