Breakfast Info Bites

Recorded: October 21, 2026

Extreme weather events, rising insurance costs, and shifting energy bills are making climate change a financial reality for millions of households. Watch an empowering webinar designed to help you protect your money and build long-term financial resilience.

You'll learn how recent trends impact everyday finances, identify immediate steps to safeguard your assets, and leave with tools to develop a personalized, actionable plan to climate-proof your household.

Presenter

Sara Croymans is a family resiliency educator with the University of Minnesota Extension Department of Family, Health and Wellbeing. She is committed to assisting individuals and families in developing critical life skills related to financial capability, housing, climate, disaster financial preparedness, family transitions, and mental health.

Sara has a master’s of education from the University of Minnesota and is an accredited financial counselor. 

Contact the presenter

Sara Croymans, [email protected]

Recorded: September 16, 2026

(Presentation in PDF format)

What uses the most power in your house? Watch and learn about energy savings at home. The Clean Energy Resource Teams presents on taking control of your home utility bills. They explore exactly what uses the most power in your living space and share practical, inexpensive steps to maximize your comfort across all Minnesota seasons.

You will also discover how to leverage available rebates for larger efficiency upgrades. In addition, you will learn how to champion local clean energy initiatives by becoming a community energy ambassador.

Presenter

Dominique "Nik" Allen is the northeast regional coordinator with Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs). Nik has a statewide focus on residential energy efficiency, serves on Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's Environmental Justice Advisory group, and CERTs own Energy Burden team.

With an extensive background in executive leadership and a deep commitment to clean energy advocacy, she empowers residents and organizations to make informed, efficient energy choices.

Contact the presenter

Dominique "Nik" Allen, [email protected]

Recorded: May 20, 2026

What health issues are rural communities across the United States facing? Clara Busse, Ph.D. joins University of Minnesota Extension to talk about health challenges across the life course in rural communities. She highlights the work that she and her team do at the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center, including documenting declining availability of hospital-based obstetric/well-infant care in rural areas.

Presenter

Clara E. Busse, Ph.D. is a postdoctoral associate at the University of Minnesota’s Rural Health Research Center and the Division of Health Policy and Management. She holds a master of public health degree in global health epidemiology from the University of Michigan School of Public Health and a doctorate in maternal and child health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Guided by the principles of health equity and reproductive justice, her research examines gaps in reproductive and perinatal health care and points to ways in which health care systems can be improved. Contact Clara: 

Shared resources

• Am I Rural? Tool (Rural Health Information Hub): An online tool to check if a specific location qualifies as “rural” under multiple federal and research definitions.
• Association between loss of hospital-based obstetric services and birth outcomes in rural counties (JAMA): Journal article on how closures of hospital-based obstetric services in rural counties are linked to changes in birth outcomes, including increases in out-of-hospital births.
• Rural–urban differences in maternal syphilis (Obstetrics & Gynecology): Research highlighting disparities in syphilis rates during pregnancy.
• Resources for measuring rurality in research on maternity care (University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center): Learn how different measures of rurality influence research outcomes.

Contact the presenter

Clara E. Busse, Ph.D, [email protected]

Recorded: April 15, 2026

The Southeast Minnesota Community Needs Assessment project assessed infrastructure and amenities in small communities (500–2,000 residents) across 16 southeastern Minnesota counties. The study aimed to inventory regional assets, identify gaps, and highlight opportunities for collaborative development.

Presenters

• Frank Douma, director of state and local policy and outreach for the Institute for Urban and Regional Infrastructure Finance at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, and research scholar at the Center for Transportation Studies. Contact Frank: [email protected]
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• Camila Fonseca Sarmiento, director of fiscal research at the Institute for Urban and Regional Infrastructure Finance at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. Contact Camila: [email protected]

Recorded: March 18, 2026

Access to local news and information is often considered a key ingredient to civic engagement. In this Breakfast Info Bites session, Meagan Doll, Ph.D., from the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication, shares the latest insights from the Minnesota Journalism Center’s news ecosystem report.

The project represents the first comprehensive effort to map every news organization in the state of Minnesota. It tracks closures, ownership changes and newly launched organizations since 2018, revealing a contemporary news landscape that is reinventing itself despite structural inequities and organizational pressures facing journalism across the country.

About the presenter: Meagan Doll is a postdoctoral research associate in the Minnesota Journalism Center at the Hubbard School of Journalism & Mass Communication, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities.

Meagan's research explores international news production and consumption. Specifically, her work has addressed: 1) factors driving media trust in strong-state environments, 2) perceptions of conflict reporting, and 3) effects of news organizations' public engagement efforts and politics coverage. Meagan uses both qualitative and quantitative methods – including content analyses, surveys, focus groups, experiments, and in-depth interviews – and has international fieldwork experience in Uganda and Rwanda.

Her work is published in several leading communication journals, including first-authored pieces in the International Journal of Press/Politics, Journalism, Journalism Studies, and Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly. Learn more about Meagan Doll, Ph.D.

Shared resources

• Webinar presentation slides

Contact the presenter

• Meagan Doll, Ph,D., [email protected]

Recorded: February 18, 2026

Have you ever wondered if everyday environmental exposures affect your cancer risk? Why some groups suffer from poorer health than others? Or how common diseases are passed from one generation to the next?

The 10,000 Families Study (10KFS) is a long-term research initiative led by the University of Minnesota designed to understand the diverse influences of genetics, lifestyle, and environment on family health.

Launched in 2017, the study specifically aims to address the unique health needs of the region, with a particular focus on Minnesota's large rural population. The researchers know that families living in rural areas encounter environmental factors and exposures that are significantly different from those in urban settings.

By studying these distinct rural experiences — alongside data from American Indian nations and growing communities of color — the research team hopes to gather information that will shape better public health policies and personal health advice suited to the specific realities of life across the state.

About the presenter

Clemen Wilcox is the research engagement director for the University of Minnesota’s 10,000 Families Study (10KFS), where she leads community outreach, recruitment, and engagement efforts across Minnesota. Guided by a lifelong passion for relationships and community, Clemen works to ensure that research is inclusive, accessible, and grounded in the lived experiences of the people it aims to serve.

In her role, she serves as a bridge between the study and Minnesota communities, overseeing all aspects of external communication, including digital and social media, website, and newsletter content. She also leads a dedicated outreach team that attends community events and works closely with community organizations. In partnership with the 10KFS Community Advisory Board, Clemen helps ensure that the study’s work reflects cultural relevance, trust, and respect for all participants.

Read more about Clemen

Contact the presenter

• Clemen Wilcox, [email protected]

Recorded: November 19, 2025

The University of Minnesota Rural Health Program aims to positively impact, in clear and measurable ways, the health and well-being of people and communities across Minnesota and in rural communities nationwide. This collaborative effort provides training and support for public health challenges in rural Minnesota, and connects local experts with national research and policy work.

The core initiatives of the Rural Health Program include:

• Rural Health Policy Postdoctoral Program: For researchers addressing knowledge gaps in health policy, with a focus on rural communities.
• Rural Collective: A forum for learning, networking, and collaboration for any University of Minnesota faculty and staff members who do rural-relevant work or have rural interests.
• Project REACH (Rural Experts Advancing Community Health): A year-long program that provides community leaders in rural Minnesota with health policy and leadership training to build the necessary skills to successfully advocate for improving health in their communities.

Program Manager Katie Rydberg will provide an overview of these three initiatives and share opportunities for university and community partner engagement and collaboration in these efforts.

About the presenter: Katie Rydberg is a program manager at the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center. She manages the operations and development of the University of Minnesota Rural Health Program. She also contributes to a variety of federally-funded research projects focused on social drivers of health in rural areas, access to care, and mental health. Prior to joining the Rural Health Research Center, she coordinated a local substance abuse prevention and mental health coalition in Rice County, Minnesota.

She holds a BA in psychology and sociology/anthropology from St. Olaf College and a master's in public health in community health sciences from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Shared resources

• Katie Rydberg's Presentation: Overview of the University of Minnesota rural health initiatives

University Rural Health Program

• Rural Health Program: Learn about the program’s mission, goals, and activities
• Rural Health Policy Postdoctoral Program: Details on the postdoctoral scholar program
• Rural Health Program Email Listserv Sign-up: Subscribe for updates and news

Rural Collective

• Rural Collective: Learn about the collaborative network for rural health research and practice
• Rural Collective Member Directory: Connect with current members of the Rural Collective
• Rural Collective Membership Form: Apply to join the Rural Collective

Project REACH

• Project REACH: Details on the training program for community leaders in rural Minnesota and a community impact toolkit

Contact the presenter

• Katie Rydberg, [email protected]

Recorded: October 8, 2025

Access to medical care is a serious challenge in rural northeastern Minnesota, where long travel times and a lack of transportation make even basic care difficult to reach. Professor David Beard from the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), Beverly Sidlo-Tolliver and Gavin Bukovich from the Arrowhead Regional Development Commission (ARDC) share progress on a community-university partnership that combines data collection and stakeholder interviews to drive solutions in non-emergency medical transportation.

Note: On-demand webinars are edited for brevity, length and content appropriateness.

Shared resources

Learn more about the programs and organizations mentioned in the presentation:

• Empowering Small Minnesota Communities Program
• Minnesota Association of Development Organizations (MADO)
• Arrowhead Regional Transportation Coordinating Council (RTCC)
• Arrowhead Regional Development Commission (ARDC)

Mapping travel times to health care

It can be an incredible burden to travel more than an hour one-way for chronic health conditions or even everyday care. A map from the Accessibility Observatory at the University of Minnesota Center for Transportation shows areas (white/unshaded) that are a minimum of one-hour, one-way travel to a Federally Qualified Health Clinic. These clinics serve everyone — the insured and the uninsured. 

Contact the presenters

• David Beard, [email protected]
• Beverly Sidlo-Tolliver, [email protected]
• Gavin Bukovich, [email protected]