Recreation and the Arts

2019 Rural Pulse™ Snapshot: Recreation and the Arts

Rural Pulse™ is a research study commissioned by the Grand Rapids-based Blandin Foundation to gain a real-time snapshot of the concerns, perceptions and priorities of rural Minnesota residents. It includes comparative findings from urban Minnesotans and identifies trends within significant, complex subject areas including the economy, education, employment and quality of life. Results are also analyzed as they relate to nine separate but inter-related dimensions of  a community’s health: life-long learning, inclusion, recreational and artistic opportunities, environmental stewardship, infrastructure and services, safety and security, community leadership, economic opportunity, spirituality and wellness.

Recreation and the Arts is…

One of the Nine Dimensions of a Healthy Community, recreation and the arts are defined as: recognizing individuals and a healthy community need access to a variety of recreational and artistic opportunities that meet their varying needs. The variety of opportunities available expresses the cultural backgrounds, talents and experience of all community members.

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Culture and the Arts

Providing diverse cultural opportunities and the arts was a concern for one in four rural Minnesota residents. Two-thirds (66%) felt local needs are being met – showing continued improvement from both 2013 and 2016 survey findings. Results were similar for their urban counterparts.

While most rural Minnesota regions showed improvement in diverse art opportunities over 2016 findings, Southeast and Central locales showed a slight decline. Those in the West Central and Southwest showed a positive increase over time with regard to their communities’ provision of diverse cultural and arts opportunities.

Community is Doing a Good Job Providing Cultural Opportunities and the Arts

Foundation home area residents were more likely to give their community a positive rating when it come to providing diverse cultural opportunities and the arts.

The community’s performance in providing diverse cultural opportunities and the arts was a concern for about one in four cultural/racial residents (27%). Sixty-three percent felt local needs are being met.

About Rural Pulse

Rural Pulse™ is a research study commissioned by Blandin Foundation to gain a real-time snapshot of the concerns, perceptions and priorities of rural Minnesota residents. It has been conducted periodically since 1998, and was last conducted in 2016. It includes comparative findings from urban Minnesotans, and identifies trends within significant, complex subject areas including the economy, education, employment and quality of life. For this study, 1,068 telephone interviews were conducted with rural Minnesotans. View the full report at www.RuralPulse.org.