NCSC Offers TBED Resources

The National Center for Small Communities (NCSC) has two new free or low-cost resources for small town leaders and rural development practitioners. Based in Washington, D.C., NCSC conducts research, training and technical assistance to benefit the leaders of U.S. small communities.

Technology and Grit at the Grassroots

A 68-page guidebook, Technology and Grit at the Grassroots identifies and explores effective technology-based economic development strategies for distressed, rural communities. Concrete guidance on how to put computers, the Internet and advanced telecommunications to good use is distilled from practical research of 14 distressed rural communities and supplemented by recent articles and reports.

NCSC is distributing 1,000 guidebooks to interested regional and statewide economic organizations and agencies at a fulfillment price of 93 cents per book. These organizations are asked to give their guidebooks to small town leaders. More information is available at: http://www.smallcommunities.org/ncsc/TechandGrit.htm

Thriving Hometowns Network

The Thriving Hometowns Network is a compilation of more than 50 original in-depth community and economic development case studies drawn from small communities, most with a population of less than 10,000. It is a fully searchable electronic database, available free of charge to anyone with Internet access.

Users can search the database by any keyword or by such criteria as geographic region, population range, economic development strategy, and key project organizers. The search produces a list of qualified case studies, which may be reprinted and distributed, if credit is given to NCSC. More information is available at: http://www.smallcommunities.org/ncsc/THN.htm