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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Wisconsin’s 72 counties, 604 cities and villages, and 1,250 towns are tasked with delivering services that support individuals, families, organizations, and businesses. In many cases, the demand for services is greater than the available resources requiring local governments to find innovative solutions to better serve their citizenry. In an effort to build toward innovative solutions, […]
Wisconsin dairy farms produce the equivalent of 12 billion gallons of dairy manure every year. Properly managed, this manure is a valuable source of crop nutrients. However, improperly managed manure can release nitrogen, phosphorus, and pathogens into surface water and drinking water supplies. Every year, seven billion gallons of manure are transported and/or applied by […]
Natural resource managers, scientists, educators, and college students from UW Superior and other campuses work on large-scale cleanup and restoration efforts in the St. Louis River estuary. Their goal is to address long-standing legacy pollution and water quality impairments in the Lake Superior Watershed. To be successful, this group has an acute need to coordinate […]
To remain viable, beef producers must use strategies to set their animals apart from the rest. To do so, they need to better understand how purebred and “beef × dairy” crossbred cattle grow. However, there is a gap in research-based information surrounding the growth and performance of beef × dairy crossbred cattle. Cow-calf producers need […]
Nearly 4 million Wisconsinites are over the age of 50, representing 67% of the population. Wisconsin’s older adult population is growing more rapidly than other age groups, and a disproportionate share of aging population growth is in rural areas. Rural populations are more likely to be older, poorer, less healthy, and have fewer local services […]
