Access to Information Technology

Eugene Borgida, professor of psychology and law and director of the Center for the Study of Political Psychology, was named the Fesler-Lampert Chair in Urban and Regional Affairs for 2002–2003. Borgida used the resources provided by his appointment to extend his work with Regents Professor of Political Science John Sullivan on the impact of computer networks on the conduct of civic life in rural Minnesota communities, a project initially funded by CURA in 1996.

Diversity Coalitions in Rural Minnesota Communities

Katherine Fennelly, professor of public affairs at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs, was named the 2006–2007 Fesler-Lampert Chair in Urban and Regional Affairs. Fennelly used the resources provided by her appointment to conduct a statewide census of “diversity coalitions”—organizations that have been established to help recent immigrants integrate into the rural and suburban communities where many of them work and live.

Coping with Climate Change: Conservation Planning in Minnesota

Susan Galatowitsch, professor of restoration ecology in the Department of Horticultural Science, was named the 2007–2008 Fesler-Lampert Chair in Urban and Regional Affairs in June 2007. Galatowitsch’s research has focused primarily on smaller scale wetland ecosystem restoration projects and methods for re-establishing native plant populations, controlling invasive plant species, and analyzing related wildlife habitat loss and recovery.