Who says old dogs can’t learn new tricks? I am always surprised at how many new things I learn about when I get together with a different group of people outside my own community. Recently the LeadAR group that I am a part of through the University of Arkansas Research & Extension Division of Agriculture met up in Little Rock for a legislative seminar. The first part of the seminar gave us an opportunity to meet with executives of Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas.
One of the most interesting parts of this seminar was learning the history of Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas and how it came to be. Farmers created the first electric cooperatives to get electric utilities out to the more remote and rural parts of our state. It took people in small town communities communicating and collaborating to create cooperatives. Farmers are resourceful and are excellent problem solvers.
Even today, electric cooperatives have been working alongside rural Arkansans to improve access to fiber optic internet services. Technology is imperative for many farms today – especially when monitoring poultry houses. A few years ago, our family benefited from this utility improvement. The cooperatives have continued to bring internet services to more and more Arkansans. This allows Arkansans in rural areas to work remotely, has improved remote learning and access to information.
Our LeadAR cohort enjoyed presentations regarding media relations and learned more about the industry of lobbying. We were able to have access to journalists and lobbyists to ask questions and learn more about how to work with them. We had a guest legislator come and speak to us about her journey in the Arkansas House of Representatives.
That evening we enjoyed a beautiful dinner at a local farm not far from the Little Rock area. The seminar was topped off on the final day with some mock legislative committee meetings, lunch at the Arkansas Press Association and a mock senate floor session on the senate side of our Arkansas State Capitol. It gave me a new appreciation for the work that goes into writing or amending legislation along with the committee work and then voting “yay” or “nay” on a good or bad bill running through the Arkansas Senate or the House of Representatives.
We learned through this mock session who all the players are, from journalists to lobbyists in the process of making and repealing laws that affect everyday life in our state. It was a fun experience to argue and defend our positions.
Understanding how our government works is imperative for our children to learn in school. Civic duty is something we discuss with our children often. When I look at our country and all its problems, I am so thankful to live in rural America. Our national and state government could take a page from the history of rural electric cooperatives to communicate and collaborate to solve problems in my opinion.
Rural communities are among the nation’s first great problem-solvers, neighbor.
Jody Harris is a freelance communications specialist, gardener, ranch wife and mother of four. She and her family raise Angus beef cattle and other critters on their northwest Arkansas ranch. She is a graduate of Missouri State University. To contact Jody, go to ozarksfn.com and click on ‘Contact Us.’
