Economic Development, Resilience, and Innovation

Economic and Quality of Life Indicators for Monongahela National Forest

This report presents sustainable tourism indicators identified from public data sources in the Monongahela National Forest (Mon Forest) region of West Virginia.

Authors: Luyi Han, Stephan J. Goetz, Daniel Eades, and Doug Arbogast

Publication: NERCRD publication Date Published: October 24, 2025

Tags: data brief, outdoor recreation, tourism, TRIP

Rural innovative firms and credit: Findings from the annual business survey

Credit access remains a critical constraint for rural firms. This study examines how the innovation orientation of businesses affects credit access in urban and rural areas using the 2021 Annual Business Survey.

Authors: Luyi Han, Timothy R. Wojan, Anil Rupasingha, Stephan J. Goetz

Publication: Elsevier Finance Research Open Date Published: September 17, 2025

Tags: rural innovation

Small Business Loans in Different U.S. County Types

This working paper describes how the number of financial loans and loan amounts per capita vary across different U.S. county types over the period 2000-2022, using Community Reinvestment Act small business loan data.

Authors: Yuxuan Pan, Stephan J. Goetz, and Yuan (Timothy) Zhuang

Publication: NERCRD Rural Development Working Paper Series Date Published: August 20, 2025

Tags: Community Reinvestment Act, RDP

Economic and Quality of Life Indicators for Allegheny National Forest Counties in Pennsylvania

This report analyzes sustainable tourism indicators in Pennsylvania’s five-county
Allegheny National Forest region (Cameron, Elk, Warren, McKean, and Forest Counties) as part
of a USDA-funded multi-state project examining rural gateway community resilience.

Authors: Han, Luyi; Goetz, Stephan J.; Eades, Daniel; Arbogast, Doug

Publication: Published by NERCRD Date Published: August 1, 2025

Tags: data brief, outdoor recreation, tourism, TRIP

Rural-Suburban-Urban Differences in Caregiving in the Northeast U.S. Region

This “Research Snapshot” describes the caregiving experience for rural, suburban, and urban caregivers in the Northeast region of the U.S., 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. 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.

Authors: Elena Pojman and Florence Becot

Publication: NERCRD Research Brief Date Published: June 24, 2025

Tags: caregiving

Design: A critical input to rural innovative entrepreneurship

Abstract: Described as a mediation between people and technology, design is critical to innovative entrepreneurship but has been ignored in innovation research. The rigorous study of design has suffered from an inability to differentiate firms that approach design as ad hoc from those approaching design as a structured, creative process. This research uses newly available data from the 2022 Annual Business Survey Design Module categorizing 4 different approaches to design. These data allow us to examine the link between design and innovation with a focus on businesses in nonmetropolitan counties that challenges conventional wisdom that design is overwhelmingly an urban phenomenon.

A news release describing the key findings and their implications is available here.

Authors: Timothy Wojan, Luyi Han, Zheng Tian, Stephan J. Goetz

Publication: Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Date Published: June 18, 2025

Tags: rural innovation

Insights on Agritourism Among Maine Producers: Evidence from the 2024 National Agritourism Producer Survey

This report presents Maine-specific findings from the 2024 National Agritourism Producer Survey, conducted in part to address the type of knowledge gaps just identified. The online survey was open from March through August 2024, and 2,139 agritourism operators across the United States responded. A total of 94 survey participants identified themselves as being in Maine by reporting the postal (ZIP) code of their farm.

Authors: Jason Entsminger (University of Maine); Claudia Schmidt (Penn State and NERCRD); Sarah Cornelisse and Jackie Schweichler (Penn State)

Publication: Published by NERCRD Date Published: May 2, 2025

Tags: agritourism, agritourism data brief, data brief, survey

Explaining the Urban-Rural Export Gap: Evidence from U.S. Firms

Abstract: The U.S. urban-rural export gap is important given the share of manufactured goods in exports, the rural concentration of manufacturing activity, and recent federal investments in place-based policy. These investments raise questions about the size of the export gap and whether it is explained by differences in endowments or inherent rural disadvantages. Confidential trade data linked with business survey data alongside county-level variables allow an Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition of the export gapUrban factors compensate for a less trade favorable industry mix, including the advantages of urban scale in export performance which may be insurmountable for rural areas.

Authors: Luyi Han, Timothy R. Wojan, Zheng Tian, Stephan J. Goetz

Publication: Journal of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association Date Published: March 30, 2025

Tags: rural innovation

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

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