making bodies or clients might be identified. These
two client types consist of (1) individuals, includ-
ing firms and households, and (2) groups, consist-
ing of combines of firms or households and com-
munities. This two-way classification of research
areas and clients form a matrix for use in problem
identification, research program design, budget-
ing operation and for planning, implementation
and evaluation (PIE).
Halvorson once more emphasizes the import-
ance of relevant research. There are needs, limita-
tions and possibilities unique to the Southern
region. These should serve as the focus of the
next quarter century of research by members of
this association. This is not to say that our research
should be narrowed. Ratherj we should set in a
broad national and international context issues
and choices that are of special concern to the
region, thus reflecting new forces that will mold
the rural economy and shape opportunities for
Southern people.
It bothers me that so often our students could
as well be working on the bank of the Charles
River, the shore of Lake Michigan, or in the
Berkeley hills. Only a few days ago, a graduate
student rushed into my office to report on the
field trip he had taken just that afternoon. At a
nearby farm he had been taught to recognize dif-
ferent soil types and to relate these to appropriate
land uses. How few students let a region’s soil sift
through their fingers!
Renewed emphasis on commercial agriculture
will bring a return to practical farm management
and marketing firm studies, a greater interest in
short-term price projections, and more penetrating
public policy evaluations. New information sys-
tems can be of tremendous value, as we have come
to realize again over the past few months.
Consideration of appropriate use of a region’s
natural resources has taken on special urgency,
not only among traditional clients of land grant
colleges but also among newly emerging citizen
groups throughout the region. Mountain, piedmont
and coast are words that have taken on fresh
meaning for many people who, until recently,
thought little and cared less about what their neigh-
bors chose to do with the countryside. Clear water,
fresh air, open space, and productive farmlands
are no longer considered limitless or free. Serious
questions call for serious study by those best
equipped—by training and through having that
unique sensitivity to their environment which so
many of our students possess.
Some of you have experienced that excitement
that comes to a researcher in community eco-
nomics who has no more than bits and pieces to
offer. In this fast-growth area of our discipline
we have barely scratched the surface of research
potential for influencing choices made by groups
seeking improved rural housing, schooling, health
services, water and sewer systems, transportation
facilities, park and recreation centers, and on and
on. But—-we have made a start.
In summary, we find ourselves in a region and
at a point in time where interest in our specialities
could hardly be greater. It would be unfortunate
indeed if these opportunities were missed because
of the comfort of old ways, a reluctance to ven-
ture out on unchartered waters, or the constraints
of administrative structures that are no longer
adequate.
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