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Rural Spotlights

Many American small towns and rural areas are thriving. Others are struggling, held back by obstacles such as population loss, job loss, lower labor force participation, less access to investment capital, and lower median incomes compared to many urban and most suburban areas. The Richmond Fed seeks to understand obstacles to economic growth and labor market engagement, and to help in the search for solutions in furtherance of the Fed's employment and Community Reinvestment Act mandates. Of course, large parts of rural America also lie within our district.

Thus, the Richmond Fed has been studying the various barriers to employment and investment that rural communities face. Among employment barriers, rural areas contend with both skill-based barriers (including education and training) and non-skill barriers (including personal barriers like health or child care; infrastructure barriers like broadband and transportation; and incentive barriers like benefits cliffs). Investment barriers include both supply-side issues (such as fewer sources of capital and a lack of coordination) and demand-side ones (such as limited staff capacity to develop investment-ready community and economic development projects).

The Richmond Fed is committed to learning about these challenges — and potential solutions — from our communities and sharing them broadly. What we have seen is that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to reaching economic potential in rural areas; the strategies and goals have to match the needs and desires of the community.

The map below highlights examples of communities and organizations deploying interesting or promising strategies that they are excited about. These examples come from our work in Fifth District communities and our relationships with community leaders. Click on the topics below to learn what communities are doing within key focus areas. Themes we've seen among these strategies have included:

  • Play to your area's strengths: Though there are challenges, rural areas have tremendous assets — from natural resources to beauty to rich institutions — that can serve as engines of development.
  • Tell a compelling story: We see communities working hard to share their stories as a way to attract new investment and new residents.
  • Support strong local leadership: Community work takes strong, dedicated leadership, including from young leaders as communities age.
  • Take a long-term view: Community change cannot be expected overnight. Successful communities keep at the work for the long haul and celebrate wins along the way to keep the ball moving.
  • Embrace regional collaboration: Economic issues cross geographic boundaries. Communities can benefit from larger-scale approaches by working together.
  • Prioritize quality of life: Jobs will go where the workers are, and workers will go where quality of life is high.

The Richmond Fed's rural work includes:

Have ideas? Let us know!
 
Download Full List of Initiatives Last Updated on March 28, 2025

Topics

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Rural Workforce and Education
Rural Housing
Rural Community Development Finance
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Rural Child Care

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