Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development

 

 

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Strengthening Economic Resilience in Appalachia

The economies of many counties and subregions in Appalachia have historically depended on a few dominant industries, such as mining or manufacturing. In recent years, Appalachian coal production has plummeted, resulting in devastating impacts on families, communities, counties, and states. It is critical to understand how coal-impacted communities can transform and diversify their economies and build resilience against future economic shocks.

Authors: Fritz Boettner, Evan Fedorko, Evan Hansen, Stephan J. Goetz, Yicheol Han, Christine Gyovai, Emily Carlson, Alexandria Sentilles

Publication: Appalachian Regional Commission Date Published: February 1, 2019

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Financial Impact of Penn State Extension’s Know Your Numbers Dairy Program

Dairy-related Extension programming is important in many states, but the economic impact of such programming has received little attention. We examined the impact of Know Your Numbers, an educational program offered by the Penn State Extension Dairy Team. Using follow-up evaluation data and the economic impact tool IMPLAN, we estimated that the program had a total financial impact of $9.5 million and an employment impact of 69 jobs in 2014. The overall financial impacts of the Dairy Team, given its abundance of other programming, likely are significantly higher. Our approach for estimating the economic impact of an Extension program can be used by others to understand and demonstrate the value of their work.

Authors: Aaron Berger, Timothy W. Kelsey, Stephan J. Goetz, Robert C. Goodling Jr., Virginia A. Ishler

Publication: Journal of Extension Date Published: February 1, 2019

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Excess Competition among Food Hubs

Food hubs offer a novel solution to connect small and mid-sized local farms, which individually
lack the scale to profitably market their products. Because many food hubs rely on grants and
philanthropy to provide services and are not necessarily profit-driven, markets may unintentionally
oversaturate due to overinvestment. We use a firm-entry model to estimate the average U.S. county
population necessary for one, two, and three food hubs to break even. Our findings suggest
that policy makers and philanthropists need to consider the carrying capacity of the local food
environment and population prior to supporting additional food hubs.

Authors: Rebecca Cleary, Stephan J. Goetz, Dawn Thilmany McFadden, Houtian Ge

Publication: Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics Date Published: January 1, 2019

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Health Insurance and National Farm Policy

In the midst of national healthcare debates, there has been little discussion of how health, healthcare costs and access, and health insurance fit into national agriculture policy efforts to build a more vibrant and resilient farm economy. Yet Inwood (2015) found that 65% of commercial farmers identified the cost of health insurance as the most serious threat to their farm, more significant than the cost of land, inputs, market conditions, or development pressure. In order to grow the next generation of farmers and increase rural prosperity, there is a need to understand how healthcare costs, access, and insurance affect both agriculture and rural development.

Authors: Shoshanah Inwood, Alana Knudson, Florence A. Becot, Bonnie Braun, Stephan J. Goetz, Jane M. Kolodinsky, Scott Loveridge, Katlyn Morris, Jason Parker, Bob Parsons, Rachel Welborn, Don E. Albrecht

Publication: Choices Date Published: March 1, 2018

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The interactive effects of human capital and quality of life on economic growth

To bridge the gap in the quality of life (QOL) and economic growth literature and understand the reinforcing effects of QOL and human capital on economic development, we examine the interactive effects of these two factors on wage growth from 2000 to 2007 at the county level across the United States. First, a Rosen–Roback model is employed to estimate implicit values of amenities including climate, clean air and other natural attributes, which are used to generate QOL indices. Second, QOL, human capital represented by the share of college graduates, and their interaction serve as key variables in the wage growth model. An instrumental variable approach and location fixed effects are used to address endogeneity of human capital and control for location-specific unobservable characteristics. Results suggest that human capital and QOL significantly contribute to economic growth and the growth effects are even larger in nonmetropolitan counties. Importantly, we find that the effect of human capital on growth is larger in high-QOL counties and QOL enhances the effect of human capital on growth. Our results provide empirical support for community development strategies through providing utility-enhancing amenities that improve QOL and retain human capital.

Authors: Qin Fan, Stephan J. Goetz, Jiaochen Liang

Publication: Applied Economics Date Published: March 19, 2016

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Land Link Programs in the Northeast U.S.

Test Excerpt: RDP53—This publication series includes two documents, including a program assessment and a list of Land Link programs in the U.S., as of February 2014. Written by Leslie Pillen.

Authors: Leslie Pillen and Clare Hinrichs, Penn State

Publication: Rural Development Paper No. 53 Date Published: February 1, 2014

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