Kaitlyn Spangler's Internship with the Western Rural Development Center

In the summers of 2019 & 2020, CAS trainee Kaitlyn Spangler interned with the Western Rural Development Center under the mentorship of Don Albrecht, Betsy Newman, and Riana Gayle. Kaitlyn's project goal was to help communities identify economic development goals and link them to industry needs. As an intern, Kaitlyn: 1) organized existing project data; 2) managed, synthesized, and visualized ancillary data; 3) produced project guides and documents; 4) prepared data and research ideas for future analysis; and 5) learned extension-based project procedures.

As concerns for climate change increase, understanding tradeoffs between communities' economic, environmental, and social needs is becoming more important. 

Kaitlyn learned that incorporating climate adaptation science into rural development processes can help promote sustainable futures.