Our ECONOMY/JOBS category provides users with an extensive list of articles dealing with past, present, and future issues relating to jobs and the economy in Upper Michigan.
Recently Published
The Trouble with Tourism: Munising’s Economic and Demographic Challenges as a Seasonal Destination
In July 2018, The Detroit News characterized Munising as “a tourist boomtown.” But the economic and demographic benefits of the town’s tourism boom are not so clear–in fact, as Michael and John Broadway write–it’s quite complicated.
Interview with MDARD Director and Former U.P. Legislator Gary McDowell
In the latest episode of the Rural Insights Podcast, David Haynes sat down with Gary McDowell, current director of the Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development. Gary also served three, two-year terms in the Michigan House of Representatives. He grew up in Rudyard, MI, where he still resides, and is a farmer by trade.
Locally-Produced Beer a Growing Industry in the UP
Locally-produced beer is a growing industry in the Upper Peninsula, and despite an overall decline in the consumption of beer, microbreweries and brewpubs in the UP have found success in part by tying regional identity and community to their product.
The UP’s Farming Revival
Most people would consider the Upper Peninsula largely unsuitable for agriculture; its short growing season, poor soils, extreme weather and small market make farming a challenge. However, as Michael Broadway details, there has been a reversal in the decline of farms in the UP over the last 30 years.
An Overview of Childcare Costs and Solutions
Rural Insights student researcher Max Steele recently published a new report detailing the costs of childcare in the United States and an overview of some of the main initiatives in place to help ease the burden of high childcare costs for Americans.
