Top researchers told a crowd at Cragun's Resort how their work impacted the state's economy, leisure time and health care Tuesday as the University of Minnesota hosted a "Minnesota Sparks" forum.
The speakers represented a diverse group of fields: Minnesota State Economist Laura Kalambokidis, golf industry expert Brian Horgan and oral medicine professor Nelson Rhodus.
Kalambokidis began the talks with an update on the economy of Minnesota. Overall, the rising value of the American dollar combined with higher interest rates made for good economic conditions for American business, and Minnesota was weathering the global economic slowdown well, she said. That same strong dollar puts a crimp on manufacturing because it makes American exported goods more expensive for other countries to buy, however.
Although the manufacturing sector was particularly vulnerable to global slowdowns and a high dollar, Minnesota has an economy that's diversified beyond just manufacturing. In addition, the diverse makeup of the Minnesota economy is basically the same as the American economy as a whole, she said.
"That means that Minnesota's economy is closely tied to the U.S. economy," she said. "We don't have a lot of state-specific employment risk."
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Covering all the bases through diversification means Minnesota's economy is better prepared for a downturn, because it has other industries that can pick up the slack if one industry is hurting, Kalambokidis said.
However, Minnesota has a greater reliance on the health care sector than the U.S. as a whole.
"If you've ever wondered, 'Is Minnesota a health care state?'... yes, Minnesota is a health care state," she said.
The issue of the aging population beginning to drop out of the state's labor force looms on the horizon.
"We are now at a point where we have almost no labor force growth in the state of Minnesota," Kalambokidis said. "We're heading into that era of very slow labor force growth in the state."
Horgan gave his take on how the sport and business of golf can stay sustainable, despite the same aging of the population as older golfers drop out and aren't necessarily replaced by younger generations.
The long term viability of golf can be strengthened by further connecting golf courses with more economically efficient resource use and environmental conservation, he said. There's an encouraging trend in golf courses using less water, and golf courses can help protect watersheds by preventing harmful runoff from reaching them, he said.
"The social aspect of this-tying in the stewardship, the economics and the agronomics-is the connection point that our research program is focused on," he said.
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Golf can also rebrand itself to millennials by appealing to their shorter attention spans, Horgan said. Rather than the classic 18 and 9-hole rounds, the golf product can split into smaller portions that don't take as long to complete, such as 1-hole rounds.
Finally, Rhodus discussed the promising intersection between oral health and other health care fields, like oncology and diabetes management. Oral health screenings for things like cancerous lesions and the contents of saliva can help people detect life-threatening conditions early, he said. Your dentist can also help manage chronic illnesses that seemingly have nothing to do with the teeth or the tongue.
"I can basically look in your mouth, if you're a diabetic, and tell what your hemoglobin A1C is," Rhodus said. "I can pretty much tell whether you're under good (diabetes) control or not."
ZACH KAYSER may be reached at 218-855-5860 or Zach.Kayser@brainerddispatch.com . Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ZWKayser .
