Building Positive Youth-Adult Partnerships through 4-H
Young people are the next generation of leaders, and Wisconsin 4-H is engaging them in meaningful learning activities in order to thrive as adults. “4-H has impacted my children for a lifetime of self-discovery and growth. It has helped them to see challenges as a good opportunity,” a parent of 4-H members in Menominee County […]
Benefitting Communities through Leadership Development
Wisconsin’s communities face complex challenges such as access to broadband and child care, which require effective leadership at the organizational level. However, communities face a leadership void. UW–Madison Extension’s Organizational and Leadership Development Program fosters leadership that is rooted in inclusive processes and drives purposeful action to benefit Wisconsin’s communities. Extension delivers leadership development programs […]
Strengthening Local Elected Officials’ Capacity
An increasingly polarized political environment has inspired new candidates to seek elected office — over 20 percent of municipal and county officials on average are newly elected during any particular two-year period. Newly elected officials need a trustworthy source of information in order to understand their duties and responsibilities. UW–Madison Extension’s Local Government Education Program […]
Preparing Youth for Community Leadership
Young people are often left out of positions of power and decision-making spaces. UW–Madison Extension’s Community Youth Development Program strengthens community environments by building the capacity of schools and other organizations to address issues that affect young people and prepare them for community leadership. In 2022, Extension educators engaged nearly 600 partner organizations across the […]
Supporting Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurship brings many benefits to Wisconsin communities, including job and income growth and overall economic stability. Additionally, it supports the development of a community identity and improves residents’ quality of life. However, the success of entrepreneurs is hindered by a lack of business development assistance and weakened entrepreneurial ecosystems. UW–Madison Extension’s Community Economic Development Program […]
Supporting Children, Parents and Caregivers During Family Transitions
From welcoming a new child to the separation or divorce of parents, all families adjust to transitions throughout life. During these big changes, parenting stress is common and can lead to strained parent-child relationships and adjustment difficulties in children. Extension’s Family Engagement and Relationships program provides in-person and virtual educational support to Wisconsin’s parents and […]
Planning to Ensure a Viable Business
Many Wisconsin farmers are approaching retirement age and are considering a succession plan — identifying the individual(s) who will take over the farm’s operations — to protect their farm and their legacy. UW–Madison Extension provides agriculture service providers with the resources they need to address farmers’ challenges around succession planning. These resources are designed to […]
An Improved Geologic Map of Wisconsin
Most states in the U.S. have maps of the surficial geology, the unconsolidated sediments at the earth’s surface. These maps are at a scale that is appropriate to depicting the entire state on a single map. To date, no such map has ever been created for Wisconsin. Extension’s Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey has […]
Evidence-Based Information about COVID-19 Vaccines
During 2020 and 2021, there were over 48 million cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and almost 780,000 deaths nationally, with Black, Indigenous, and people of color disproportionately impacted. In Wisconsin, over 9,000 people died from COVID-19 in the same time frame. Compared to white Wisconsin residents, Hispanic or Latinx residents have 1.5 times greater […]
Field-Based Environmental Education
The move to virtual programming during the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated an increased need for enriching online educational engagement. At the same time, disparities in access to nature were exacerbated; individuals in cities who were subject to socio-spatial inequalities often lost access to green spaces. This reduction in access to nature, as well as other stressors […]