Special Notes:
- I have come across an excellent email blast similar to my own, but more focused on local foods, called Good Greens, you saw some of the material last week. The email is quite large, so I picked the very best funding announcements, however there was other excellent material as well. Alan Shannon at USDA Food Nutrition Service (FNS) manages that list - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and he welcomes anyone to sign-up, please send him an email if you would like to receive it. It comes out every 7-10 days and he also sends out a separate email on USDA grants as well.
- I will be going on detail to another agency outside of USDA, and so this will be my last week putting these emails together, at least for 6 months. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Chris) will be taking over managing the list and providing content. I know they will appreciate any feedback you can provide on content or format, whether good or bad. Your input and feedback over the years has certainly guided my eye in finding the very best items to share. It has been a pleasure to put this together to serve your needs. Be well, and keep moving forward.
PUBLICATIONS
A Mismatch Between Need and Affluence, Chronicle of Philanthropy| READ STORY
It's a common combination across the country: Residents of areas with high standards of living, low poverty, and low crime give less to charity than those in less well-off areas. That's one finding from new data, compiled by The Chronicle of Philanthropy, combining giving behavior with quality-of-life measurements for 2,670 counties across the United States. It's based on data from The Chronicle's How America Gives study, which shows the share of income Americans in different parts of the country have donated.
Nonmetro job growth accelerates in 2015, but is unevenly distributed
The number of rural (nonmetro) jobs rose by 239,000 (1.2 percent) between the second quarters of 2014 and 2015, more than double the rate of growth over the prior year. Rural job growth still lags behind the rate of growth in metro areas, which saw the number of jobs rise by 1.8 percent over this period. Moreover, while the number of jobs in urban areas now exceeds the peak levels recorded prior to the Great Recession in 2007, rural employment is still well below its pre-recession peak. Rural job growth was unevenly distributed; some 1311 rural counties saw no change or an increase in jobs (ranging up to 69 percent growth), but 665 experienced job declines, with the largest decline being 19 percent. Rural counties in several oil and gas-producing states, such as Texas, Kansas, and North Dakota, which had generally experienced job growth between 2013 and 2014, experienced declines in 2014-15. The vast majority (88 percent) of rural counties in the block of Southern States stretching from Arkansas to Georgia experienced job growth, whereas, in 2013-14, 71 percent of these rural counties had employment losses. This map updates one found in the ERS report, Rural America At a Glance, 2014 Edition.
TOOLS
U.S. Census Bureau Releases County-to-County Commuting Flows
EPA Releases New Self-Assessment Tool for Rural Communities and Small Towns
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Sustainable Communities has recently released the Smart Growth Self-Assessment for Rural Communities, a compilation of strategies, organized by 11 common “goal areas,” that towns and small cities can use to evaluate their existing policies to create healthy, environmentally resilient, and economically robust places. This self-assessment helps communities identify gaps in their policies, plans, codes, and zoning regulations by asking a series of “Yes” or “No” questions. This self-assessment tool is broad and interdisciplinary. Each section focuses on a specific set of issues and will likely require input from multiple parts of the local government, as well as from community residents and other stakeholders. Click here for more information and to download the tool.
LEARNING
FHWA to Hold Webinar on State of Logistics Report
On September 16 from 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. ET, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration will hold the webinar “2015 Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals State of Logistics Report” as part of its monthly Talking Freight professional development series. The State of Logistics Report is one of the most important reports in the goods movement and freight logistics industry, providing an overview of current goods movement and freight logistics trends, and freight volumes and economic health of the various freight transportation mode industries. Understanding the “lay of the land” in the goods movement and freight logistics industry can help both public and private sector transportation organizations better understand current and possible future freight transportation planning needs. It can also provide insights into the business aspects of freight transportation, information typically not available to or examined by many public sector freight transportation professionals. When examined in concert with transportation infrastructure needs, it can help government sector transportation officials gain better understanding of the impact infrastructure investment, or lack thereof, can have on supply chain operations and ultimately business sustainability. Clickhere to register for the webinar.
Advancing Economic Success – Community Foundations Building Family, Community and Regional Prosperity provided an opportunity for community foundation leaders to more deeply explore and share how they are addressing critical community issues and working to advance regional development in ways that build wealth for all. At the event, participants learned about the organizing framework of Community Development Philanthropy and heard stories from community foundations that are helping families get ahead and those that are helping local and regional economies get ahead.
Click here to view presentations and videos from the workshop, and be sure to follow @AspenCSG and @e2ruralcenter for more stories and ideas related to community development philanthropy!