2026 Impact Award Recipients

The National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) is pleased to announce the 2026 Aliceann Wohlbruck NADO Impact Award recipients. These awards celebrate projects and partnerships that are strengthening communities through regional planning, economic growth, infrastructure investment, workforce advancement, resilience initiatives, and more. This year’s honorees demonstrate how regional development organizations are turning vision into action and delivering measurable results.

Named in honor of Aliceann Wohlbruck, NADO’s founding executive director, the awards pay tribute to her 20+ years of steadfast advocacy for rural and small-town economic development through regional collaboration.

The 2026 cohort includes 94 projects led by 58 organizations across 20 states. Awardees will be recognized at NADO’s 2026 Annual Training Conference this October in Reno, Nevada.   

Contact Brett Schwartz at [email protected] with any questions or to learn more about the Impact Awards program.

Alabama
  • East Alabama Regional Planning and Development District, East Alabama Brownfields Revitalizing Communities StoryMap
  • East Alabama Regional Planning and Development District, Partners in Progress: East Alabama Mayors Learning Together
Florida
  • Apalachee Regional Planning Council, ARPC Monthly Planner
  • Apalachee Regional Planning Council, Wakulla County Local Mitigation (LMS) 2026: Risk-Informed Planning and Implementation
  • Apalachee Regional Planning Council, What is Regional Planning? Coloring & Activity Book
  • East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, East Central Florida Military Installation Resilience Review
  • East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Seminole County Marxan Conservation Strategy
  • East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Titusville Economic Development Strategic Plan
  • North Central Florida Regional Planning Council, Hazardous Materials Train Crash Field Training Exercise
  • Northeast Florida Regional Council, Northeast Florida Regional Resilience Action Plan (RRAP) – Phase 2
  • Northeast Florida Regional Council, Northeast Florida Shrimping Industry Market Study
  • South Florida Regional Planning Council, Affordable Housing Initiative
  • South Florida Regional Planning Council, Regional Transit Oriented Development Initiative – Economic and Community Benefits Study
  • South Florida Regional Planning Council, Resilient Infrastructure Benefit-Cost Analysis Framework
  • Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, Project Phoenix
Georgia
  • Georgia Mountains Regional Commission, City of Cornelia – Festival and Event Park Project
  • Georgia Mountains Regional Commission, Georgia Mountains Apprenticeship & Talent Pipeline Initiative
  • Middle Georgia Regional Commission, From Backlog to Breakthrough: Redesigning the ADRC to Serve Middle Georgia
  • Middle Georgia Regional Commission, REVAMP Project Management System
  • Northwest Georgia Regional Commission, Lankford Corner at the Silver Comet
  • Northwest Georgia Regional Commission, Outdoor Recreation Summit
  • Northwest Georgia Regional Commission, Perrow Park and Event Center
  • River Valley Regional Commission, Hazard Mitigation Planning – Reaching Vulnerable Populations
  • Southern Georgia Regional Commission, Regional Transit Development Plan
  • Southern Georgia Regional Commission, Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program in Southern Georgia
  • Southern Georgia Regional Commission, SWOT Analysis Survey
  • Southwest Georgia Regional Commission, Rural Advanced Manufacturing Pathways
  • Southwest Georgia Regional Commission, Southwest Georgia Aging and Disabled Population Access to Transit
  • Southwest Georgia Regional Commission, Southwest Georgia’s Regional Commission’s Internship Program Through the Partnership for Innovation
Iowa
  • Chariton Valley Planning & Development Council, ROMP – Range of Motion Project
  • Region XII Council of Governments; Iowa Northland Regional Council of Governments, East Central Iowa Council of Governments, and Siouxland Interstate Metropolitan Planning, Council Open Meetings/Open Records Trainings
  • Southwest Iowa Planning Council, All the Trails for Everyone
Illinois
  • Bi-State Regional Commission, Planning for Thriving Communities
Kansas
  • Kansas Department of Commerce, Fostering Residential Advancement through Mentoring and Education (FRAME)
  • Kansas Department of Commerce, Kansas Community Empowerment Listening Tour
  • Kansas Department of Commerce, Residential Opportunities on Main Street (ROOMS) Grant
  • North Central Regional Planning Commission, Housing in Kansas: A Comprehensive Regional Approach
  • North Central Regional Planning Commission, Moving the Needle on Infrastructure Issues: A Regional Approach to Early Project Planning
Kentucky
  • Bluegrass Area Development District, PDS Digital Enrollment
  • Kentucky River Area Development District, KRADD Regional Disaster Resilience and Preparedness Project
Minnesota
  • Arrowhead Regional Development Commission, Northland Climate Resilience Collective
  • Mid-Minnesota Development Commission, MMDC Rideshare Support Project
  • Northwest Regional Development Commission, Thrive in Thief River 55+ Housing
  • Region Five Development Commission, Train and Retain
  • Region Nine Development Commission, Food Rescue in Southern Minnesota
Mississippi
  • North Delta Planning & Development Council, Concourse Workforce Development Training Center
Missouri
  • Mark Twain Regional Council of Governments, Creating Opportunity: A Regional Economic Development Summit
Montana
  • Bear Paw Development Corporation, Bear With Us Podcast
  • Bear Paw Development Corporation, Havre Tourism Enhancement Project
  • Great Falls Development Alliance, Great Falls Montana Economic Development Strategy 2026-2029
  • Great Falls Development Alliance, Great Falls Montana Gap Financing 30 Year Success
  • Great Falls Development Alliance, Great Falls Regional Small Business Development Center
North Carolina
  • Centralina Regional Council Building Economic, Resilience in Uncertain Times
  • Foothills Regional Commission, McDowell County/Freedom Life Ministries Transitional Housing Facility
  • Foothills Regional Commission, Senior Cycles
  • Land of Sky Regional Council, #WorkLocal Real Careers. Right Here.
  • Land of Sky Regional Council, Aging Sensitivity Training
  • Land of Sky Regional Council, Regional Disaster Recovery Support in Western North Carolina
  • Lumber River Council of Governments, GIS Sharing Portal
  • Lumber River Council of Governments, Lumber River Choosing Home Services
  • Lumber River Council of Governments, Southeast Regional Airport Authority Land Use Plan
  • Mid-East Commission, Rising Waters: Flood Resilience Strategies for Belhaven, NC
  • Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments, Fiscal Geographic Study for Wilson County
  • Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments, Super Seniors – Bridging Generations Through Athletics
  • Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments, UCPCOG AI Network
  • Western Piedmont Council of Governments, 2026 Homelessness Response GIS Field Application
  • Western Piedmont Council of Governments, Alexander County Board of Education Voting District
  • Western Piedmont Council of Governments, Digital Navigator Program
New York
  • Lake Champlain – Lake George Regional Planning Board, North Country Main Street Reinvestment Program
Ohio
  • Buckeye Hills Regional Council, 2022-2025 USEPA Brownfields Community-Wide Assessment Program
  • Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, Regional Economic Development Academy
  • Ohio University Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service, The Mayors’ Partnership for Progress
Oklahoma
  • South Western Oklahoma Development Authority, Rural Mobility Access Program (RMAP)
South Carolina
  • Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments, Reality Check 2.0 – Collaborative Planning for Future Growth
  • Catawba Regional Council of Governments, City of York Water and Sewer Improvements Project
  • Catawba Regional Council of Governments, Union Jonesville Regional Wastewater Project
  • Central Midlands Council of Governments, CMCOG Regional Climate Pollution Reduction Plan and Implementation Program
  • Pee Dee Regional Council of Governments, Pathways Career Expo
    Waccamaw Regional Council of Governments Senior Rides Program
Tennessee
  • East Tennessee Development District, East Tennessee Development District 2022-2027 Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy StoryMap
  • East Tennessee Development District, East Tennessee Development District Disaster Recovery Framework
  • Southwest Tennessee Development District, RuralStrong Podcast
  • Upper Cumberland Development District, Empower Upper Cumberland
Texas
  • Coastal Bend Council of Governments, Regional Resilience Partnership (RRP) Workforce and Economic Development Accelerator
  • Deep East Texas Council of Governments, Family and Youth Success
  • Deep East Texas Council of Governments, SiteSelect by DETCOG
  • East Texas Council of Governments, ETCOG 101 Workshops: Connecting Communities to Regional Solutions
  • Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council / Rio Grande Valley, 911 Regional NG911 & Mobile Emergency Response Enhancement Initiative
  • Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council / Rio Grande Valley and Metropolitan Planning Organization, Project Readiness Report and Leveling Effort
Virginia
  • Cumberland Plateau Planning District Commission, CPPDC TeleHealth Feasibility Study
  • PlanRVA, 2026 Regional Housing Market Value Analysis
  • PlanRVA, Friends of the Lower Appomattox River Partnership
  • PlanRVA, Regional Ecosystem Framework
Vermont
  • Lamoille County Planning Commission and Northwest Regional Planning Commission, Northern Vermont Recovery and Resiliency

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