RURAL & REGIONAL
LOCAL INSTITUTIONS
Driving Regional Transformation through Inclusion
The Arras Foundation in Lancaster, South Carolina, is using resident input and data to empower whole-of-region progress.
PARKS, REC & FUN
Great Falls Reimagines Its Identity through Nature-Based Tourism
With community partnerships and resident input, the small South Carolina town is writing its next chapter.
RURAL & REGIONAL
How Infrastructure Funding Is Bringing High-Speed Internet to Hard-to-Reach Places
A fresh round of funds was pumped into the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ReConnect Broadband project when the infrastructure bill passed a year ago. That investment is bringing connectivity to some of the most rugged and remote corners of the country.
LOCAL INSTITUTIONS
How a Foundation Transforms the Well-Being of Residents
Our Towns' Ben Speggen talks with the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation team to discuss how the Foundation is empowering community development, has transformed a former grocery store into an innovative hub for nonprofits, and more.
LOCAL INSTITUTIONS
How a Community Center Helps a Town Rise Again
Residents of Fort Lawn, South Carolina used a community development model to identify 51 actionable goals to improve their town. Today, they’re checking off the list, one by one.
RURAL & REGIONAL
Is Rural America Growing Again? Recent Data Suggests Yes
Despite unprecedented Covid-19-related death rates, rural America shows population growth after a decade of decline.
ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY
Finding ‘Higher Ground’: Locally-led Movement Works Toward a Just Housing Recovery in Eastern Kentucky
The urgent need for housing assistance in flood stricken Appalachian communities reveals the severe limitations of the nation’s response and support systems. Community groups are stepping up to help.
RURAL & REGIONAL
Running Fiber-Optic Cable to Rural Communities Is Part of Maine’s Ambitious Broadband Plan
Maine’s governor has pledged that everyone in the state who wants high-speed internet will be able to get it by the end of 2024. In just one small, Down East town, that means installing 60 miles of fiber-optic cable.
PODCAST
Inside Our Towns: John Kropf
John Kropf discusses his latest book, 'Color Capital of the World: Growing Up with the Legacy of a Crayon Company', which explores Sandusky, Ohio's innovative industrial heritage and his family's role in it.
ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY
Trees Bring Hope, Healing, and a Look to the Future for Western Kentucky Tornado Victims
A tree grower joins forces with a local organization to replant some of the trees lost in Kentucky during tornadoes of late 2021.
ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY
That empty space next to highways? Put solar panels on it.
Roadside solar fields across the country could power up to 12 million electric vehicles.
RURAL & REGIONAL
New Podcast Highlights Transformations Taking Place In Rural America
“Reimagine Rural” from the Brookings Institution showcases communities across America that are in the midst of renewal.
ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY
Push for Electric Ag Equipment in Oregon Is Led by Independent Groups
With volatility being an integral part of farming, electric ag equipment could bring some predictability to farmers’ energy use and consumption, say experts.
PODCAST
Inside Our Towns: Scott and Tiffany Whaley
Feeding, sustaining, and building community in Kershaw, South Carolina through KARE.
ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY
Unlocking Potential
At-risk youth in North Carolina hold the keys to flipping a decommissioned prison into a sustainable farm and community asset.
COMMUNITIES THAT WORK
Kershaw invests in community with new ideas in old spaces
A train depot that’s a museum. A bank branch building that’s become a library. Another former bank that is serving as an early education center. Here is how this South Carolina town is repurposing buildings of the past to build up its future.