Rural Communities

Daniel Acker lived and worked in New York City for 10 years before he decided to move to rural Illinois, along with his wife and their two children. Four years after the move, Acker talks to the Daily Yonder about farmers, photography and why he likes living in a small town.

What is influencing brain gain?

In the coming decade, we can expect a growing competition among smaller towns for boomer residents, and their sometimes significant assets.

The data indicates that boomers are leaving the major metropolitan areas to move to smaller cities or even to rural areas.

A program to train ordinary folks in "mental health first aid" could help rural communities provide vital help to people facing mental health problems, advocates say.

The new homes will be solar-powered homes with three or four bedrooms; two or three bathrooms and be available to tribal members whose income levels are at or below 60 percent of the Area Median Income.

Nearly 4 million rural Americans are military veterans. That population is aging and has special needs, according to a report from the Economic Research Service of USDA.

He was open to the idea of living in a small town as long as he could accomplish his professional goals and was drawn to the area with its farmland, rolling hills and lakes. He and his wife, Betty Joan, found a home where their children could walk to and from school. They later added a rustic lake cabin to pursue a wide range of outdoor activities.

The appalling poverty in many rural communities, accompanied by the depression and anger of many rural residents is symptomatic of a nation that is certainly crumbling around the edges and looks as if it is crumbling at its core.

Jobs continue to be created in cities while they are lost in rural America, according to the latest employment figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.