Today we are focusing on our second western Iowa town in this second phase of the series on the Seven Community Capitals. Bob Riley Jr. was the initiator of this series and has been my co-host for the past few months. I’ve been doing the weekly radio show – Green City – on KFMG 98.9 for seven-plus years now and have never had a co-host before, but it has been a lot of fun to host with Bob and we’ve enjoyed the conversations with our many guests.
In phase one, we took a close look at each of the Seven Capitals – Natural, Social, Financial, Political, Human, Cultural and Built, as defined by Flora & Flora in 2013. We are now examining how the various capitals are integrated into the history, success and future strategies for a few selected towns.
Through all of the discussions with our guests, our goal has been to dream of a post-Covid, aspirational world. Our guests have recognized ways to collaborate on positive, practical paths forward through the connected strength of the Seven Capitals with the successful outcome of resilient and sustainable communities.
During the past two weeks, we’ve talked with leaders from Des Moines and Le Mars. Today we focus on Jefferson, a vibrant town in the middle of Iowa, whose leaders have listened to the community; in particular the young members. They have continued to seek out ways to work collaboratively across the region with representation from all of the capitals in order to adapt, evolve and thrive in an ever changing environment. They have succeeded where others have struggled and their stories are an inspiration and serve as a model to rural communities everywhere.
Lending their expertise and insight to the discussion today are:
- Rick Morain, retired Editor & Publisher of the Jefferson Bee & Herald and now columnist for the Jefferson Herald
- Sid Jones, President & CEO of Home State Bank in Jefferson and President of the Greene County Development Corporation
Key Takeaways:
- Community assets (people) need to be invested to grow.
- A key to rural community sustainability is involving the young as well as the elders in decision making.
- Success can often be found when working in collaboration with leaders from the entire region; focusing on what can be developed and gained together instead of competing with one another.
- Bringing financial capital into a community can strengthen the other capitals as well.
- In the beginning of an initiative, you don’t always know how successful it will be but you have to try!
- A strong, independent media can be an asset to a town. If the town is doing something good, you boost it. If the town is doing something that doesn’t seem favorable, you question it.
“The greatness of a community
Is most accurately measured by
The compassionate actions
Of its members”
~ Coretta Scott King
“I am of the opinion that my life
Belongs to the whole community
And as long as I live,
It is my privilege
To do for it whatever I can.
~George Bernard Shaw
Thank you for listening to today’s discussion. Let’s continue the conversation and learn from each other.