NADO Announces the 2020 Impact Awards

Congratulations to the 2020 Aliceann Wohlbruck NADO Impact Awards recipients!  The Impact Awards program honors NADO members for their creative approaches to advancing regional economic development and improved quality of life.  These projects have made significant impacts on their regions and demonstrate the diversity of services and program delivery provided by regional development organizations across the country.  The 2020 class of awardees consists of 79 projects from 48 organizations spanning 19 states.  All projects are highlighted in an interactive Story Map, available here.

The 2021 class of awardees consists of 102 projects from 70 organizations spanning 24 states.  Click here to view a StoryMap that highlights the stories behind each of these projects.

For more information, contact NADO Research Foundation Associate Director Brett Schwartz at [email protected]

2020 NADO Impact Awards Recipient

Arizona

  • Northern Arizona Council of Governments, 2020-2025 Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Update

Arkansas

  • Western Arkansas Planning & Development District, Flood Prevention through 911 Addressing
  • Western Arkansas Planning & Development District, May 2019 Arkansas River Valley Flood

Colorado

  • Region 9 Economic Development District of Southwest Colorado, Colorado Microloan Fund Statewide Collaboration

Florida

  • Apalachee Regional Planning Council, 850 Hemp Summits: Tallahassee and Marianna
  • Central Florida Regional Planning Council, City of Fort Meade Economic Development & Disaster Resiliency Plan
  • East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, East Central Florida Food Assets Inventory
  • East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Green Infrastructure Adaptation Plan for the Town of Melbourne Beach
  • East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Central Florida’s US&R TF4 MobEx 2019
  • North Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Middle and Lower Suwannee River and Withlacoochee River Task Force
  • Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, Citrus County Local Mitigation Strategy
  • Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, Hernando County Local Mitigation Strategy
  • Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, The Tampa Bay Regional Resiliency Coalition (TBRRC)

Georgia

  • Central Savannah River Area Regional Commission, CSRA Transportation Sales Tax 2022-2032
  • Coastal Regional Commission of Georgia, Community of Faith and Opportunity
  • Coastal Regional Commission of Georgia, Bike+Walk Coastal Georgia 2020
  • Georgia Mountains Regional Commission, City of Dahlonega Parks and Trails Study
  • Georgia Mountains Regional Commission, Apprenticeship 101
  • Georgia Mountains Regional Commission, ROUTE 180
  • Middle Georgia Regional Commission, Brosnan Yard Locomotive Conversions
  • Middle Georgia Regional Commission, Prior Learning Assessments for Transitioning Service Members
  • Northwest Georgia Regional Commission, COVID-19 Outreach Project
  • River Valley Regional Commission, Columbus Local Food System Initiative
  • Southern Georgia Regional Commission, The SGRC Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information HUB
  • Southern Georgia Regional Commission, Douglas Sidewalk Master Plan
  • Southern Georgia Regional Commission, Model Ordinances Workshop
  • Three Rivers Regional Commission, TRRC Grant Writing Assistance – LaGrange CDBG Innovative Grant Program
  • Three Rivers Regional Commission, Three Rivers Aging and Behavioral Health Collaborative Meeting
  • Three Rivers Regional Commission, Correction Facility Welding Program

Iowa

  • Region XII Council of Governments, Summit Ridge

Maine

  • Eastern Maine Development Corporation, Maine’s Connecting with Opportunities Initiative

Michigan

  • Eastern Upper Peninsula Regional Planning and Development Commission, EUP CEDS 2020 5-Year Plan
  • Networks Northwest, Target Market Analysis

Minnesota

  • Region Five Development Commission, RxCSA/VetCSA (Community Supported Agriculture) Program

Mississippi

  • Central Mississippi Planning & Development District, Mississippi Center for Emergency Services
  • East Central Planning and Development District, East Central Community College Hazard Mitigation Plan 2020
  • Northeast Mississippi Planning & Development District, Marshall County-Chickasaw Trails Industrial Park Improvements
  • Northeast Mississippi Planning & Development District, Tishomingo County Northrop Grumman Public Infrastructure Improvements
  • Northeast Mississippi Planning & Development District, Marshall County Workforce Training Center

Missouri

  • Kaysinger Basin Regional Planning Commission, Innovative Regional Collaboration – SET VI and CEDS

New Mexico

  • Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments, Prewitt Industrial Park Master Plan & Design

North Carolina

  • Eastern Carolina Council of Governments, Elder Abuse Awareness Campaigns
  • Eastern Carolina Council of Governments, Regional Dementia Education and Supportive Training
  • Eastern Carolina Council of Governments, Assistive Technology AAA Program
  • Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments, Focus 20/20: A Regional Economic Development Summit
  • Land of Sky Regional Council, Age-friendly Buncombe County
  • Land of Sky Regional Council, Utility Cost Control Strategies during COVID-19
  • Land of Sky Regional Council, Accelerating Apprenticeship in WNC
  • Lumber River Council of Governments, The Real World
  • Lumber River Council of Governments, Lumber River Regional Senior Games
  • Lumber River Council of Governments, Asset Inventory Assessments
  • Mid-East Commission, Assessment and Evaluation of Key Components of the Bertie County Emergency Operations Plan
  • Piedmont Triad Regional Council, Community Development/Housing Service Delivery Continuity During COVID-19
  • Piedmont Triad Regional Council, COVID-19 Economic Recovery Strategy for the Piedmont Triad – Workplace Restart and NCTriad.com
  • Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments, Five Points Tiny House Community
  • Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments, West Fraser Seaboard Connection Project
  • Western Piedmont Council of Governments, Henry Fork and Jacob Fork Watershed Conservation Plan
  • Western Piedmont Council of Governments, Stormwater Planning and Administration
  • Western Piedmont Council of Governments, Hickory Trail Economic Impact Analysis

Ohio

  • Buckeye Hills Regional Council, Regional Broadband Feasibility Study

Oregon

  • Mid-Columbia Economic Development District, Economic Resiliency Resources
  • Mid-Columbia Economic Development District, Gorge TransLink Website Project

South Carolina

  • Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments, Beach Reach
  • Catawba Regional Council of Governments, City of Tega Cay 2025 Comprehensive Plan Update
  • Santee-Lynches Regional Council of Governments, Breaking Down Silos
  • Santee-Lynches Regional Council of Governments, Virtual Service Delivery and High Performing Center Designation during COVID-19
  • Santee-Lynches Regional Council of Governments, Pivoting in a Pandemic
  • Upper Savannah Council of Governments, Town of Ridge Spring Town Square Plaza

Texas

  • Alamo Area Council of Governments, AACOG Texas Property Assessed Clean Energy
  • Alamo Area Council of Governments, Blanket Intergovernmental Support Agreement (IGSA)
  • Brazos Valley Council of Governments, Personal Protective Equipment Distribution for the Brazos Valley
  • Brazos Valley Council of Governments, Mobilizing Regional Workforce to Combat COVID-19 in the Brazos Valley
  • Brazos Valley Council of Governments, Brazos Valley Council of Governments’ Bridge Loan Program
  • Heart of Texas Council of Governments, AAAHOT Grocery Distribution Program
  • South Plains Association of Governments, Lamb County: Economic Recovery Via Infrastructure Improvements
  • Texoma Council of Governments, Texoma Senior Sourcebook

Virginia

  • Cumberland Plateau Planning District Commission, Cumberland Plateau Broadband/Point Broadband Public/Private WiFi Hotspot Program
  • New River Valley Regional Commission, Town of Christiansburg Placemaking Plan

West Virginia

  • Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Planning and Development Council, Foundation Loan Program

For more information about the NADO Impact Awards, click here.
To learn more about  previous award-winning projects, click here.

Search NADO.org

Contact Karron Grant

Applications cannot be saved and returned to at a later time. It is recommended you compile all of your information in advance in a word processor and cut and paste into the application below.

2023 Impact Awards

The primary applicant must be a NADO member. Project partners, both NADO and non-members, can be recognized under "Project Partners" below.

Primary Project Contact:
This person will be the designated point of contact for all future awards-related correspondence.

Organization Address

Project Location (if different from Organization Address)

Executive Director

Additional Organizational Information
Please upload your organization's logo which will be included on the winning project award certificate.

Project Information
This title will be printed on the award certificate for winning projects and in all 2022 NADO Impact Award materials and cannot be changed.

Project Summary & Questions
Please craft clear, thoughtful, and engaging responses to the following questions. Use the following sections to tell us how your project has made an impact, such as its use of creative funding mechanisms, efforts to create efficiencies or reduce costs, unique partnership models, and emphasis on building resilience and/or enhancing your region's quality of life.

For award-winning projects, the information provided below may be used verbatim to inform project descriptions that will be published in the 2023 NADO Impact Awards materials and included on the NADO website.

Please submit at least one photo showing your project in action. Please keep file size to a minimum (<2Mb) and use JPEG format. If uploading multiple files, ZIP files prior to submitting. If you have trouble uploading images they can be directly emailed to Brett Schwartz at [email protected]. Include the project title they correspond to in the subject line of your email.

Note: Submitted photos may be used in NADO Impact Awards materials and in other NADO published materials with credit to your organization. Please also consider submitting photos for NADO's 2023 Photo Contest, which will be held this summer.


CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO SUBMIT THE APPLICATION - PLEASE BE PATIENT! IF YOU DO NOT SEE A CONFIRMATION, YOUR APPLICATION WAS NOT RECEIVED.
Your application is not submitted until you are directed to a confirmation page. If you have any questions or are unsure if your application has been submitted, please contact Brett Schwartz at [email protected]

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Joe McKinney serves as Executive Director of the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO). Headquartered in Washington DC, NADO provides advocacy, education, research, and training for the nation’s 500+ regional planning and development organizations.

Joe has thirty-one years of experience having served in city, county, regional, national association, and government management since 1991. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Public Policy Analysis from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a candidate for a master’s degree in Public Administration from UNC-Chapel Hill.

McKinney has provided congressional testimony on numerous occasions regarding the importance of regional development organizations in helping shape the nation’s economic growth. He is nationally recognized for promoting innovative solutions in areas such as planning and economic development, workforce development, transportation and transit, and aging services.

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