NERCRD agritourism research brief featured in Mainebiz story

A feature story written by Renee Cordes and published in MaineBiz includes research on agritourism that was published by NERCRD. The story, which also features a quote by one of the research authors, Jason Entsminger (University of Maine), provides insights into the latest data on Maine agritourism farms, and interviews the managers of several different Maine-based agricultural operations that have incorporated agritourism activities into their business models.

Agritourism Research and Extension Collaborative honored with USDA NIFA National Partnership Award

May 22, 2024

Congratulations to members of the Agritourism Research and Extension Collaborative, who were recognized with a 2023 USDA NIFA Partnership Award for their multi-state work advancing agritourism! The award honors the collective efforts of a network of individuals that spans more than a dozen states at 11 Land-Grant Universities, and two community partner organizations who collaborated on several projects to advance agritourism nationally.

NERCRD Director invited to participate in USDA Rural Prosperity Roundtable

April 29, 2024

NERCRD Director Stephan Goetz served on a roundtable discussion about rural prosperity with U.S. Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Xochitl Torres Small and other governmental and non-governmental partners in agriculture to discuss efforts by USDA to create additional income opportunities for producers and entrepreneurs and more. Goetz spoke about the role of the Regional Rural Development Centers in supporting rural prosperity. 

Caregiving data for Northeast U.S. region now available

April 29, 2024

NERCRD partnered with the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development (NCRCRD) to deploy a survey in the Northeast on “Caregiving Across the Lifecourse.” The data include responses from 4,480 Northeast households in the Northeast U.S., and is available online.

New Publication from National Extension Tourism Network Highlights Opportunities for Extension in Outdoor Recreation Economies

April 25, 2024

Outdoor Recreation is a growing sector of the U.S. economy, and building the recreation economy in the U.S. has been identified as one of the USDA’s top priorities . Recreation economies are intertwined with multiple community domains, and therefore pose an opportunity for the Cooperative Extension System, which is uniquely positioned to assist communities with […]

Innovation linked to international exports for both rural and urban firms

March 28, 2024

U.S. firms actively engaged in creating innovative products or processes are more likely to expand into international markets, according to new NERCRD-led research. The findings, which apply to both rural and urban companies, could inform efforts aimed at boosting U.S. exports.

National agritourism survey seeking input from farms that welcome visitors

March 26, 2024

U.S. agricultural and aquaculture operators who welcome visitors — whether for on-farm education, direct sales, entertainment, recreation, special events and more — are invited to provide input about the forms of support they access and the challenges they face via an online survey, which will remain open until April 30, 2024. This survey is part […]

Webinar: Accessibility in Rural Tourism and Agritourism

Thursday, March 28, 2024 at 12:00 p.m. ET — This National Extension Tourism (NET) webinar will focus on accessibility in rural tourism and agritourism and will feature speakers Rupa Valdez and Claire Wellbeloved-Stone from the Blue Trunk Foundation. Co-hosted by NERCRD.

Webinar to introduce new open-access data set available on caregiving in North Central US

February 22, 2024

February 27 at 2:00 p.m. ET: A free webinar will introduce a new open-access data set on who provides child, adult, and elderly care and how caregiving affects economic development and quality of life. The webinar is hosted by the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development.

NERCRD Annual Report reflects on 2023 highlights

February 2, 2024

We invited you to download the latest NERCRD Annual Report, which highlights the Center’s 2023 activities and impacts, and the regional and national partnerships that make this work possible.

New study tests biasedness of self-reported microbusiness innovation in the annual business survey

February 1, 2024

A study published this month in PlosONE and led by NERCRD Postdoctoral Scholar Luyi Han examined whether microbusinesses, which constitute a significant portion of U.S. firms with employees, are less likely to report innovation compared to other small businesses. Their analysis did not detect a statistically significant bias, suggesting that the observed lower incidence of innovation among microbusinesses is not attributable to survey design.