Community

All Community Content

Sign posted alongside a rural walking and biking path with a family walking in the distance.

Using Assets to Build Communities

A community asset is anything that a community already has that can be used to improve its quality of life. Learn some expert tips for identifying and leveraging your community's unique assets.

Baskets of fresh vegetables at a farmers market

Local Foods: Whole Fresh Vegetables and Herbs

Fresh, whole raw fruits and vegetables grown in South Dakota can currently be sold without a food service license from the South Dakota Department of Health.

produce growing in a collection of raised beds in a SDSU Extension community garden

Community Gardens

Community gardens, organized by SDSU Extension staff and community volunteers, bring fresh produce to many rural communities and designated food deserts across the state.

Graphic designer designing a logo on a computer based on a technical sketch.

The Crucial Role of Marketing for Small Businesses

For small enterprises especially, utilizing smart marketing techniques can make a significant difference in the visibility, credibility, and overall profitability of a business.

Young couple discussing a concern with a distressed small business team member.

How To Get Fired by Your Constituents

For both business and community leaders, one thing is true – without customers, you don't have a job. Examine some common reasons for losing loyalty among community constituents.

Team discussing business strategy at a table.

Core Strengths

Core Strengths training can provide groups, teams, communities, and businesses with actionable and memorable insight into daily interactions, meetings, and conversations while building team trust and forming productive relationships.

headshot of Michael Perry, Energize keynote speaker

Register now for 2024 SDSU Extension Energize conference

February 13, 2024

Registration is open for the sixth annual South Dakota State University Extension Community Vitality Energize Conference on May 22 and 23, 2024, in Hot Springs.

About six people sit around a table in a community room with notebooks and pens

SDSU Extension Community Vitality built on foundation of empowering people

February 09, 2024

Now a full-fledged capstone within SDSU Extension, community development – since renamed Community Vitality – has evolved and grown in the last 20 years. Program leaders agree the community work they did through Horizons laid the foundation for what would become a successfully thriving SDSU Extension Community Vitality program.

Architect leaping in front of a home.

Voices for Home Modification of the Dakotas

The Voices for Home Modification coalition seeks to increase knowledge about the role home design plays in quality of life for people with mobility limitations. Learn more about their mission and how you can get involved today!

Multi-ethnic family unloading a moving truck.

The Vital Role of Newcomers in Rural Communities: Making Places Feel Like Home

In small towns and rural areas, new folks bring big changes that matter a lot. And when they feel welcomed and understood, they stick around and help make things better for everyone.