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Iowa Ideas: Challenges Iowa communities face include declining growth, access to broadband
Issues affecting communities the topic of Iowa Ideas panelists
Oct. 6, 2023 5:30 am
Iowa faces challenges with growing its population, creating job opportunities for immigrants and expanding high-speed broadband into rural areas --- but there are nonprofits and other organizations across the state working toward viable solutions, which take both time and money.
These issues and other issues facing communities will be discussed Oct. 12 and 13 with panelists across the state during the Community track at the Iowa Ideas virtual conference, one of nine tracks at the free event.
Declining population
The Iowa Chamber Alliance, a non-partisan coalition that represents chambers of commerce and economic development organizations, created an annual Talent Poll in 2019 to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the state. The slow population growth has created a “talent” — proficient in a certain skill or profession — problem for economic growth, which hinders “attraction and expansion” opportunities.
Dustin Miller, the Iowa Chamber Alliance executive director and legislative counsel, said the chamber moved the “talent attraction” to the top of the priority agenda in 2019 and created the poll to gauge what working-age residents find attractive about Iowa.
“Some things are surprising in the poll and others aren’t,” said Miller, an Iowa Ideas advisory board member and panelist. “People like the affordability, small town feel, safety of the state.”
In the poll, 46 percent ranked small-town feel and 45 percent ranked cost of living as best attributes of the state. Safety ranked at 35 percent.
Miller said for Millennials and Gen Z residents, affordability and safety are most important. They make up the largest workforce and the state has to find ways to appeal to them and keep them Iowa. Of those age groups, between 15 and 22 percent ranked job/career/employment opportunities as main reason they either left Iowa for a period of time or considered leaving Iowa.
Issues for immigrants and refugees
Mugisha Gloire, executive director of United We March Forward, a nonprofit that offers life and education courses and other assistance to immigrants and refugees, said the entire family is affected in so many ways when they come to the United States or are forced out of their own countries.
Gloire, a Congo refugee who has lived in Cedar Rapids since age 10, said it doesn’t matter what reason someone has to leave his or her home country — poverty, war, abuse or violence, “it is giving up what they call home.” And when they get to America, they don’t know the language or culture, which immediately impacts job opportunities and affects the family dynamics.
Gloire said many immigrants have to travel for work because most of opportunities that require “less language competency” are at factories or meatpacking plants in other areas of the state. Typically, it’s the male family members who have to be away from home for 12 hours or more a day, working five days and sometimes six days a week.
In some cases, once the children are in school, they become fluent in English and take on the role as interpreter — which Gloire said can be difficult for parents to accept as children take over their role as the family’s teachers.
Learning the language and gaining transportation are two of the most difficult challenges for immigrants. Learning English can take years for many and learning how to drive and being able to purchase a car can take some time. But both are needed to get better jobs and become independent.
State of rural broadband
The 120 independent, community-based broadband providers across the state have provided 75,000 miles of fiber broadband to rural communities over a number of years, said Brittany Morales, Iowa Communications Alliance vice president of business development.
Since 2019, there has been $736 million invested from providers, along with matching federal and state grants, in rural broadband fiber, Morales said. Providers members of the alliance have served over 700 community businesses and organizations in Iowa, including 367 schools; 26 colleges; 741 health care organizations; 523 public safety organizations and 284 libraries.
In June, Iowa received $415 million — part of the national $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program — to help more “unserved and underserved” locations and households. The money will be provided through the Empower Rural Iowa Broadband Grant program.
Morales said “unserved” locations are defined as lacking access to 25 megabits download and 3 megabits upload speeds, and “underserved” locations are ones that lack 100 megabits download and 20 megabits upload speeds.
Community track
The impact of declining populations on Iowa’s way of life — 10:10 a.m. Oct. 12
As population in Iowa stagnates — and, in many communities, declines — how can cities and counties continue to fund quality of life initiatives that require tax money to build and maintain? Can we turn around Iowa’s population trends? And, if so, what will it take? How can we tell the state’s story in a way that keeps people here and persuades others to move here?
Making the final broadband connections — 11:15 a.m. Oct. 12
For years, government officials have stressed the importance of broadband connectivity for all Iowans. Where does Iowa stand in its effort to provide high-speed internet access for all residents? And, once it’s available to everyone, what's the next step? How do we guarantee equal access for every Iowan?
Taking public projects from idea to reality — 1:20 p.m. Oct. 12
This session will identify the steps of bringing projects to life, from concept to action. Once you have an idea, what’s next? How do you bring people along with you? And what are the different roles? How can government agencies work with private entities, and what has to happen to find success? We’ll also discuss failure, and how to avoid it.
Answering a neighborhood’s needs — 2:25 p.m. Oct. 12
What happens when community hubs localize their services, focusing on where people live? How can community hubs such as neighborhood centers serve as a central source for child care, housing and more? This session will discuss how Iowa communities are using this approach, which can build trust, retention and engagement.
A new era of volunteers, the significance of interactions, civic engagement: Who will step up? — 8:30 a.m. Oct. 13
The need for volunteers has not decreased, but the number of people willing to give their time and talents has. From arts to civic service, what’s behind the waning interest in volunteerism? What has incentivized people to volunteer in the past, and how has that changed? Why are people so hesitant to take that step — whether it’s volunteering at a fundraiser or running for local office, and what can be done to turn it around?
Beyond writing a check — 9:40 a.m. Oct. 13
We’ll assess the response to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and barriers they’ve faced. What’s going wrong and what’s going right when it comes to intent vs. action from civic leaders, employers and the public? How can quick reaction without long-term strategy negatively impact even the best intentions?
Strain within immigrant and refugee families — 10:45 a.m. Oct. 13
The transition to a new country and a new community can present myriad hardships, but what about the challenges in family dynamics? What do roles and traditions look like, and how do those contrast with life in Iowa? How does transition — of transportation, housing, education and employment — affect the family? And how are these complicated by language barriers? What can be done to support families?
Schedule for Community track: iowaideas.com/topics/community
Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com
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