Sounding off about Rural Entrepreneurship in the West
| August 3, 2007 |  View for printing |
The Story Behind the Listening Sessions
Fifty-six million people live and work in rural America. Over 25 million proprietor-owned businesses operate in rural America, with one fourth of all part-time and full-time jobs in rural America linked to rural proprietors. Current data clearly show that small businesses generate the majority of new jobs in rural America.
Residents value their communities and know they contribute significantly to the local, state and national economy. Yet most residents, businesses, government agencies and nonprofit organizations living and working in rural America feel that their voices and needs are continually being reduced by state and federal government.
The West’s rural residents are unique for both their diversity and widespread geographical locations. With 13 states and four U.S. territories in its region, the Western Rural Development Center (WRDC) http://extension.usu.edu/wrdc/htm/ must consider a wide variety of perspectives, from entrepreneurs on tribal reservations to small town business people to farmers and ranchers to those who feel they are marginalized by their geographical isolation. As will be evident, while each pocket of people has their own unique experiences and concerns, common themes emerged among our listening session participants.
Western Entrepreneurial Listening Sessions
The WRDC coordinated Entrepreneurial Listening Sessions throughout the West in response to the 2004 RFP issued by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Corporation for Enterprise Development. In this request, these two organizations were soliciting interested parties to create Rural Entrepreneurship Development Systems.
The overwhelming response to this RFP culminated in Rural Entrepreneurial Listening Sessions being held across the rural United States with the facilitation for each session being coordinated by the four Regional Rural Development Centers.
The WRDC’s Listening Sessions were held throughout the western U.S., in an effort to hear from as many entrepreneurs and rural community development practitioners as possible. Cognizant of the diverse experiences of Western entrepreneurs, the WRDC felt it necessary to hear the voices of various populations throughout the region. With this in mind, our listening sessions were conducted throughout the region, in the following locations:
Billings, Montana
Bismarck, North Dakota
Coachella, California
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Espanola, New Mexico
Fresno, California
Price, Utah
Puyallup, Washington
Spokane, Washington
Twin Falls, Idaho
Winslow, Arizona
The WRDC Rural Entrepreneurial Listening Sessions http://extension.usu.edu/wrdc/htm/
Written by Stephanie Malin WRDC Graduate Intern
Full Publication: http://extension.usu.edu/files/publi ... 6990608.pdf
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