Blogging is about conversations. So is community development. So maybe community development could be about blogging...
I thought I had a totally new dissertation idea there. Then I found out the smart folks at the SDSU Cooperative Extension Service have already beaten me to it. As part of the Horizons project, they have 21 South Dakota communities blogging:
I've added the list to the right sidebar as well. Take a look -- there are a lot of interesting projects going on. (Gotta have data -- check out the Bison demographics page!) The blogs serve a practical purpose as a convenient place for each town's committee to archive their Horizons mission statements and other documents that the project might require. The communities can document their progress as they undertake projects to "increase leadership and decrease poverty."
A quick survey shows that five of the participating towns -- Armour, Murdo, Newell, Philip, and Whitewood 434 -- have discovered the joy of hit counters. Whitewood is ahead, with 434 hits (not to mention a good spread of posts!), with Newell and Armour coming on strong. (Beware the SiteMeter, kids! Numbers can be addicting!)
There is also a state Horizons site coordinating the community blog efforts. On the humorous side, the latest post there has some priceless blog advice on not overusing the new text color shortcut ("don't go crazy here--remember sometimes less is more!").
I'm intrigued. Folks blogging not for polemics or imagined fame, but to share information with neighbors and promote the common good. Maybe these community blogs can draw out some ideas and plans that might not jump out under everyone's gaze at a public meeting. Maybe blogs really can do some good, not just for geeky technophiles, but for every South Dakotan.
There may be a dissertation in there yet. I look forward to hearing from participants (including my friends in Montrose -- keep on blogging!) about how community blogging helps them carry out their Horizons project goals.
I like this idea. These blogs are a great way for people who once lived in them to keep some sort of connection with their locality. I personally think these types of blogs are the newspapers of the future, nothing fancy, just news sites with stories about one small corner of the country. You don't need editors, writers, layout people, advertising sales persons and a support staff to create one of these, just people who have a couple of hours to spare every week to let the world what's going on.
ReplyDeleteConnecting with the small-town ex-pats -- that's an important advantage! Natives can stay connected with minimal effort, like when Mom would send me copies of the Madison Daily Leader when I was away in Canada, but better. And if small towns can keep ex-pats connected, there's that much more chance those ex-pats might see an opportunity to move back home and set up shop.
ReplyDeleteI think you both are spot on. Northfield, MN, has also figured out the community-building benefits of local blogs. I can't begin to tell you how giddy I'd be if Madison had a "local civic blogosphere" like this.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the mention on your blog. One of the main Northfield, MN bloggers, Griff Wigley is the brains behind our project here in SD too in tandem with SDSU Extension and the project funders, the Northwest Area Foundation. So far it has been a really interesting lesson in civic engagement and the use of technologies readily available to communities.
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