Ground Level®: Amplifying Community Voices

Your story is powerful. The stories you share with others honor the complexity of our communities while forging a more equitable and vibrant future.

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We’d like to hear your thoughts and questions. Your ideas about solutions. How are your communities? What are you seeing today? And what do you want to see tomorrow?

Note that while we will exercise editorial judgment for language, length and avoiding personal attacks, we will not sacrifice your meaning. We will ensure your main message comes through on air and online.

January 11, 2011 4:38 AM

Who are the hungry in Minnesota?

Ten percent of Minnesotans don’t have consistent access to nutritious food. Marilyn Jackson, raising five grandchildren in Minneapolis, is among them.

by Dave Peters

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January 10, 2011 10:15 AM

Lake County offers good look at broadband’s public-private divide

Northern Minnesota’s Lake County has a $66 million federal award to build a fiber-optic broadband network to reach every home in the county. The cable and phone companies that offer service to many of those homes aren’t happy.

by Dave Peters

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January 7, 2011 11:00 AM

Township spending and revenue ticked up in 2009

A state auditor’s report shows an increase in spending and revenue at the township level in Minnesota.

by Dave Peters

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January 7, 2011 12:00 AM

Immigrant farmers try to get beyond farmers markets

Immigrant farmers, long a staple at Minnesota farmers markets, are trying to break down barriers that have prevented them from scaling up and injecting their operations into other parts of the local food movement.

by Nancy Lebens

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January 3, 2011 5:45 AM

1st state broadband status report: Mixed at best

The Minnesota Broadband Advisory Task Force has finished its first report tracking how well the state is keeping up in the realm of high-speed Internet access. The picture is mixed.

by Dave Peters

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January 3, 2011 3:00 AM

A year in the life of rural Todd County

For a year Ground Level has focused on Todd County, a rural central Minnesota community dealing with an aging population and a search for jobs. Here’s what happened in that year.

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December 30, 2010 7:34 AM

Land request highlights urban-exurban dividing line

How Princeton is responding to a land detachment request is food for thought for Baldwin residents as questions of annexation continue to arise in the years to come.

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December 30, 2010 2:30 AM

What’s local food? You make the call

Maryland is taking a stab at defining “local” food, not by setting a radius but by making retailers tell consumers what state the food is from if they claim it’s local.

by Dave Peters

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December 29, 2010 6:04 AM

Minnesotans on budget: We understand short-term pain, but we need long-term reform

When the Citizens League held dozens of budget conversations around Minnesota, they heard support for budget cuts, tax increases but mostly long-term reform.

by Dave Peters