Santiago Pinto discusses his research on commuting patterns in the Fifth District and how these patterns may help us better understand the economic connections between rural and urban communities. Pinto is a senior economist and policy advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.

$440 million in competitive economic development grants from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act have arrived in the Fifth District where the funds are expected to have an outsized impact in rural areas.

President Tom Barkin shares how engagements with the Fifth District community inform our understanding of the economy.

Examining commuting behavior helps show how connected counties are in the Fifth Federal Reserve District.

After accounting for cost of living, teachers' salaries go further in some rural communities throughout the Fifth District.

States and communities are looking for remote workers as sources of economic growth. Is offering them cash and other perks a promising model of economic development?

We're building our data products to help data users and local and state leaders gain quick insight into geographic differences across a range of indicators.

Sierra Latham and Stephanie Norris discuss the challenges of collecting socioeconomic data on small towns and rural areas, how data analysts address them, and the value of that work in analyzing and improving the Richmond Fed's understanding of these communities.

The New River Valley Regional Commission is an example of how a regional development organization can galvanize innovative, sustainable regional and local housing strategies to serve its small towns and rural communities.

Nicolas Morales reviews his research on the economic role of non-native workers in rural areas. Morales is an economist at the Richmond Fed.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, have people moved away from urban cores in favor of more rural areas?

Small towns have an opportunity to address challenges from health care to transportation, but there are barriers to accessing funding.

Numerous factors — including population growth, education, housing, transportation, child care, health, and broadband availability — are shaping the differences in employment outcomes between rural and urban communities.

The Appalachian Regional Commission, created in the 1960s, became a model for regional economic development programs.

When immigration is restricted in rural areas, native workers don't seem to fill the jobs left empty.

Host Tim Sablik discusses his recent research on the value of entrepreneurs in the economic growth of rural places and small towns, as well as the obstacles that they face compared to more urban communities. Sablik also talks with Erika Bell and Laura Ullrich about what they have learned from their contacts in North Carolina and South Carolina about rural entrepreneurship. Bell is community development regional manager for the Carolinas and Ullrich is a regional economist in the Richmond Fed's Charlotte branch.

Housing and transportation represent the two largest living expenses in most households, but local investment can address households' travel needs.

Although U.S. employment in manufacturing has decreased since the 1980s, the industry has become a vital employer in rural areas, where it pays above-average wages.

A recent analysis shows significantly higher inflation in rural areas versus urban areas, using data from nine broad census divisions. But does this difference in price levels hold true drilling down to the state level?

President Tom Barkin discusses pools of funding available to small towns, the barriers these communities face in accessing funding, and explores potential solutions to these barriers.

Intermediary organizations, including anchor institutions, rural development hubs, and collective impact backbone organizations, play an important role in rural capacity building.

Sierra Latham and Peter Dolkart discuss their work on the availability of affordable housing in small towns and rural communities. Latham is a senior research analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and Dolkart is a community development regional manager based in the Richmond Fed's Baltimore office.

President Tom Barkin discusses critical investments to support rural economic development.

The rural areas and small towns that are succeeding have several key elements: a story, regional cooperation, and dedicated funding — tied together by something harder to define.

Although people often associate high housing costs with urban areas, many households in rural areas also struggle with costly housing

Entrepreneurship creates many local benefits, but starting a new business in rural places can be challenging

As a regional Fed, it is in our mission to help wherever we can to promote economic vitality in our District. So, starting in early 2018, the Richmond Fed stepped up its efforts to learn about rural and small-town economies and to seek ways in which outcomes could be improved and potential unleashed.

The pandemic has worsened a long-standing national shortage of nurses. Rural communities face the greatest challenges.

Tressa Gardner provides an overview of the Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology (SiMT), the business incubator and other programs that it operates, and its role in supporting economic development in northeastern South Carolina. Gardner is associate vice president of SiMT.

The GoodCare Program in Virginia helps aspiring workers complete career pathways in health care, addressing workforce shortages in a sector essential to equitable pandemic recovery.

Mary Ann Gilmer of Goodwill Industries of the Valleys discusses the nonprofit's training program for healthcare workers and the importance of this work in rural communities, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Gilmer is chief strategy and people officer at Goodwill.

Tom Barkin, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, discusses the challenges and opportunities facing rural communities and smaller towns, and why the Richmond Fed has been working to address them.

Rural America Week brings together community leaders, policymakers, and representatives from financial institutions and foundations.

According to the latest census data, the share of Americans living in rural areas continued to decline over the past decade, while urban areas have grown.

Daniel Paul Davis and Andrew Dumont discuss an approach to economic development in rural communities that is detailed in a book they have edited, "Investing in Rural Prosperity."

Heirs' property, land passed through generations without a clear title, is an unstable form of landownership that can lead to lost capital and wealth.

The Danville region in Virginia has moved the needle on early childhood education and now has an ecosystem in place to help address future challenges.

Angela Wells, executive director of Smart Beginnings Danville Pittsylvania, discusses how her Southside Virginia organization supports parents, schools and early child care providers in preparing children for success in school and in life.

President Tom Barkin shares innovative strategies and success stories from small towns around the Fifth District.

Deborah Markley discusses how community foundations support capacity building and development to improve the well being of rural communities.

Focusing on a complete household's needs, Garrett County Community Action Committee's integrated "2Gen approach" links children to high-quality early education and their parents to services that build financial security.

Duane Yoder, executive director of the Garrett County Community Action Committee, discusses how his organization adopted a holistic model for addressing poverty in rural communities.

Community development financial institutions (CDFIs) like Woodlands Community Lenders are uniquely positioned to help rural towns address unique challenges through place-based revitalization and by attracting investment.

Dave Clark discusses the role of Woodlands Development Group and his organization's community development financial institution in driving economic development in north central West Virginia.