The Indiana Economic Development Association Foundation is pleased to announce that the US Economic Development Administration (US EDA) has awarded a $100,097 grant to assist four regions in Indiana in creating a strategy to leverage each region’s agricultural assets. The grant will fund the implementation of the Rural Economic Development Model (REDM): a first-of-its-kind process developed in Indiana to assist rural communities in creating new economic development opportunities for Indiana’s farmers.
The US EDA grant will enable 14 counties in Southwest Central Indiana comprised of Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Harrison, Jackson, Knox, Martin, Lawrence, Pike, Spencer, Perry, Orange, and Washington Counties to examine the agricultural output in their regions to identify opportunities for creating new markets, applications, or processing facilities that can enhance the local value of the agricultural output. This will create new markets and income for local farmers, generate more local jobs connected to agriculture, and capture a greater source of revenue for the region’s communities.
The Rural Economic Development model was created as a collaboration between the Indiana Economic Development Association (IEDA), Indiana State Department of Agriculture, and the Purdue Center for Regional Development (PCRD) with support from the Indiana Farm Bureau, Indiana Corn Marketing Council, Indiana Soybean Alliance and the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs
Michael Thissen, executive director of the Crawford County Economic Development Corporation states, “We are strengthened by our regional assets. This study will be a huge help in seeking & defining how best to leverage our agricultural assets and allow deeper conversations with those who work every day in the crucial agriculture sector. We are very grateful to the IEDA and PCRD for their partnership in affording this unique and much needed opportunity.”
The Rural Economic Development Model employs a proprietary technology developed by PCRD that enables counties and regions to examine the agricultural output unique to their locale and then engages a local planning team composed of local economic development officials, farmers, and other local stakeholders to create and implement a plan to leverage local agricultural outputs, expand existing agribusinesses and attract new economic opportunities. The 24-month process will be completed in the Summer of 2023.
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REGIONAL COORDINATORS:
Jeff Quyle
Radius Indiana Southwest IN Development
PH: (812) 277-9778
Ashley Willis
Pike County Economic Development Corporation
PH: (812) 277-9778
COUNTY CONTACT:
Michael A. Thissen
Crawford County Economic Development Corporation
michael@selectcrawfordcounty.com
PH: (812) 739-4479