For Immediate Release
May 9th, 2019
Contact: Aaron Weibe, aaronweibe@eXtension.org
The National Sustainability Summit team, representing the University of Florida, Washington State University, North Dakota State University, and Florida A&M University, participated in eXtension’s Impact Collaborative Summit. The team received the top score for the national project category during the LaunchFest portion of the Summit, an opportunity for teams to pitch their projects and programs to a panel of Cooperative Extension leaders and external partners. As a result of their work, they have a pre-approved application for a $5000 grant that brings new capacity to their project. Members of the team include Jennison Kipp Searcy, Ramona Madhosingh Hector, Linda Seals, Jennifer Taylor, Patricia Townsend, Kimberly Davis, and David Ripplinger.
28 Project and Program teams across Cooperative Extension representing 36 institutions attended the Impact Collaborative in Atlanta for a unique opportunity to create impactful results at the local level by increasing Cooperative Extension’s organizational readiness and capacity for innovation and change. Teams were connected with skills, tools, resources, and partners that helped expand and deepen their impact.
Partners representing organizations external to Cooperative Extension were invited to attend the Impact Collaborative Summit and participated in our first national Partner Forum, with a guided discussion by leaders from the Institute for the Future. This forum was designed to connect private and public sector organizations focused on community impact, including leaders from Cooperative Extension, and look for future opportunities to engage collectively. After the forum, partners had the opportunity to spend time talking with teams and learning more about the work they are doing to make an impact in their states, locales, and across the nation.
eXtension will continue its support of the National Sustainability Summit team through Engage & Empower Online, our new resource that offers Impact Collaborative teams and Innovation Facilitators unique professional development opportunities including webinars and learning circles, exclusive access to publications and presentations, access to a new online version of the Impact Collaborative Innovation Skill-Building Experience tool, and a place where the Impact Collaborative can continue to connect teams with the resources they may need to continue project or program growth towards increasing innovation and local impact.
The next Impact Collaborative Summit will be from October 15th -17th, 2019 in Atlanta, GA.