Community Environmental Protection
Community-Based Environmental Protection: A Resource Book for Protecting Ecosystems and Communities, by the US Environ-mental Protection Agency, profiles 30 communities actively using media, setting goals and using citizen involvement to protect their local watersheds and ecosystems.

Contact: National Small Flows Clearinghouse, West Virginia University, (800) 624-8301, www.estd.wvu.edu/nsfc
Cost: $2.95 Shipping and Handling

Grants as Investments
Outcome Funding: A New Approach to Targeted Grantmaking, by Harold S. Williams, Arthur Y. Webb and William J. Phillips of the Rensselaerville Institute, addresses grantmaking as an investment in human gain and challenges traditional notions of the “Request for Proposal” process.

Contact: 63 Huyck Road, Rensselaerville, NY 12147; Fax: (518) 797-5270
Cost: $21 + $3 postage and handling.

Mitigation Across the Board
City/County Collaborations on Disaster Mitigation, a report by the Joint Center for Sustainable Comm-unities, gives snapshot profiles of communities who have maintained disaster resistance.

Contact: National Association of Counties Joint Center Offices, (202) 942-4243, kmitchell@naco.org
Cost: Free

Taking Care of Business
Taking Care of Business: The Role of Regional Development Organizations in Promoting Rural Entrepreneur- ship, by the NADO Research Foundation, chronicles challenges faced by rural entrepreneurs and profiles NADO member regional development organizations that have developed programs designed to overcome these challenges. Examples are drawn from applicants to NADO’s Pioneer Award for Leadership in Entrepren-eurial Promotion in Rural America, which is funded through a grant from the Kauffman Center for Entrepren-eurial Leadership at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

Contact: Bill Amt, NADO, (202) 624-8467, bamt@nado.org.
Cost: Free for NADO members; $15 for nonmembers

US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) Publications

Rural America, Vol. 16, No. 2 USDA-ERS. August 2001 www.ers.usda.gov/publicat ions/RuralAmerica/ra162 Contains an article on recent changes in federal programs and regulations of importance to rural development. Four articles in this issue cover community colleges; other articles cover recent trends in rural migration, earnings and farm household income. Rural America, Vol. 16, No. 1 USDA-ERS. May 2001 www.ers.usda.gov/publicat ions/ruralamerica/ra161 This issue covers rural business development, including articles on value-added agriculture programs, ag processing plant impacts, the importance of rural economies to farm household well-being, and nontraditional sources of rural venture capital. Development at the Urban Fringe and Beyond: Impacts on Agriculture and Rural Land. By Ralph Heimlich and William Anderson. USDA-ERS. 2001 www.ers.usda.gov/ publications/aer803 This report describes the forces driving development, its character and impacts on agriculture and rural communities, the means available to channel and

control growth, and the pros and cons of potential federal roles. How Would Rural Areas Fare Under Block Grants? By Rick Reeder. USDA-ERS. 1996 www.ers.usda.gov/publications /AIB724/Index.htm During recent Congressional hearings, the possibility that rural development programs might be converted into block grants was mentioned as an option, as it was five years ago when the last farm bill was debated. Those interested some of the advantages and disadvantages of using block grants for rural development may find this of interest. Stories Across America: Opportunities For Rural Tourism By Suzanne Dane. National Trust for Historic Preservation. 2001 For those who are interested in developing a rural tourism strategy, this report provides an interesting description of selected approaches used in various places across the country. Most of the examples presented in the report involve heritage- and amenity-based tourism, agritourism, or the use of scenic highways or seaways. Available in electronic form from USDA’s Rural Information Center website: www.nal.usda.gov/ric.