Key Practices in Creating a Learning Community

The effective practice of community development is critical in Midwestern rural communities facing the impacts of dramatic economic, technological, and social change. The forces behind such change have been well-documented and are extensively discussed in other chapters (e.g., Sofranko and Samy, Chapter 3; Johnson and Scott, Chapter 4; and Swanson, Samy, and Sofranko, Chapter 5). Primary among them is the phenomenon of globalization, fueled by the telecommunications revolution, which has brought rural communities into closer trade and communication linkages with the rest of the world. The agricultural sector, still the mainstay of many Midwestern rural economies, continues to decline as commodity prices hit new lows (although it is in the process of developing new opportunities through valueadded enterprises). Retail businesses are confronting stiff competition from large discount stores, catalogue operations, and e-commerce to such an extent that many go out of business. These forces, together with shifting demographics that reflect significant out-migration of young people and aging of the remaining population, have altered the economic and social fabric of many communities.