Rural Broadband Summit to be Held in Whitesburg

The Center for Media Justice, free press, and the Center for Rural Strategies have teamed up to host a summit and sponsor a hearing about rural broadband challenges and community-based solutions to broadband access.  Broadband access affects issues much broader than infrastructure — access to fast, reliable internet has implications for telecommuting, remote health care provision, distance learning, journalism and information in rural communities.  The information below is provided by the group — if you attend, please feel free to share your thoughts and feedback! Announcement: We’ve reached a critical juncture in the debate over the future of wireless Internet in America. AT&T is arguing that it needs to take over T-Mobile to extend broadband to rural Americans, and the Justice Department has sued to stop the deal, in part because of AT&T's rural-buildout claims. Now is the perfect time to discuss what will work to connect millions of underserved Americans to high-speed Internet.  Your input is key as we discuss how the future of health care, education, jobs and civic participation depends on access to broadband.  That’s why we’re inviting you to attend the first Rural Broadband Summit & Hearing. This event will be held in Whitesburg, Ky. on Oct. 11–12 and is presented by the Center for Media Justice, the Center for Rural Strategies and Free Press. This event is a great opportunity for rural advocates and media justice advocates — as well as local, state and federal policymakers — to discuss community-based solutions to closing the digital...

Central Appalachia Faces Significant Decline in Coal Reserves...

Yesterday, the Associated Press released a story that underscores the importance of Appalachian Transition. "Coal here is getting harder and costlier to dig – and the region, which includes southern West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee, is headed for a huge collapse in coal production. The U.S. Department of Energy projects that in a little more than three years, the amount of coal mined here will be just half of what it was in 2008. That's a significant loss of a signature Appalachian industry, and the jobs that come with it." We've posted similar stories here in the past, and this data has been readily available from government agencies for some time. And yet, our elected leaders still don't seem interested in preparing the region for the inevitable, instead pointing fingers and placing blame. But, as attorney Robert Ukeiley states in the artcile, "Geology trumps economics." Indeed, "The Energy Information Administration said in a 2011 outlook statement that the region's coal is 'extensively mined' and its higher-cost coal will slowly be isupplanted by lower cost coal from other supply regions.'" One of those other regions is the Powder River Basin out West, which produced twice as much coal as Central Appalachia did in 2009, according to the article.  As election season heats up, it's as important to listen to what our politicians say as what they don't say. Are they talking about bringing new industry to Appalachia? Supporting our entrepreneurs? Building on our cultural and natural assets? Bolstering education and job...

Creativity and Innovation Keep Rural Groceries Alive

It's no secret that rural areas are losing population. And as population declines, so do services – including grocery stores. "Food deserts," or places with limited access to fresh, affordable food, have gotten much attention in urban areas, but finding a real grocery store in rural areas is a real challenge as well. According to the USDA, approximately 130,000 Central Appalachian households have no car and live over a mile from the nearest grocery store. Many in this situation must rely on fast food, or prepackaged, processed food from a gas station, a contributing factor to the poor health statistics in our region. Of course, this problem isn't unique to Appalachia, and some rural communities have found very interesting ways to keep grocery stores alive in their communities. The Christian Science Monitor tells the story (reposted in full below) of four small towns: Onaga, KS (pop. 702), where the town built a new store for a grocer in exchange for it agreeing to stay put for 20 years Leeton, MO (pop. 619), where local high school students runs the grocery store Walsh, CO (pop. 723), where town itself bought the store Washburn, IL (pop. 1,147), where the grocery is cooperatively owned by the community While rural America faces its own set of problems, it also has its own set of creative, committed folks dedicated to solving them.     Rural grocery stores fade, but some towns fight back   Rural grocery stores are being reinvented by town councils, coops,...

Conference Will Teach How to Earn Money from Forest Products

Non-timber forest products – like mushrooms, ramps, ginseng, and medicinal herbs – are a growing part of the forest economy. $39.7 million in these types of products were sold from Central Appalachian forests in 2007 alone! The "Goods from the Woods" conference, sponsored by Appalachian Sustainable Development and Rural Action, will offer information and expertise on finding, cultivating, harvesting and marketing these lucrative crops. Here's the scoop from ASD: Goods from the Woods Conference Set for October Learn how you can become a forest farmer by attending "Goods from the Woods: Income Opportunities from the Forest Understory." This full-day conference, sponsored by Appalachian Sustainable Development and Rral Action, will take place on October 14th at the Slater Center in Bristol, TN. Whether you have one acre or one hundred, come learn about new and expanding economic opportunities for growing forest foods and botanicals. Sessions will cover cultivation techniques for ginseng and goldenseal, shiitake mushrooms, elderberries, ramps and more. Lunch will be provided and attendees will get to sample forest crops such as shiitake mushrooms and pawpaws. There is no cost to attend. Please call the ASD office to register at ....

Medical College Opening in Southwest Virginia

Central Appalachia will have a new medical school when King School of Medicine opens in Abingdon, VA in a few years. The school will both create jobs and economic development, but also help to address a shortage of medical professionals and services in the region. Bristol News has the story. King School of Medicine moving forward By: Debra Mccown ABINGDON, Va. — Medical students will likely begin attending classes here in 2013 or 2014, King College President Greg Jordan said Friday. That’s when the new King School of Medicine and Health Sciences Center is expected to open in the Stone Mill business park off Interstate 81’s Exit 14 in Abingdon. Officials from the college, Washington County and the town of Abingdon gathered Friday to sign an agreement detailing their commitment to the project, which, according to the college, could ultimately have an annual economic impact of $1 billion. The announcement that the project is moving forward comes two years after Jordan first articulated his vision for a medical school in Southwest Virginia – and about a year after the town and county offered financial support if Abingdon was chosen as its location. Deal signed On Friday, the town and county formally committed to help fund the project, which is also expected to receive $25 million from the Virginia Tobacco Commission. The county and town each agreed to commit $7.5 million to the project, with the county’s contribution being given in cash and the town’s coming in the form of...

Rural Partners Forum Explores Ways to Keep Youth in Rural Areas...

Too many young people don't see a future in rural areas. Appalachia feels this drain as sharply as any region, watching their youth leave their homeplaces to find a job or go to school, only returning for holiday visits or homecomings. The North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center is holding a forum this November to address the problem of the rural young adult exodus: Our young people are our greatest asset.  We must give them a reason to stay or return – and create communities that will attract others. At the 2011 Rural Partners Forum, we’ll begin to re-imagine this rural future – exploring ways to engage rural youth and young adults in the life of their communities and to foster the next generation of business owners, skilled workers and economic and community leaders. What’s in store: Leading speakers on youth engagement and how to make it work in your community Release of findings from the Rural Center’s two-year study of rural youth and young adults Inspiring stories from young people who are actively leading change in their communities Announcement of a major youth initiative for rural communities Plus, an expanded rural resource fair, take-home materials, entertainment by young performers, and lots of great food and time for networking. The schedule The forum will open Wednesday, November 16, at 1 p.m. and conclude the following day at 2 p.m.  Further details will be posted as they become available. Registration Registration is $200.00 for the full, two-day program.  For ages...

Rooted in the Mountains Conference Registration Open

Rooted in the Mountains Oct 20-21 Western Carolina University http://www.wcu.edu/27734.asp CULLOWHEE – The second annual Rooted in the Mountains symposium at Western Carolina University will be held Thursday, Oct. 20, and Friday, Oct. 21, in the Grandroom of the A.K. Hinds University Center. The Rooted in the Mountains event was created to raise awareness of the intersection of environmental, health and indigenous issues related to mountain destruction. This year's program includes a 6 p.m. Thursday address by Dennis Martinez (Tohono O'odham/Chicano), a "bio pioneer" and advocate for an indigenous perspective of ecology, and music beginning at 7:30 p.m. by Sheila Kay Adams, a longtime storyteller and performer of traditional Appalachian ballads. Cultural historian Jeff Biggers will start Friday's session with a 9 a.m. keynote address. Biggers, a coal miner's grandson and outspoken critic of mountaintop removal in Appalachia, is the author of nonfiction works "Reckoning at Eagle Creek," "The United States of Appalachia" and "In the Sierra Madre." The symposium also includes a Thursday reception, Friday lunch, academic presentations and a facilitated discussion. Reduced-rate hotel rooms at the Sylva Inn and the Holiday Inn Express in Dillsboro and an early registration fee of $75 are available through Sunday, Sept. 25. After that, the symposium registration fee rises to $125. The symposium is free to WCU students (or $10 including lunch). The Biggers address, part of WCU's Art and Cultural Events Series, is free to all. Lisa Lefler, the event's co-organizer, said the Rooted in the Mountains symposium is for...

Capturing Wealth?: Severance Taxes

Our friends at WV Center on Budget and Policy have a great piece about capturing revenue from coal extraction…and missed opportunities to do so in West Virginia.  While they focus on the West Virginia landscape, many of the questions apply to Kentucky too.  Looks like we have a lot of room for improvement in taking advantage of severance taxes.  Take a look at the original post and resources on their site. West Virginia's severance tax below other energy intensive states. One idea we've championed in the past is the creation of a trust fund for economic development and diversification funded through an increase in West Virginia's severance tax levied on coal and natural gas extraction. But would raising the severance tax make it too expensive to mine coal or drill for natural gas in West Virginia, and hurt the state's economy? Let's look at how West Virginia compares to other states. First we'll look at which states rely on severance taxes. As the table below shows, it's not surprise that the top severance tax states all are rich in coal, oil, gas, or all three. Alaska tops the list, with over 66% of state tax revenue coming from severance taxes. West Virginia comes in with over 7% of state tax revenue coming from its severance tax.   State Tax Revenue, 2007 (thousands) Source: U.S. Census Bureau   So while West Virginia relies on the severance tax, it doesn't do so to the extent of some other energy and natural resource intensive...