Innovators in Rural Community Economic Development
This report documents outcomes by sector of WealthWorks implementation on the ground in Central Appalachia, the South, and the Lower Rio Grande Valley. It also includes lessons learned over the last year and a half of the eight year Wealth Creation…
Through the support of the Center for Rural Entrepreneurship, the Black Belt Treasures Cultural Arts Center facilitated a trip to Western North Carolina to study the arts economy and creative placemaking in the region. This report provides a summary…
This report is a summary of a learning journey by Sustainable Rural Regenerative Enterprises for Families (SURREF) and six individuals representing stakeholders and partners who traveled to Jamaica from December 11 to December 16, 2011. These stakeholders…
This final report documents a study conducted by Yellow Wood to identify potential opportunities for sustainable natural resource-based economic development in the Dragon Run watershed. The Special Area Management Plan recognizes that one of the keys…
The study estimates the impacts of a Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard on Kentucky’s portfolio of electricity resources, on average electric bills, and on the state’s economy. The report was produced by Synapse Energy Economics, Inc. for the Mountain…
This report examines and presents wealth creation models adapted to the needs and context of sustainable forestry in Appalachia.
This paper by the Croatan Institute was commissioned by the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development (MACED). The paper addresses the effect that the growing movement for divestment from fossil fuels and investment in more sustainable…
Vermont’s Working Lands Enterprise Board (WLEB) is engaged in a project to provide a systems analysis of the forestry and wood products industry in Vermont. Yellow Wood Associates is working with the Forestry Subcommittee (composed of both WLEB and…
This report explores the economic impacts of invasive species on specific sectors of the Adirondack Park’s economy. This first-of-its-kind assessment for the Adirondacks analyzes actual and potential impacts of eight invasive species, summarizes expenditures…
The report “The Actual and Potential Economic Impact of Invasive Species on the Adirondack Park: A Preliminary Assessment: Executive Summary” explores the economic impacts of invasive species on specific sectors of the Adirondack Park’s economy. This…
The final report from the Red Mantra Group on Building Wealth Through Inclusive Business is now available. Inclusive Business is an approach to economic development in which one or more large corporations are the primary demand partners. For corporations…
This paper explores the concept of learning communities and the shifts in concept and practice required to bring them about based on emerging ideas in the physical sciences, leadership training, learning theory, rural development, public work, organizational…
This draft report is a product of a study supported by the Wallace Center and the National Good Food Network. The study explored how a set of common measures might assist food hubs and the food hub community in telling their stories and improving their…
As part of WealthWorks, the Accelerating Impact project is aimed at articulating the role of finance in supporting WealthWorks value chains in rural areas.Over two years, this project of the Tellus Institute has worked with ten projects on the ground…
The report describes how food value chains work, how to structure them for optimal performance, and what challenges they face. The report is designed to help individuals and organizations interested in exploring food value chains as a distribution…
This report, prepared for the Walton Family Foundation, analyzes regional demand for nature based tourism. The report focuses on four types of tourism: Paddling, Culture and Heritage, Non-consumptive and Consumptive Wildlife Activities. In addition…
The Wealth Creation Clinic partnered with Presidio Bank, a progressive regional bank in San Francisco, to examine a key question for community banking: In a competitive environment, how can small banks be a more positive force for local community development,…
This report, produced for the Central Appalachian Network (CAN) in partnership with the MIT “Keeping Wealth Local” Clinic, explores examples of place-based food brands and offers recommendations for CAN and other Central Appalachian organizations interested…
This report explores what we have learned about the roles value chain coordinators play in WealthWorks, how those roles may evolve, and various options for financing the coordinator role which is so essential to exploring and constructing WealthWorks…
This report was produced as part of a project to explore financing options for WealthWorks value chains. It describes crowdfunding and how it works, gives examples of different platforms and successful campaigns, and provides a step by step guide to…
Parks and Beaches: Common Cents for the Common Wealth quantifies the value of the park system as an engine of Massachusetts economic development. This value includes recreational tourism spending, recreational equipment spending, the timber industry,…
This paper describes preliminary learning from a project designed to test new ways of providing services to rural forested communities in the United States.
A selectively annotated bibliography containing materials collected between March, 2000 and November, 2001 while reviewing the literature connecting forest ownership and forest management in the Northern Forest region.
This report chronicles the Middle Ground Collaborative and its development of an interactive exhibit to tour the state of Maine in an attempt to generate dialogue about the history and future of Maine's forest resources. This report compiles the research…
A compilation of six readings chosen to provide examples of participatory research in the United States and Canada.
Summarizes the learnings and insights of a group of citizens from Richford, Vermont as they have explored the issues relating to the supply and harvesting of biomass from local lands. The Richford Wood Initiative (RWI) has been meeting regularly since…
A description of several school-based forest education programs in the Northern Forest Region- Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York.
This report demonstrates how a grassroots effort to protect forest values can succeed where top-down federal and state efforts failed.
This report describes the experience and responses of several communities in northern New Hampshire when their local forestland became the object of broad public interest. Author Thomas Brendler tells the story of how the Umbagog National Wildlife…
This report provides an overview for all those interested in learning more about community forestry, combining original material with articles by several well known community forestry practitioners to create a concise introduction to this fascinating…
This report summarizes results of the 2001 Town Plans contest, with excerpts from most of the submissions.
In a changing global environment, the potential contributions of rural America are significant. Rural leaders need new ways of thinking about economic development. This brief introductory paper outlines seven guiding principles for a wealth creation…
Ten financing interventions are profiled in this paper, which looks at how capital investment in combination with other strategies is used to achieve triple-bottom-line outcomes.
This case study looks at the role of Market Umbrella in helping to develop a regional food system around New Orleans. Interviews throughout the case study highlight the importance of building multiple forms of wealth to create community resilience…
This toolkit is a set of worksheets designed to help groups build strong, effective, sustainable networks. It includes worksheets for organizations that are considering forming or joining a network, emerging networks that have already organized and…
This report contains four case studies about rural-urban linkages in Oregon, the New Orleans region, Texas, and Nebraska, as well as introductory material and a concluding commentary that looks at each case study in context of the core principles of…
Why and to what extent do companies clustering in rural areas pursue – intentionally or unintentionally – triple-bottom-line outcomes? This document discusses the kinds of interventions, cluster strategies, and local policies that can most effectively…
This paper describes opportunities for and barriers to managing electricity production and consumption at the community level via micro-grid systems.
What are the opportunities and challenges for sustainable rural development in the forests and wood products sector of Appalachian Kentucky? The participants in the Ford Foundation Regional Learning Project Team engaged in a discovery project, interviewing…
A balanced approach to development takes account of the triple bottom line, benefiting the economy, the environment, and social inclusion simultaneously, while considering the impacts on seven forms of wealth (individual, social, intellectual, natural,…
A balanced approach to development takes account of the triple bottom line, benefiting the economy, the environment, and social inclusion simultaneously, while considering the impacts on seven forms of wealth (individual, social, intellectual, natural,…
A balanced approach to development takes account of the triple bottom line, benefiting the economy, the environment, and social inclusion simultaneously, while considering the impacts on seven forms of wealth (individual, social, intellectual, natural,…
A balanced approach to development takes account of the triple bottom line, benefiting the economy, the environment, and social inclusion simultaneously. This Interim Report on the progress of the project assesses lessons learned so far.
As a companion paper to the more theoretical paper (A Compendium of Clusters in Less Populated Places: Circumstances, Interventions and Outcomes), this second clusters report – over 100 pages in length – offers a series of 50 case studies of rural…
Interviews with community leaders at high-performing organizations in Central Appalachia, the Lower Rio Grande Valley, and the Delta Region provide insight into connections between organizations engaged primarily in individual asset building, entrepreneur-focused…
Before we can measure rural economic activity in an area, we need a clear picture and understanding of how geographic areas are defined as rural. This paper explores several methods for measuring the rural character of a region and uses each method…
How do we connect impact investors and rural enterprise, encouraging investment that develops multiple forms of wealth? This paper outlines key features of impact investment and shares examples of successful investment models that provide both financial…
Resources do not represent community wealth unless communities own and control them. This report introduces the concept of shared ownership, then describes and explores various models, looking at strengths, weaknesses, the range of applications, expertise…
This paper examines opportunities and issues related to wind energy development in rural America, with case studies illustrating a range of wind energy projects.
This paper identifies rural counties in Appalachia which have sustained or attained relatively strong levels of prosperity over the course of the decades from 1980-2000. Statistical analysis of these counties lays the groundwork for future detailed…
Based on a year-long exploration of many effective interventions in rural entrepreneurship development, this report shares insights on what is needed to move forward in working for greater triple-bottom-line impacts.
This research report presents qualitative data from interviews with 24 practitioners at six networks that are working to create wealth in rural areas across the United States. The report presents findings related to network results, network management,…
This research focuses on the impact that venture or patient capital has on rural economies, how patient capital funds can promote a triple bottom line (TBL) in their rural investments, and how practices with positive impact can be scaled and or replicated…
This case study explores a developing restoration forest economy and its positive impacts along the forest products value chain; these impacts can be seen both in terms of wealth retention and creation and of forging linkages between rural and urban…
This paper assesses the prosperity of Central Appalachian counties. The assessment compares the prosperity levels of Central Appalachian counties to each other, to themselves over time, and to the region and the country as a whole, using measures that…
This paper identifies the place- and history-based context for a regional approach to wealth creation; assesses varying prosperity rates across the counties of Central Appalachia; analyzes the trade flows between Economic Areas in Central Appalachia;…
This publication provides overview information about the Wood Energy Utilization Services project and summary lists of the reports created for the project.
This report is a pre-feasibility assessment analyzing whether or not a wood pellet heating system makes sense for the Fairfield Center School
This report is a pre-feasibility assessment analyzing whether or not a wood pellet heating system makes sense for the Flood Brook Union School
