Greater Minnesota
LEDC has successfully expanded opportunities for Latinos in both the Twin Cities and the Greater Metro area. Our work in these areas has helped us create culturally appropriate approaches regarding economic development strategies for Latinos. We have received requests to work with Latinos in a variety of outlying rural communities. With the rapid growth of Latino populations within these communities, the emerging opportunities for entrepreneurial endeavors have become increasingly clear. However, the services and support needed by these entrepreneurs requires a specialized set of skills. In order to adapt, the organizations which exist and seek to offer economic development opportunities to local Latino residents have sought advice and assistance in meeting this challenge.
In 2002 LEDC
began providing technical assistance and training to existing service providers
in rural communities and continues to invest resources and staff to achieve the
goal of building local capacity for community organizing and economic
development work with Latino entrepreneurs. Through our work with rural partners
in these communities, we are seeing the evolution of a network which brings
together the many segments of these towns.
(Pictured: representatives from the small business development centers, Blandin foundation and Initiative foundations)
After several years of work in
Willmar there is now a well established nonprofit organization: Willmar Area
Multicultural Marketplace (WAMM), which provides economic development services
to local Latino entrepreneurs. The organization is headed up by Roberto Valdez,
one of our community development / technical assistance provider trainees. We
are actively participating through a seat on the WAMM board of directors, and we
continue to provide technical assistance for the development of a Commercial
Kitchen Incubator Project they have undertaken. We have also facilitated the
establishment of a local association of Latina Women; Asociación Latina en
Acción, which is working to have a positive impact on community development,
community unity and personal development with the goals of participating locally
to make positive changes and get involved.
In St. Cloud our work began in
early 2007 and continues to grow and develop. The trainee there, Jaime Villalaz,
has a very large territory. His work covers nine counties, providing technical
assistance as well as organizing and offering classes and workshops with the
help of LEDC staff. His work with potential and start up entrepreneurs whose
primary language is Spanish fills an important gap in services in these
counties.
The current overview of the programs and activities being
undertaken in the rural areas of Minnesota are best described as ongoing and
strategically focused. We have learned much about these communities and the
talent and resources which exist within them. We have developed our mission,
based on experience and observations working with rural area resources and
clients, and have provided a strong initial response to the needs of Latinos who
reside in rural Minnesota.
With the creation of small businesses and
building the capacity of the micro-entrepreneur, job creation is an expected
result; we believe successful training and technical assistance for each
business owner does not just create jobs but also boosts understanding of sound
business operations and solid financial practices which benefit the whole
community.
How a community operates can be learned from the process of
starting and operating a business, but getting involved in community is how true
leadership is learned. Through our efforts and those of our partners, we have
begun to observe the beginnings of emerging Latino leadership through the
interest in and formation of Latino business associations. We believe that with
help and guidance these associations will become viable entities which have the
capacity to provide Latino entrepreneurs with opportunities for themselves and
the entire Latino community to become involved, find a voice, and participate as
full and equal members of their respective communities.
Our goals for
moving ahead with our rural work and the strategies which we expect to utilize
have us focusing on continuing the development of our network of partners and
redefining our expectations with regard to potential partners as well as the
scope of their participation and an improved definition of community organizing
and expected results.