Rural Economic Development News

Jim Cleveland knows what it takes to bring businesses to a community, and he knows how a project can win the financial backing it needs to succeed.

Browse a curated list of initiatives designed specifically to assist rural entrepreneurs in finding business success.

The Rural Wisconsin Entrepreneurship Initiative aims to equip rural entrepreneurs with business development assistance and access to financing, as well as developing Wisconsin’s rural entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Grants are available to support expanding food processing and distribution capacity, with applications due in early March.

Discover resources that demonstrate practical ideas for communities to create an environment that makes new residents feel welcome and included in the fabric of our rural towns and villages.

Tourism introduces people to our state from across state lines and across the world. Communities that showcase and invest in their cultural identity and creative outlets, agritourism, and outdoor recreation can enhance rural prosperity through tourism.

During public forums in 2020, hundreds of rural residents told the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Rural Prosperity that they need the state to make health services more accessible to them. Their suggestions are included here.

When rural schools thrive, so do the towns and regions around them. Read more about the organizations supporting rural education as well as grant opportunities available to educators.

Jeff is a clinical professor at the UW-Madison Law School and supervising attorney with the law school’s Law and Entrepreneurship Clinic. For the past several years, his focus has been on the rural economy.

Read more about the organizations supporting rural agriculture as well as grants and other programs providing financial assistance those that feed us.