The Free Press, Mankato, MN

Editorials

November 15, 2009

Our View: Coordinate work on problems

The Mankato region has always been known for its proactive approach to problems. It’s becoming one of the hallmarks of a successful community. Now, there’s real opportunity to coordinate efforts, and “merge,” so to speak, to add speed and depth to the problem-solving efforts.

All we have to do is discover, meet and talk. Groups working on problems usually know of another group that is working on a similar problem, but members sometimes haven’t really discovered the specifics of that group’s charge.

There are several groups centered around one of the dimensions of a healthy community, that of having enough options to be healthy, whether that be specific services or just lots of green space to walk.

The Council for Health Action and Promotion, for example, works on initiatives to help make Mankato a healthy community and started out focusing on heart health issues back in the 1980s, and now addresses issues like teen pregnancy.

There’s also the Envision 2020 group that has as one of its goals prevention and wellness of citizens of all ages. There’s a “Health Improvement Partnership” under the group’s charge.

Likewise there are several groups aimed at addressing hunger and poverty. There is of course the ECHO Food Shelf. But there’s also an MSU-based program called Campus Kitchens. There’s also a “Feeding Our Community Partnership.”

The Envision 2020 plan includes “Key Performance Areas” for almost every aspect of a healthy community one could imagine. This group has the benefit of having a lot of community support because some 500 community members were involved in the beginning. Its members continue to meet regularly in committees to discuss plans for going forward.

While each group may indeed have specific issues only it has the desire to address, there are larger, more universal community issues that like-minded groups can rally around.

The City Center Business Association for example, may have just as much at stake in building a new community center as do area senior citizen groups. The YMCA has just as much interest in healthy children who exercise and eat right as does the District 77 schools. Every group, every family, should be concerned if the mental health of young girls growing up in Mankato is not where it should be.

Still, there doesn’t appear to be one organization that coordinates efforts or even investigates where coordination might be possible. Such a group may be able to spark various groups to accomplish their goals with assets of another group they didn’t know about.

It might be useful to have “mini-summits” on general issue topics that would invite various groups to come together and begin discussing areas of cooperation and areas where combining assets will move solutions forward more quickly.

There’s much to be gained in a coordinated approach.

Text Only | Photo Reprints
Editorials