ESMC Videos
Eric Castle, a landscape architect and associate professor at UMN's Crookston campus, and Crystal Rayamajhi present an action research project that created a community-engaged, GIS-supported Emerald Ash Borer management plan to guide risk-based tree removal and resilient replanting in small communities in Minnesota.
University of Minnesota Humphrey School of Public Affairs researchers, ESMC team members, and the community lead from Community Economic Development Associates (CEDA) in Southeast Minnesota present the results of a year-long infrastructure survey project. The presentation captures results of this comprehensive infrastructure survey and introduces a publicly available online tool that allows users to map the data as a way to better understand the presence, variety and quality of infrastructure in the Southeast region across a wide range of categories.
This ESMC Fundraising Webinar was recorded on February 27, 2026.
The ESMC Grants Library contains various types of resources across different categories, such as grants, technical assistance, and other tools to assist communities seeking funding opportunities for their sustainable infrastructure projects. This video provides an overview and a tutorial on how to use its features.
In Minnesota Rural Workforce Development, presented in Oct. 2025, Kelly Asche, Senior Researcher, Center for Rural Policy and Development, presented the current status, research, and innovative strategies being implemented across rural Minnesota to strengthen the workforce and continue to persevere in the face of challenging demographic winds.
In Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Systems presented in Sept. 2025, Kathryn Milun (founder, Solar Commons Project), discussed the work on the ESMC project in the Bois Forte Ojibwe communities in Northeast Minnesota. Dan Handeen (Research Fellow, Center for Sustainable Building Research) presented projects and methods for reducing energy loads in small Minnesota communities.
In Small Community Flooding Issues, presented by the Minnesota Design Center in June 2025, experts John A. Chapman and Amy Anderson discuss flooding, flood management, and flood mitigation case studies in small Minnesota communities.
Rural Housing and Development Strategies, presented in April 2025, features presentations by Benjamin Winchester and Charles Burdick. Winchester, a rural sociologist, presented his years of research examining trends related to shifts in workforce housing, labor markets, and changing residential preferences. Burdick, proprietor of Streetfront Development, presented several projects in rural communities that emphasize walkable neighborhoods and various housing opportunities.
In Climate Resilience: Pollinator Habitats, presented in Feb. 2025, Dan Shaw, Senior Ecology and Vegetation Specialist for the MN Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR), presents an overview of the benefits of pollinator habitats. Aaron Hanson from the University of Minnesota Institute on the Environment then presented his work on several research efforts for solar farms that provide high quality vegetation and low-impact development.
In Community Design Strategies, presented in Dec. 2024, architect and designer Tim Griffin and MDC Research Fellows Joseph Hang and Torey Erin discuss community design and how Sustainable Development Goals can be leveraged to measure progress on creating more livable communities, as well as community engagement strategies focused on community input of assets and mapping for the Robert Street project in Saint Paul.
Achieving Economic Transformation Using a Community Loyalty Rewards Solution, presented in Nov. 2024, highlights an innovative community loyalty rewards pilot set to launch in Minnesota's NW Region, starting in Crookston. This community loyalty rewards program will enlist merchants with excess capacity (empty tables in restaurants, empty seats in airlines or colleges) to offer discounts to individual volunteers who earn credits from their public and non-profit sponsors.
This video provides an overview of the Tactical Action Pathway which fosters community partnerships over a two- to nine-month period with the U of M to address defined community infrastructure needs.
Working with the nonprofit Minnesota Driftless Hiking Trail, this short-term project assisted in the creation of a trail map using GIS. Communities: Chatfield, Whalan, and Caledonia and Fillmore and Houston Counties.
In this Stormwater Webinar, presented by the Minnesota Design Center, experts John A. Chapman and Carrie Christensen share their experience about how innovative infrastructure can build ecological resilience.