Ground Level Blog

Join a live chat online at noon May 2 to learn and talk about rural transit in Minnesota.
How do you get where you need to go?
What does the transportation picture look like where you live?
One solution to rural transit needs is the growth of volunteer driver networks. But volunteers are getting harder to find.
Getting to the concert in Pipestone and other unmet needs
Outstate Minnesota’s unmet transportation needs range from getting to an evening concert to finding a way to ride a bus to the Twin Cities, members of the Public Insight Network say.
After inflation, county spending flat; tax revenue portion rising
Spending by Minnesota’s 87 counties has declined slightly over 10 years when adjusted for inflation, the new annual report from the state auditor shows. Property taxes are gradually accounting for more of the counties’ revenue.
More people are getting there in Montevideo
Minnesota’s fastest growing transit system over the past five years? The one run by the small town of Montevideo.
We redesigned the Ground Level page
MPR News’ Ground Level project has launched a redesigned home page.
Thirteen Minnesota non-profit organizations have been awarded a total of $4.5 million to lend to entrepreneurs employing fewer than 50 people. The money targets women, minorities and those working in economically distressed areas.
The Citizens League and the Bush Foundation are launching a series of 40 community conversations around Minnesota about health care and costs.
Can ag feed the world without destroying it? Looking for the Minnesota answer
The director of the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment, Jon Foley, poses in a TED talk the question of how agriculture can feed the world without destroying it. What’s your answer on the ground in Minnesota?