Three Oregon Communities Chosen for Horizons Leadership Program

Karl Stauber, president of the Minnesota-based Northwest Area Foundation (http://www.NWAF.org) has announced that three Oregon communities – Elgin, Union and Prarie City – have been chosen to pilot an innovative leadership development program designed to help small rural communities reverse economic and population declines. NWAF’s Horizons program will include leadership training, flexible technical assistance, facilitation, board development and more. As a regional partner in the Horizons program, RDI began providing the training to the three communities.

"I’m excited about this program because it was designed specifically for very small, rural communities that face severe challenges in sustaining their future," explains Kathi Jaworski, RDI’s executive director. "I’m especially encouraged because the program will bring resources including staff, right into the community for 18 months.

Local point people are Joe Garlitz in Elgin, Linda Harrington in Prarie City and Bill Searles in Union. RDI’s Mary Nixon will provide primary staff support

*********************

RDI is dedicated to helping small communities shape their futures by providing a variety of services that include strategic planning, project assistance, leadership development and facilitation. Numerous communities have accepted RDI’s offer of help and as a result have seen their visions come true. RDI was established in 1992 and is a private, non-profit 501©(3) organization based in Oregon.

Mission Statement: RDI builds the capacity of rural communities to make strategic decision about their futures and to act on those decisions to ensure high quality of life and a vital sustainable economy. This mission is grounded in the belief that a state’s vitality depends to a large extent on the health of its rural areas and that strategic investment made in rural areas will strengthen the state as a whole.

RDI has received national recognition for the quality and uniqueness of its work, including:

* Citation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for an innovative rural Brownfields redevelopment pilot project

* Citation by the Washington D.C. policy group, Corporation for Enterprise Development, as a model rural capacity building program and

* An Innovation Award from the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) for its rural volunteer leadership development program, Rural Futures Forum.

Rural Development Initiatives, Inc.

Home

941 Lawrence

Eugene, Oregon 97402

Phone: 541-684-9077

Fax: 541-684-8993

Email: [email protected]