Innovators in Rural Community Economic Development

Resource Library

Citizen-Led Sustainable Change - Case Study: Rural Action, Ohio

In connection with the 2013 forum on Citizen-Led Sustainable Change held on the St. Francis Xavier University campus, Alison Mathie produced a case study on Rural Action, titled “From the fringe to the mainstream: Rural Action’s pursuit of a sustainable…


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Citizen-Led Sustainable Change - Case Study: The Deep South Wealth Creation Network, Mississippi and Alabama

In connection with the 2013 forum on Citizen-Led Sustainable Change held on the St. Francis Xavier University campus, Phil Davison produced a case study on the Deep South Wealth Creation Network, titled “The Deep South Wealth Creation Network,Mississippi…


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Case Study: Building an Agriculture Strategy

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work with Goody Clancy and the Town of Mansfield to develop an agricultural strategy for the Town of Mansfield as part of their updated Plan of Conservation and Development.


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Assessing Impacts of Value Chain Development on Poverty: A Case-Study Companion to the 5Capitals Tool

These case studies supplement the 5Capitals tool developed by CATIE.  Five case studies were selected, with a geographical spread and a focus on different, crops, target markets and beneficiaries: Nicaragua - certified coffee; Colombia - fresh fruits…


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Case Study: Outcome Funding Evaluation for NESARE

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work with the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NESARE) to assess the impact of an outcome funding framework on principal investigators and beneficiaries of projects funded by NESARE.


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Case Study: Sustainable Water Management

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work with the West Central Initiative to help small Minnesota communities meet their water-related needs in a cost effective manner while protecting water resource quality.


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Case Study: Value-Added Agriculture Feasibility Study

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work with Suri Paco LLC to assess the feasibility of an alpaca fiber mid-tier value chain to aggregate and process alpaca fiber into a range of value-added products that make use of all grades of fiber produced…


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Case Study: Increasing the Use of Sustainable Wood Energy

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work with the US Forest Service Wood Education Resource Center to increase the use of sustainable wood energy.  Yellow Wood worked with Richmond Energy Associates to provide independent, third party biomas feasibility…


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Case Study: Assessing Impacts of Liquefied Natural Gas Terminals

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work for Save Passamaquoddy Bay on an economic and fiscal impact analysis of proposed liquefied natural gas terminals.  Save Passamaquoddy Bay (www.savepassamaquoddybay.org)…


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Case Study: Addressing threatened water resources (Ottertail)

The City of Ottertail faced development pressure and pressing water system issues. Yellow Wood developed a suite of recommendations to provide Ottertail with an action plan for addressing threats to the city’s water quality in a systematic way. This work…
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Case Study: Municipal Asset Inventory to Meet Sustainability Goals

Barnstable County identified facility, fleet and infrastructure inventory as a key action item in their County Sustainability Project and used Yellow Wood Associates’ Green Community Technologies© to gain a clear understanding of the assets held in these…
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Case Study: Helping small communities meet their water-related needs

An overview of Yellow Wood's work with the West Central Initiative and three Minnesota communities around water systems and water infrastructure. Yellow Wood used the Green Community Technologies© process to assess needs and make recommendations for…


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Case Study: Water resource stewardship (Battle Lake)

Yellow Wood worked with Battle Lake to identify stormwater issues that, if addressed, would effectively preserve the quality of streams and watersheds. This work was part of Yellow Wood's Green Community Technologies© work in Minnesota, funded by the…
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Case Study: Water resource stewardship (Brandon)

Yellow Wood looked systematically at the City of Brandon’s water resources. Yellow Wood's recommendations addressed water conservation, efficiency of water treatment equipment, wastewater infiltration and stormwater. This work was part of Yellow Wood's…
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Case Study: Exploring Green Technologies to Meet Municipal Building Needs

In working with the Town of Franklin, Yellow Wood’s goal was to help maximize the use of existing assets and minimize the amount of new construction required to meet Town goals. This case study highlights the town of Franklin's needs and the alternative…
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Case Study: Exploring alternative wastewater technologies to meet small town growth

The Town of Hinesburg asked Yellow Wood Associates, Inc. to research alternative ways of increasing their wastewater capacity beyond expanding their wasterwater treatment plant, using their Green Community Technologies© process.
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Case Study: Community Forestry Workshop

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work for the Quebec Labrador Foundation on a Community Forestry Workshop in Gorham, New Hampshire. This workshop was undertaken as part of our work with the National Community Forestry Center - Northern Forest…


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Community Forestry Made Real: Case Studies in Landowner Cooperation

This report describes the efforts of several Vermont forest landowners who developed cooperative relationships with their neighbors in order to provide habitat for wildlife.


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Engaging Residents in Planning for Municipal Forests: A Case Study of Lincoln, Vermont

Town forests are a unique aspect of forestry in New England. Originally intended as a source of wood supply for the town, these forests now provide a means for educating the community about the value of working forests. This case study of Lincoln,…


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Changing from Industrial to Non-Industrial Ownership in the Northern Forest: A Case Study

This report serves dual purposes: it reports on the findings of a research project and also explores the process of participatory research using a case study approach. This is a story of a volatile industry looking for answers. This report contains…


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Case Study: Cooperatives and Wealth Creation - a Pilot Study

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's work, in collaboration with the National Cooperative Business Association, to document the impacts cooperatives have on multiple forms of wealth in their communities. This work was undertaken as part of Yellow…


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Case Study: Leadership in Community Wealth Creation

This case study profiles Yellow Wood's project management work with the Wealth Creation in Rural Communities - Building Sustainable Livelihoods (WealthWorks) initiative.


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Federation of Appalachian Housing Enterprises: A Case Study

FAHE is, arguably, the strongest example of network approaches to increasing impact and strengthening financial performance in the domestic community development field. The purpose of this case study is to extract the lessons from the FAHE experience…


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