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New packages & resources!
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After we wrapped up our latest book - Energizing Entrepreneurial Communities - we got to work building an online university as a way to pull together all the content that the book just could not hold! e2 University continues to grow monthly with new resource packages, tools and stories. The latest package - Tracking and Portfolios - is one of three focused on the art and science of Working with Entrepreneurs. We continue to use these tools in our work with partners on the ground, adapting and improving them over time based on experience in Arkansas, Kansas, North Carolina and other places. To learn how to access any of our e2U resources, contact Dana Williams at dana@e2mail.org. To learn about our entrepreneurial communities work and applying these resources in your community, contact Don Macke at don@e2mail.org. .
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Entrepreneurial Communities
Charting Your Course to Greater Prosperity
Communities Unlimited. The Center for Rural Entrepreneurship and Communities Unlimited (CU) have formed a strategic partnership to advance entrepreneurship in the Mid-South (TN, AR, TX, OK, MS, AL & LA). Beginning with our work together in two Delta communities - Dumas and Newport, Arkansas - we are exploring how CU can more effectively engage with communities (both rural and urban) in this region of the country. CU is a partner in WealthWorks and we'll be exploring how WealthWorks and our Energizing Entrepreneurial Communities frameworks integrate. In October, we'll be conducting webinars and then strategic training with CU staff at their November gathering in Memphis. Our partnership with CU will help advance entrepreneurial communities in the Mid-South and serves as a great model for working with other regional and even multi-state development groups. For more information on this work, contact Don Macke at don@e2mail.org.
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Community Development Philanthropy
Building Philanthropic Capacity and Resources
 Tools You Can Use...Community Development Philanthropy Overview Guide. We are pleased to share a new overview of the Center's resources in support of Community Development Philanthropy. This guide spotlights the growing set of resources that the Center offers and our new partnership with the Aspen Institute's Community Strategy Group. For more information about this work, contact Don Macke at don@e2mail.org.
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New Generation Partnerships
Engaging with America's New Generation
Generational Diversity Research. In November, Deb Markley will be sharing some of the Center's generational diversity research in a session at the Council on Michigan Foundations annual conference. It's a great opportunity to connect our own research with some very good survey data being shared on Millennials. As the next great generational cohort in the U.S., there is a spotlight on Millennials and a focus on better understanding who they are, what motivates them and, as a result, how best to engage this generation in the life and work of the community. We'll share the CMF presentation in a future newsletter. If you'd like to learn more about this work, contact Deb Markley at deb@e2mail.org.
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Field News
Check out this study by the Pew Research Center on the widening household wealth gap along racial and ethnic lines in the U.S. since the Great Recession. If you care about communities, you might want to sign up for Charlie Grantham's Blog from the Community Design Institute. Currently, Charlie is talking about the difference between "well-being" and "wholeness." The Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances is a great resource on household wealth holdings. The latest addition covers 2013. The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis has two essays using this data: Essay No. 1 focuses on Race, Ethnicity and Wealth and Essay No. 2 focuses on the Role of Education. Looking for a good model for an annual impact report? Check out the latest from the Natural Capital Investment Fund. Check out this online resource for community and regional economic development professionals provided by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis - Bridges. There will be a Rural Project Marketplace at CDFA's National Development Finance Summit on November 3-6 in Charleston, SC. The Rural Project Marketplace is a free, interactive forum for rural communities and private sector investors to connect on rural projects. Click here to learn more.
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On the Road
Deb Markley will be in...
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Raleigh, NC October 7-8 conducting the kick off training for the NC Rural Center STEP for Small Business Initiative
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Somerset, KY October 14-15 for an Appalachian Regional Commission conference
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Morganton, NC November 2-3 for a Think Tank with the Carolina Textile District
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Kalamazoo, MI November 9-10 for a presentation on Generational Diversity at the Council on Michigan Foundations Conference
Don Macke will be in...
- Raleigh, NC October 6-8 conducting the kick off training for the NC Rural Center STEP for Small Business initiative
- West Wendover, NV October 15 for the second presentation on attracting residents with the Nevada League of Cities
- Lincoln, NE October 21 presenting at the Rural Futures Conference
- Sante Fe, NM October 23 leading a workshop with Philanthropy Southwest
- Lincoln, NE November 4 conducting a webinar for Texas Economic Development Council focused on accelerating entrepreneurial activity in communities through an established framework
- Madison, WI November 10 attending the National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association Executive Institute
- Memphis, TN November 13-16 for a workshop on community engagement & entrepreneur-focused economic development hosted by Communities Unlimited
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New Community Profile Video!
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Communities Unlimited (CU) is a relatively new organization resulting from the merger of two well-established organizations - Community Resource Group (a 39-year-old organization focused on helping communities with infrastructure work) and alt.Consulting (a 17-year-old organization focused on small business development). CU has a great vision and works with communities large and small throughout the Mid-South Region. Check out CU's most recent annual report.
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The Foundation, based in Reno, was created in 1998 and has distributed more than $70 million in grants over time. It is working with more than 220 charitable funds. The Foundation has a vision to extend community foundation opportunities to every rural community in Nevada. It already supports rural-based funds and makes grants to rural philanthropic causes. But, the Foundation wants to do more and create a robust rural community affiliate program across rural Nevada. Recently USDA Rural Development Secretary Vilsack called for America's foundations to do more in rural America (read article). The Community Foundation of Western Nevada is committed to answering this call.
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While the Center is not formally partnering with New America, the organization is a valuable source of information on Millennials. Their Millennials Rising resource includes information from a 2014 symposium and highlights research on this potentially transformational generation that should be of interest to anyone engaged in community building efforts.
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Meet Our Board
Grace Fricks is the founder, President and CEO of Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs, Inc., a community development financial institution in Georgia. ACE is celebrating 15 years of work in the state helping 600 main street business owners create an income for themselves while creating or saving over 4,000 jobs in Georgia, and lending over $29 million to entrepreneurs, particularly women and people of color.
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