Idea Board
Welcome to the Idea Board. Because new problems require new ideas, we will regularly invite experts to share their thoughts on how to best solve Minnesota’s key issues today, and for the future. We invite you to share your thoughts and ideas as well.
Meet the Experts
-
Amy Dawson is an attorney who lives in South Minneapolis with her husband and young twins, one of whom has autism and special health care needs. Her family experience has made her a passionate advocate for individuals with disabilities and their families. Amy belongs to the Autism Society of Minnesota, Autism Speaks, Minnesota Autism Medical Home Statewide Team and a former member of the Minnesota Disability Health Workforce.
-
Ron Elwood has spent his virtually his entire career as a consumer advocate, and advocate for the rights of low-income citizens. He has 20 years of experience in state, county and city government, and 10 years experience as a legal advocate for the poor, specializing in consumer, utility and housing issues. He has a J.D. from William Mitchell College of Law, a PhD. from New York University, an M.A. from the University of Southern California, and a B.A. from Queens College of the City University of New York. He lives in Minneapolis.
-
John Farrell is a research associate on the New Rules Project at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, where he examines the benefits of local ownership and dispersed generation of renewable energy. His latest paper is Rural Power: Community-Scaled Renewable Energy and Rural Economic Development. You can find more of his work and more information on the New Rules Project at www.newrules.org.
-
Dean Harrington is President and CEO of First National Bank, a community bank in Plainview, Minnesota, and one of the founders of the Hiawatha Fund. The Hiawatha Fund is a long-term initiative to develop a base of sustainable financing to support in-region enterprises (farms, small businesses, entrepreneurs) by providing pools of accessible equity capital to replace a debilitating dependency on debt capital that often defeats efforts aimed at sustainable development.
-
Jay Kiedrowski is a Senior Fellow at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the U of MN. He also is the co-chair of the MN Budget Trends Commission. He previously served as the MN Finance Commissioner and the Minneapolis Budget Director.
-
Christopher Mitchell is the Director of the Telecommunications as Commons Initiative at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance in Minneapolis. His background is in information technology, working as a Web designer and server administrator. He earned a Master's degree in Science and Technology Policy from the Hubert Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Macalester College.
-
Kathryn Roberts is CEO and President of Ecumen. Based in Shoreview, Minn., it is one of the country’s largest non-profit senior housing, services and development companies.
-
Jill Wolf is the Economic Development Director for the City of Luverne, Minnesota. Luverne is a community located in the Southwest corner of Minnesota and has a population of 4,600. Jill joined the City of Luverne staff in 2004. Her responsibilities include: marketing, planning, project management, grant writing, business retention and expansion efforts, and soliciting new business and residential prospects.
Prior to her employment with the City of Luverne, she worked at the Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from St. Cloud State University in Community Development, with a minor in Communication Studies. Jill and her husband, Chris, moved back to the area in 2003, and have two children, Quentin and Anastasia.
As an effort to promote growth and development, the City of Luverne launched a proactive housing campaign to attract new residents. The Housing Promotion consisted of $2,000 per person in the household grants and over $10,000 worth of incentives and services offered through the local Chamber of Commerce businesses. The Promotion gained local, state and national media attention.
The views and opinions of the authors expressed within the Idea Board do not necessarily state or reflect those of Paul Thissen. The author's submission to or publication in the Idea Board does not constitute an endorsement of Paul Thissen or this campaign.
Follow Paul