How Global Trade Can Make or Break Rural Economies
Global trade isn’t abstract for farm towns and mill communities—today’s post looks at how it can make or break rural economies, and what smart policy and local strategy can do about it: jcshepard.com/2026/03/glob...
#rural #trade #tariffs #econdev

Front Porches and Paychecks: Housing, Quality of Life, and Economic Development cover image

Front Porches and Paychecks: #Housing, Quality of Life, and Economic Development
In 2026, “cheap rural housing” is a myth. The real competitive edge for #smalltowns is different: homes people can afford & #qualityoflife that makes them want to stay.

#rural #econdev
jcshepard.com/2026/03/hous...

“A category of firm (startups) representing one-fifth of employment is generating nearly half of all net new jobs. This was known over a decade ago, the data hasn’t changed, but most policy hasn’t either.”
-Paul OBrien

#econdev #entrepreneurship #publicpolicy

Far More Than Fabric: Recognizing Black Quiltmakers On National Quilt Day Black women quilters maintain the tradition by elevating it across the rural South and globally, in gallery spaces and museums.

ICYMI #NationalQuiltingDay recognizes the art, tradition and #EconDev impact of quilters - Recognizing #BlackWomen Quilters On National Quilt Day for #WomensHistoryMonth www.blackenterprise.com/black-women-...

What if the Poorest Places Are Actually the Best Places to Start a Startup Right Now?
By Paul O’Brien
seobrien.medium.com/what-if-the-...
#econdev #entrepreneurship #ruraldevelopment

If your town can’t house its workers, it can’t grow its economy. This week, I write about why housing and quality of life are rural economic development, not an afterthought.

Read more: jcshepard.com/2026/03/hous... #Housing #Rural #EconDev #QualityOfLife

Port Authority - Fairfield County Economic Development, Lancaster, Ohio The Fairfield County Port Authority promotes Fairfield County, forming relationships to foster economic growth and utilizing available tools to help finance economic development projects.

☕ WEB CHICK UPDATE
Stay updated on Fairfield County's economic growth!
The Port Authority has released its latest meeting minutes and resolutions. See how creative financing and partnerships are shaping local development.
#FairfieldCounty #EconDev #OhioBusiness #WebChick

Tell Your Community Story of Irish Heritage

Celebrating heritage can honor our communities while also creating economic investment.

medium.com/small-towns-...
#SmallTowns #rural #econdev #heritage #heritagetourism

From Retention to Renewal: How BRE and Entrepreneurship Power Real Economic Development cover image

From Retention to Renewal: How BRE and Entrepreneurship Power Real Economic Development

Real economic development in small towns isn’t chasing the next big deal—it’s helping existing businesses grow and new local owners take root.
jcshepard.com/2026/03/from...
#smalltowns #rural #econdev

Understanding your Rural Economy cover image

Understanding Your Rural Economy—Jobs & Income & Why Headlines Never Tell the Whole Story
Before you share that “Rural America is dying” headline, pull up the data on your own county and see what’s really happening with jobs, income, and people on the ground.

jcshepard.com/2026/03/unde...
#econdev

What is Economic Development in Modern America? A Field Guide for Small Towns and Rural Places
#EconDev in 2026 looks a lot less like chasing smokestacks & a lot more like neighbors, small businesses, & local leaders quietly building places people actually want to live.
jcshepard.com/2026/03/what...

Know Thyself and Your Community

We need to better understand how our communities and the people who live there work.

medium.com/small-towns-...
#planning #data #communityengagement #econdev

© Vincent Nossek, Jared Greathouse, Pierre Mandon

📊 New study by J. Greathouse, V. Nossek & P. Mandon.

Satellite nighttime lights help measure the economic impact of conflict in #Cameroon ’s Northwest & Southwest regions, where #data are scarce.

Read the paper online: t.ly/_AMXA ✨

#EconDev #Conflict #Innovation

Understanding Your Rural Economy—Jobs and Income and Why Headlines Never Tell the Whole Story - For rural analysis, QCEW’s county-level industry detail (by NAICS), coupled with average weekly wage measures, allows researchers and planners to track the

Rural headlines say “dying” and “disappearing,” but the map is more interesting than that.
​
New: a field guide walk through jobs & income data in one #rural county—layer by layer—so you can read your own hometown’s economic map, not just the headline. #EconDev
​
🔗 jcshepard.com/2026/03/unde...

“The Pennsylvania Wilds has a lot of small communities in its big woods. About 500,000 people total are scattered across an area the size of Massachusetts...."
— Tataboline Enos, in Proudly Made (Catamount Press, 2025)
Full quote:
medium.com/@jcshepard.a...
#OutdoorEconomy #Rural #Econdev

Manufacturing remains critical to Kent economy While Delaware’s economy has seen ebbs and flows based on trends, manufacturing has remained a steady force to the First State’s identity – especially in Kent County.

"Freight rail is emerging as a strategic advantage [for Kent County, Delaware] with some industrial sites coming online soon along the railway"
delawarebusinesstimes.com/insider-only... #netde #econdev

What is Economic Development in Modern America? A Field Guide for Small Towns and Rural Places - When I say “economic development”, what comes to mind? Is it big industrial plants and multi-million dollar tax incentives? I wouldn’t be surprised.

What is Economic Development in Modern America? A Field Guide for Small Towns and Rural Places

These days #econdev looks less like marketing, more like community outreach, grants, housing, infrastructure, business support, & a lot of herding cats toward shared goals.

jcshepard.com/2026/03/what...

Rural Strong — Season 1 Episode 36 Podcast Episode · RuralStrong · February 23 · 34m

STaR's Vice-Chair for Communications @jcshepard.com is a guest this week on Joe Barker’s Rural Strong podcast.

Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/r...
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/4pdX...
Or YouTube: youtu.be/uau5zV0xJYo?...

#smalltownrural #smalltowns #rural #planning #econdev
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Turning the data center boom into long-term, local prosperity | Brookings Local leaders are questioning the credibility of Big Tech’s promises of spillover effects that will produce high-quality economic development beyond near-term construction.

#RealEstate #EconDev

RuralStrong Episode 36

Thanks to Joe Barker for inviting me to have a conversation on planning & rural development n the RuralStrong podcast.
#SmallTown #Rural #planning #econdev
open.spotify.com/episode/4pdX...

Small Towns, Big Impact: How Rural Communities Are Designing Their Own Futures
#Smalltowns don’t have to wait their turn for “real” change—they’re already designing their own futures, one block, one grant, one paint day at a time.

jcshepard.com/2025/11/smal...
#Rural #econdev #planning

Between Editions: Who Pays for the AI Boom A free feature of The Rising Tide. No subscription needed to read.

The Rising Tide: Who Pays for the AI Boom by Dean Barber
Modern AI-era data centers resemble industrial fortresses. Some draw as much electricity as a small city, operating around the clock with limited flexibility....

open.substack.com/pub/barberd/...
#zoning #econdev #datacenters

National Main Street is on BlueSky at @mainstreetamerica.bsky.social
#econdev

Nebraska seems hostile to new business, jobs, & income in meddling in foreign affairs. #econdev

Deb Brown, co-founder of SaveYour.Town and passionate champion for rural communities, is Joe Barker's guest on the Rural Strong podcast this week. Check it out on your podcast host of choice.

youtu.be/ensEu1HRHok?...
#SmallTowns #Rural #econdev

'Using more power and paying less for it': Nebraska bill seeks to regulate data centers in the state Rising electricity costs in Nebraska have some lawmakers pointing the finger at data centers, and a bill to regulate those facilities went before the Natural Resources Committee on Thursday.

"There are a lot of concerns about data centers coming into Nebraska and the amount of our natural resources that they are consuming," Sen. Ashlei Spivey said.

Spivey co-sponsored Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh's LB1111, which stems from those concerns.

www.ketv.com/article/nebr...
#econdev

🔍Zoom sur la #recherche d’I. Amedanou & K. Gomado

Comment réduire le #chômage en #Afrique ?

Cette étude (réalisée sur 18 pays) montre que les réformes économiques le peuvent, à condition de s'adapter aux réalités du pays et d'améliorer les infrastructures.

🔗 t.ly/Sqr8H

#EconDev
Photo © IRD

Who Can Afford to Live Rural? Global Pressures on Small-Town Housing Markets - The rural housing market is more of an idea than a thing. Housing supply and needs vary considerably across nations and regions, let alone around the world.

Who Can Afford to Live Rural?
Small towns and rural communities used to promise cheaper homes than big cities. Now, many of those places are caught up in the same global housing squeeze.

This week's long read on the blog:
jcshepard.com/2026/02/who-...
#smalltowns #rural #housing #econdev

With electricity bills rising, some states consider new data center laws • Stateline As Americans grow increasingly frustrated over their electricity bills, states are trying to keep the nation’s growing number of data centers from causing higher energy costs for consumers.

With electricity bills rising, some states consider new data center laws

Leaders in at least a dozen states have targeted data centers with separate, higher electric rates.

stateline.org/2026/02/05/w...
#zoning #energy #econdev

Why Small Town EDOs Are Tracking the Wrong Numbers (And What to Measure Instead) If you’re running economic development in a small town — especially as a single staff member or on a volunteer board — you’re operating…

Why Small Town EDOs Are Tracking the Wrong Numbers (And What to Measure Instead) by Katie Milton Jordan, MBA

medium.com/small-towns-...
#smalltowns #econdev #SmallTownsRealIdeas