Making Economic Development Work In Rural Wisconsin

A major reason that economic development organizations carefully define rural areas is because priorities and potential initiatives in those communities can differ in some ways from their urban counterparts. Many rural areas, face challenges due to their smaller populations and locations that are often distant from services taken for granted in larger communities. "The big deals don't happen often," said Jim Bowman of Driftless Development, referencing major projects by large companies more common in urban and suburban areas. "So it's about what we have already and how to build on that. Our place-based aspects, land and environment are more important than in a city," he added.Bowman also noted, though, that the internet and social media have leveled the playing field between rural and urban economic development efforts, at least in some ways. Now, he said, organizations like Driftless Development can promote the positive aspects of their region to the same global audiences as those in more urban areas.