==================================================================
The Rural Update addresses rural and small town community economic
development, with summaries and pointers to items on the Internet,
in major media, and in organizational newsletters and journals.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Aspen Institute Rural Economic Policy Program; Tim Walter, Editor
==================================================================
"ON-LINE RESOURCES FOR RURAL COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT"
- Special Edition of the Rural Update -
September '96; Part 2 of 2 (Distributed 10/9/96)
A number of readers have asked for a guide to Internet resources useful for
community economic development. In response, we spent the last weeks of
September revising a 25-page guide including listservs, collaboration
software, Web sites, and fee-based services. In the future, you will see
reviews of Web sites and other resources as a section of the Rural Update
called "Rural Development Web Watch."
You can receive a copy of "On-line Resources for Rural Community Economic
Development" by e-mail (instructions below) or print it from the Web at
http://www.aspeninst.org/rural.
In about a week we'll be out with our first regular issue of October in which
we return to our normal format. What follows below are a few highlights of
what's available on-line and how it is handled in the guide.
> GOING ON-LINE: WHO, NOT WHAT
If you're trying to use the Internet to solve a particular local problem, the
Web will help you get a broad, shallow perspective of the solutions you might
try. From there, either pick up the phone to contact an organization or use
an e-mail listserv (group mail) to broadcast an inquiry. Listservs are one of
the Internet's special treasures -- use them, but treat them with respect.
The guide has about 100 listservs and a description of on-line conferencing
software (groupware).
> RESOURCES FOR LOCAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
To help small businesses serve niche markets, try combining use of expensive
private databases (like Nexis) with the strategic use of e-mail listservs.
There are only a few free Web sites up you can use to analyze competition or
assess demographics. The guide lists the fee-based services and some of the
Web sites relevant to business development.
> RAISING MONEY
Federal programs are finally getting easier to research on-line, in part
thanks to the Rural Economic Development Action Team (coordinated by USDA) and
their Web site. Foundation grantmaking resources are uneven, and though we
hear anecdotes from folks who've found money on-line, a printed guide in your
library or from the Foundation Center still seems to be a better bet.
Consequently, I've not put much in this guide on fundraising.
> STEWARDSHIP & PLANNING
The environmental community has been active on-line for years, and there is a
booming amount of material relevant to ecology and environmental protection.
There are networks of planners on-line, and there are a few Web sites for
grassroots groups dealing with local zoning issues (things like government
"takings" and super-store sprawl) that can provide you with resources or a
supportive shoulder.
---------------------------------------------------
HOW TO RECEIVE THE ON-LINE GUIDE:
BY E-MAIL:
Send a message to: goodstuff@lists.aspeninst.org with "send guide" (no quotes)
in the subject field and your name in the body of the message. The paper will
be sent right back to you automatically. It comes as a plain text document
which you should be able to read with any word processor. If your e-mail
system interferes with normal "reply" messages or mangles file attachments
you'll probably want to try the Web.
ON THE WEB:
Check out http://www.aspeninst.org/rural where you'll find a link to the
document. Print it yourself from here and you'll get some decent formatting.
MASS REDISTRIBUTION:
Several organizations are using the paper as part of training materials for
Internet classes. Contact me about receiving a clean, formatted copy if you
need it for this purpose.
---------------------------------------------------
Tim Walter, Editor
Aspen Institute Rural Economic Policy Program
1333 New Hampshire Ave. NW #1070
Washington, DC 20036-1511
202-736-5834 tel, 202-467-0790 fax
timothy@aspeninst.org
http://www.aspeninst.org/rural
--end--
Associate Professor
Dept. of Ag. Economics & Rural Soc.
University of Idaho
Moscow, ID 83843
http://www.uidaho.edu/~scooke/onepercent
208-885-7170 (phone)
208-885-5759 (fax)