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Young entrepreneur meeting with community members.

Connections: An Overlooked Factor in Startup Success

If you are considering starting a business, your community network will be one of your most-important tools. Learn some expert tips for connecting your business with your community today.

A large group of people stands on a stone staircase to smile for a photo

Energize conference inspires small SD communities

January 17, 2025

Hosted in a different South Dakota town of 5,000 or fewer people each year, Energize is an opportunity for community and business leaders to gather, gain new perspectives and share ideas about revitalizing rural communities.

Rusty shed in a farmyard.

Home Is Where the Heart and History Are

When challenged with a degenerative nerve disorder, Gina and her husband worked with local contractors to modify their rural home to meet her accessibility needs. Learn how the project helped keep her in her family home for years to come.

A male vendor serving a strawberry sample to an older woman at a farmers market stand.

Food Safety from Production to the Farmers Market

Food safety is an important issue at farmers markets. Customers expect the food and products they purchase to be grown and handled so that they will be safe to consume. Vendors have a responsibility to grow and handle food using good food safety practices.

A young, freckled girl eating small, red tomatoes inside a greenhouse.

Agritourism

When a producer has decided to sell a product directly from the farm, entertainment or tourism-based activities could be incorporated to create larger appeal. Agritourism could add value to the farm visit though education, entertainment, outdoor recreation, dining, relaxation or other avenues, potentially drawing more customers in.

A produce stand with yellow wagon wheels and a green canopy.

Roadside Stand

Local food producers have many options when it comes to marketing their locally grown produce. Roadside or farm stands can be either permanent or temporary structures near a road or in a parking lot that sell directly to consumers.

A green road sign that says South Dakota with the sunset in the background

Newcomers Survey

SDSU Extension has launched a newcomer survey to gain a better understanding of the reason that people are moving to South Dakota and will use the results to develop programming efforts to help communities welcome and retain newcomers. 

Ages & Stages in the Garden: Ages 9-11

When working with upper elementary youth in a garden consider their physical development and skill level as you develop learning activities. Nine to eleven year olds have better coordination and reaction time by this age, however sometimes dues to growth spurs there can be short-term issues with balance and coordination. Additionally, these children have more body strength and their hand dexterity has increased.

Instructor and female grant applicant reviewing paperwork at a table.

Writing Your Future: Grant Writing Training

Often community or organizational programs need capital to get them off the ground. Our Writing Your Future grant writing training can be the start to finding that initial investment.

A diverse group of young adults meeting inside a repurposed barn.

What is Placemaking?

Placemaking inspires people to collectively reimagine and reinvent public spaces as the heart of every community. By this definition, placemaking is possible for communities of all shapes and sizes in South Dakota.