Publications

Minority-Owned Businesses: Insights from States in the Northeastern Region

This research report was developed as part of the USDA NIFA-funded project, “Factors Affecting the Success of Female and Minority Rural Entrepreneurs and Rural Economic Vitality.” The project, led by Dr. Heather M. Stephens, West Virginia University, seeks to provide insights into female and minority entrepreneurship to help key stakeholders develop policies and programs to support their success. This report provides detailed information about minority-owned businesses in the Northeast region. By highlighting the differences in minority entrepreneurship across the region, this report can support the development of policies to promote minority business development.

Authors: Xiaoyin Li, Heather M. Stephens, and Stephan J. Goetz

Publication: NERCRD Data Brief Date Published: October 22, 2024

Tags: entrepreneurship, minority entrepreneurship

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The Complex Picture of Caregivers Health and Well-Being in the Northeast Region

This “Research Snapshot” explores the health and well-being of caregivers in the Northeast Region, as reported by households as part of the “NER-Stat: Caregiving Survey” — a regional household survey that the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development (NCRCRD) conducted in collaboration with Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development (NERCRD), The Ohio State University and the National Farm Medicine Center. The survey was conducted in 2023 with 4,480 responses from the 13 states of the Northeast Region through a Qualtrics online panel. Since the caregiving needs of children and adults vary, the researchers explored variations on supports used based on the type of care provided. The dataset that this brief draws upon is also available online here: https://purr.purdue.edu/publications/4491/1

To learn more about this research and to access other briefs in this caregiving series, click here.

To access the version of this brief that focuses on the North Central U.S. region, click here.

Authors: Elena Pojman, Florence Becot, and Shoshanah Inwood

Publication: NERCRD Research Brief Date Published: October 17, 2024

Tags: caregiving

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What supports do caregivers in the Northeast use and what support do they still need?

This “Research Snapshot” explores the supports that caregivers use and the supports they still need, as reported by households as part of the “NER-Stat: Caregiving Survey” — a regional household survey that the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development (NCRCRD) conducted in collaboration with Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development (NERCRD), The Ohio State University and the National Farm Medicine Center. The survey was conducted in 2023 with 4,480 responses from the 13 states of the Northeast Region through a Qualtrics online panel. Since the caregiving needs of children and adults vary, the researchers explored variations on supports used based on the type of care provided. The dataset that this brief draws upon is also available online here: https://purr.purdue.edu/publications/4491/1

To learn more about this research and to access other briefs in this caregiving series, click here.

To access a version of this brief that focuses on the North Central U.S., click here.

Authors: Emily Southard, Florence Becot, Shoshanah Inwood

Publication: NERCRD Research Brief Date Published: October 9, 2024

Tags: caregiving, data brief

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Land-Grant University Capacity to Support Recreation Economies in National Forest Gateway Communities

This report was developed by Doug Arbogast, Rural Tourism Specialist, West Virginia University Extension Service, with support from the Extension Foundation, Regional Rural Development Centers (RRDCs), and the members of the National Extension Outdoor Recreation Working Group (NEORWG). It describes findings from an assessment conducted in 2024 of the capacity of Land Grant Universities to provide both Extension and research support for the development of recreation economies, and to determine the places in each RRDC region best positioned to deploy resources for program implementation. Arbogast’s analysis also includes two map resources:

• A data dashboard showing USDA RD investments already made in counties that contain a national forest.
• A map designed to identify opportunities for USDA Partnerships (Extension, Forest Service, and Rural Development) to support the development of recreation economies in gateway communities to U.S. National Forests. This map’s layers include Land Grant institutions that responded to the recreation economy survey, USDA Rural Development locations, USDA Forest Service locations, National Forest gateway communities, and regions served by the National Extension Tourism Network and the RRDCs.

Authors: Doug Arbogast, West Virginia University

Publication: Published by Extension Foundation and NERCRD Date Published: September 20, 2024

Tags: neorwg, NET, outdoor recreation

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2023 National Extension Tourism Conference Proceedings

With administrative support from the Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development, the National Extension Tourism Network (NET) has published proceedings from its 2023 national conference, which took place in Milwaukee, WI, September 24-27, 2023.

Authors: Edited by: Lisa Chase, Natalie Chin, Douglas Arbogast, Gwynn Stewart, Ann Savage, Mercedes Fraser

Publication: Published by the National Extension Tourism Network Date Published: September 18, 2024

Tags: NET

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Did the U.S. Fracking Boom Shale-Shock Regional Patenting?

The shale boom of the early 21st century turned the U.S. into an energy powerhouse and significantly disrupted local economies with shale resources. This study examines the impacts of the U.S. shale boom on regional patenting at a commuting zone level. The shale boom may negatively affect patents if it crowds out labor and capital investments in other non-energy industries. Our findings show that a one standard deviation increase in non-vertical well density decreases patent intensity by 3.74% of the mean. Areas with higher drilling densities have lower levels of patented innovation compared to their counterfactuals. This paper contributes to the existing literature related to the “natural resource curse.” We provide new evidence based on regional patenting, which is an important indicator for regional innovation and long-term economic growth.

Authors: Luyi Han, John V. Winters

Publication: Growth and Change Date Published: September 17, 2024

Tags: natural resources, research, rural innovation

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Detecting Food Shortages Using X

NERCRD researchers along with faculty from the Institute for Computational and Data Sciences (ICDS) in the College of Information Sciences and Technology at Penn State University and the Qatar Computing Research Institute at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar studied whether tweets posted on Twitter (now X) can be used to predict real-time food shortages during crises such as pandemics, wars, or natural disasters. Learn more in this NERCRD Digest.

Authors: NERCRD

Publication: NERCRD Digest Series Date Published: September 16, 2024

Tags: COVID-19, NERCRD Digest

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Food Insufficiency and Anxiety

Researchers from the NERCRD and the Department of Agricultural Economics, Sociology and Education at Penn State University used Household Pulse Survey data from the U.S. Census Bureau to address questions about food insufficiency and mental health. Learn more in this NERCRD Digest.

Authors: NERCRD Staff

Publication: NERCRD Digest Date Published: September 5, 2024

Tags: food security, NERCRD Digest

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Insights from the 2023 Northeast Digital Equity Summit: A Report on the Role of Extension Programs

This report provides an overview of key sessions, definitions, takeaways, initiatives, and best practices discussed during the 2023 Northeast Digital Equity Summit. The summit was held virtually on September 19, 2023, and convened educators and researchers from land-grant universities across the Northeast to learn from one another and expand capacity for digital equity programming in the region.

Authors: Julie Slivka, Communications Manager of the Marylanders Online Program of University of Maryland Extension

Publication: Published by NERCRD Date Published: August 22, 2024

Tags: digital equity, digital inclusion

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Meeting Emergency Food Needs

A study on the role of community food services during the COVID- 19 pandemic revealed that community food services, including food pantries and soup kitchens, were crucial in helping Americans meet their food needs, especially in the first five months of the pandemic. Learn more in this NERCRD Digest.

Authors: NERCRD Staff

Publication: NERCRD Digest Date Published: August 20, 2024

Tags: COVID-19, food security, NERCRD Digest

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