Rural Information Center's Bookmarks

USDA Rural Programs/Agencies: This page provides links to government information on rural development, research, education, economics, natural resources and the environment. It also links to USDA's home page.

Census Bureau

Consumer Information Center Main Page: Includes links to full text of hundreds of Federal Government consumer publications on issues ranging from cars, to health and jobs.

Council on Foundations: A nonprofit membership association of grantmaking foundations and corporations. More helpful for funders, especially those interested in starting a foundation, than for grant seekers.

Federal Information Exchange (FEDIX)

FedLaw: This page is designed for people doing federal legal research and includes links to information on legislation, regulations, court decisions, etc.

Federal Outreach to Rural Communities

Government Information Sharing Project (Oregon State University): Includes economic and demographic data from various government sources and enables users to develop area profiles and /or comparisons of different areas.

Legislation/U.S. Code: USDA Rural Information Center's list of pertinent legislation.

Library of Congress: The library's home page includes links to Thomas legislative information, exhibitions, and library catalogues, collections and research services.

STAT-USA: A service of the US Department of Commerce providing authoritative information for US businesses. Content includes reasonably-priced reports and subscription-based data retrieval.

Business Resources

Business Resource Center: Includes tools like sample business plans, information on more than 500 franchise opportunities and other useful resources for entrepreneurs.

Business Resources by Subject (Northwestern University Library): Extensive links to business-related sites. Organized in 16 categories including business news, entrepreneurship, job hunting and public and nonprofit management.

Entrepreneurial Edge Magazine Online: Links to 400 sites helpful to business, as well as a bookstore, tutorials, documents and an email newsletter.

Information for Small Businesses (Securities and Exchange Commission): SEC information related to small business.

National Business Incubation Association: A clearinghouse of information on business incubation, including best practices, links to existing incubators, and a resource center.

FedWorld Information Network (National Technical Information Service): A Department of Commerce site providing comprehensive, central access point for searching, locating, ordering and acquiring government and business information. Includes links to all federal agencies.

Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE): Nonprofit organization dedicated to aiding the formation, growth and success of small businesses nationwide; places more than 11,000 volunteers as business counselors.

U.S. Business Advisor: Provides businesses with one stop access to Federal Government information, services and transactions. Includes extensive information on establishing and managing a small business, including links to the Small Business Administration and Small Business Development Centers.

Community Networking Information

The Civic Network: The Civic Network is an evolving collection of online resources dedicated to supporting civic life and citizen participation. The site links to the Center for Civic Networking, the Neighborhoods Online resource center, and the Journal of Municipal Telecommunications, which focuses on local government's role in developing telecommunications infrastructure. The site links to resources for technical assistance with cable television needs assessments, planning internal government telecommunications networks, organizing for community-wide universal telecommunications service , and helping small businesses and community-based economic development organizations experiment with electronic commerce and Internet marketing.

Community Networking Movement: Useful information about setting up a local or regional "computer-based" network that provides free access to the Internet as a means of organizing, advocating, sharing information, educating, communicating and participating in public affairs. The information contained in this site is not exclusively rural, but it can be adapted to almost any rural setting.

Free-Nets & Community Networks: This site links to more than a hundred community networks in the U.S. and around the world.

National Rural Network: Now under construction, this site will the home page of a new network that aims to include the broadest set of stakeholders and issues affecting life in the diverse regions of rural America. It links to the new Congressional Rural Caucus website, and it has a calendar of events, an agenda of issues and a list of sponsors. Rural LISC is part of this network.

Crime and Law Enforcement

National Center for Rural Law Enforcement: A university-based organization providing a clearinghouse of information pertinent to rural law enforcement including management education, research, forensics, and computer and technical assistance.

Pavnet Online: The Partnership Against Violence Network provides a virtual library of information about violence and at-risk youth, including data from seven federal agencies.

Economic Development and Community Resources

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: This nonprofit research organization and policy institute analyzes government policies and programs with an emphasis on those that affect low- and moderate-income people. Includes extensive information and publications on the federal budget, taxes and tax policy, income trends, etc.

Community Development Society: A professional association of community development practitioners and leaders around the world.

Development Ideas That Work (case studies): A USDA Rural Development site that includes case studies of a wide variety of successful project design and management techniques. Issues include the arts, aging, business, community development, environment, etc.

Economic Research Service (USDA): Provides economic analysis on efficiency, efficacy and equity issues related to agriculture, food and the environment and rural development. Contains a rural development briefing room.

Economic and Statistics System (USDA): Includes searchable databases of information on agricultural projections, farm economics, food, land, water and conservation, trade issues and rural affairs.

Food and Society: Launched in 2000, Food and Society (FAS) is a Food Systems and Rural Development initiative of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. FAS is striving to achieve a future food system that provides all people access to a food supply that is not only safe and nutritious but grown in a manner that protects the environment and adds economic and social value to rural and urban communities

U.S.Economic Development Administration: Part of the Department of Commerce, EDA's website includes information on EDA programs, as well as publications and other resources on economic development.

Internet Economic Development Resources: Part of USDA's Rural Development website, this page contains extensive links to rural development related sites grouped in ten categories including agriculture, community development, health, housing and natural resources.

Manufacturing Extension Partnership: MEP's around the country provide hands-on assistance to small manufacturers to help them increase productivity and profits.

National Association of Counties (NACo): This organization develops, manages and organizes more than 30 projects and programs that support county governments, including a rural development center and clearinghouse. Program areas include the environment, and community and economic development.

National Association of Development Organizations (NADO): This association provides training, information and representation to regional development organizations serving small metropolitan and rural areas. The site contains useful information on its financial services and research programs.

Neighborhoods Online -- Federal Programs and Community Renewal: A resource for people working to build strong communities throughout the U.S. Includes extensive lists of resources and a searchable listserv on issues relevant to neighborhood development.

Pratt Institute Center for Community and Environmental Development: An exhaustive list of links to community development related sites.

Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC): Provides housing and environmental services throughout the Western U.S. Site includes information on financial services, housing and environmental issues, as well as publications and events listings.

Rural Economic Development Action Team (REDAT, USDA): This program promotes interagency partnerships with USDA on rural development, research, education, economics, natural resources and the environment. This site contains a tool box with a searchable database of USDA resources and programs, as well as reports on successful partnerships.

Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI): This policy-oriented research organization assesses the impact of public policies and programs on rural areas. Issues addressed on the site include rural health, access to capital, welfare reform and telecommunications.

W.K. Kellogg Collection of Rural Community Development Resources: A collection of high-quality rural community development resources and materials including guidebooks, manuals, workshop materials, reports, books and videos, all searchable by title or category.

Education and Youth Resources

Appalachia Educational Laboratory, Inc.: AEL is a nonprofit, regionally oriented education research, development, and service institution. AEL works closely with schools, school districts, and states to develop, test, and refine practical products and processes that address needs of local educators in Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. With educators in the region, the laboratory designs R&D-based professional development, develops new processes and products through systematic R&D, evaluates education programs, serves as a neutral convener of state or regional groups, studies the implementation of state policies, and synthesizes and disseminates R&D-based information. The AEL site provides links to nine other regional labs located across the country, to the regional education laboratory network, and to a rural education specialty program.

The Rural Center at AEL: This is the rural specialty program on the AEL web site above.

Educational Resources Information Center / Clearinghouse on Rural Education & Small Schools
(ERIC/ CRESS): ERIC is a federally supported system of clearinghouses that make written materials about education accessible to all who are interested. The ERIC clearinghouse on rural education and small schools covers: economic, cultural, and social conditions related to educational programs and practices for rural residents; American Indians/Alaska Natives, Mexican Americans, and migrants; educational practices and programs in all small schools; and, outdoor education. The site has access to the other ERIC clearinghouses, a calendar of conferences, online newsletters, digests of publications, and articles for parents, and a search engine for ERIC�s computer-searchable bibliographic database.

Science and Math Initiatives: SAMI is a clearing house of resources, funding, and curriculum for rural math and science teachers. The site has a search engine to list and find funding and other resources for math and science education as well as a mentoring program to help K-12 teachers use the Internet in the classroom.

U.S. Department of Education: The department�s home page provides links to its programs, projects, offices, publications and databases as well as to ERIC, the clearinghouse on rural education and small schools.

Environmental Resources

Air & Waste Management Association: A&WMA is a nonprofit organization that provides training, information, and networking to 12,000 environmental professionals in 65 countries. Its goals are to strengthen the environmental profession, expand scientific and technological responses to environmental concerns, and assist professionals in critical environmental decision making. The site accesses publications, professional development resources, an education center, and links to environmental companies, environmental organizations, government agencies, and North American colleges and universities offering advanced environmental degrees.

Environmental Health Clearinghouse: Sponsored by Information Ventures, Inc., the Environmental Health Clearinghouse provides substantive information and key documents on a variety of environmental health issues including worker exposure, hazardous waste sites, chemical spills and releases, and environmental justice.

USDA Forest Service: The Forest Service aims to achieve quality land management under sustainable multiple-uses that serve the diverse needs of people. The home page provides access to the agency�s staff, programs, and publications, a search engine to the agency�s web site, as well as information on ordering maps of national forests.

National Drinking Water Clearinghouse: Funded by the USDA, the NDWC is a non-profit public service group, operating out of West Virginia University, that maintains services and information related to small community (populations of less than 10,000) drinking water systems. This includes the latest information on funding sources for community water treatment infrastructure, regulatory updates, water treatment technologies, and much more.

National Environmental Training Center for Small Communities: NETCSC improves the public health and environmental conditions of the nation's small communities by providing training and training-related information and referral services in the areas of wastewater, drinking water, and solid waste. The site links to training materials and curriculum, a newsletter, and to a long un-annotated list of federal, state and private agencies, professional organizations, and educational institutions.

National Small Flows Clearinghouse: Funded by the U.S. EPA, the NSFC provides information about innovative, low-cost wastewater treatments for small communities with populations of less than 10,000. It focuses on practical, alternative solutions for "small flows" problems involving one million gallons or less of wastewater daily. Solutions may range from septic systems to small sewage treatment plants. NSFC helps homeowners, renters, citizens' groups, local industry leaders, research scientists, educators, local and state government officials, consultants, manufacturers, operators and maintainers, contractors, and related professionals. The site links to an online forum, to a calendar of events, to a newsletter and sources of technical assistance, publications, and databases, and to a long un-annotated list of federal, state, and private agencies, professional organizations, and educational institutions.

National Wetlands Inventory (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service): The NWI project provides information about the characteristics, extent and status of the Nation's wetlands and deepwater habitats. The site links to NWI regional wetlands coordinators, to reports, publications and maps, to educational sites for school children, to the Fish And Wildlife Service�s homepage and Habitat Assessment Branch, and to a long un-annotated list of related sites.

Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA): Founded as the Soil Conservation Service in response to the Dust Bowl catastrophe of the mid-1930s, the NRCS has the lead responsibility for stewarding the health and well-being of America�s private land and water. It works with farmers, ranchers, local conservation districts, state and federal agencies, NRCS Earth Team volunteers, agricultural and environmental groups, and professional societies. It provides technical assistance to farmers and ranchers to develop conservation systems suited to their land and ways of doing business and to rural and urban communities to reduce erosion, conserve and protect water, and solve other resource problems. The site links to the agency�s partners and programs, to technical guides, databases and resources, and to education material for teachers.

Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials (NEMO): NEMO is a University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension System project using innovative techniques to teach local officials across the nation about the sources and impacts of nonpoint source pollution, how different land uses affect water quality, and what towns can do to protect water quality. The site links to a national network of projects in 25 states.

Universities Water Information Network: Housed at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale (IL), this site accesses information on water resources and links to directories of water experts, consultants, and organizations as well as databases and publications.

US Environmental Protection Agency: The EPA home page provides links to EPA�s programs, projects, offices, publications and databases, to environmental laws and regulations, and to services for small business, industry, schools, teachers, children, and state, local and tribal governments.

Funding Resources

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (FDAC): The catalog contains federal domestic assistance programs available to: state, local, and tribal governments; public, quasi-public, and private profit and nonprofit organizations; and specialized groups and individuals. Programs are grouped into 20 basic functional categories, including agriculture, business and commerce, community development, health, housing, and regional development to name a few. The catalog does not include solicitations for the purchase of goods and services by the federal government, foreign activities, or personnel recruitment programs.

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Then Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a nonpartisan research organization and policy institute that conducts research and analysis on a range of government policies and programs with an emphasis on those affecting low-and moderate-income people.

Community Development Financial Institutions: Home page of the coalition of CDFIs, with links to the Treasury Department�s CDFI Fund site and information on CDFI coalition members, policy issues, and an off-line directory of nearly 500 CDFIs across the country.

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Center for the Study of Rural America: Extensive information on rural policy issues that are important to rural areas; annual rural policy conference.

Funding Information Center, Marquette University: This site provides an exhaustive list of annotated links to information about foundation funding, the IRS list of charitable organizations, federal grants, prospecting for individual donors, writing proposals, and developing nonprofit organizations.

Foundation Center: The Foundation Center is an independent national service organization established by foundations to provide an authoritative source of information on foundation and corporate giving. The site has links to web sites at private foundations, corporate giving programs, community foundations, and public charities. This site is the "gateway" to the web for grant seekers. It provides the addresses of 50,000 foundations, training programs in proposal writing and grant seeking, and newsletters and publications on current trends and issues in foundation and corporate giving.

Housing Assistance Council News: Bi-weekly updates on rural policy issues. To subscribe to the email version, email hac@ruralhome.org and request to receive email version of HAC news.

McAuley Institute: McAuley 's Action Alerts provide all the facts and analysis you need to understand the issue and debate with others-including letters you can send to elected officials and others to express your views and influence decisions.

National Low Income Housing Coalition's Advocates Guide to Housing and Community Development Policy: Easy to Use background information on federal programs, advocacy processes.

National Rural Housing Coalition: Formed in 1969, the NRHC is a network of rural housing advocates from around the country.

Rural Community Assistance Program: RCAP News covers pending public policy issues.

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency: The OCC home page provides links to matters relating to the Community Reinvestment Act and to OCC�s community and economic development initiatives, including its policy guidance on community development issues to national banks, senior OCC management, and examiners, its research on community development topics, and its management of the Community Development Corporation, community development projects, and other Public Welfare Investments program.

Rural Policy Research Institute: Policy-orientated research addressing welfare reform, access to capital and telecommunications issues.

School-to-Work Grants: Under the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994, seed money grants to develop and implement School-to-Work systems. Awarded by the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor, through the National School-to-Work Office. The legislation sunsets in 2001.

Southern Rural Development Initiative (SRDI): SRDI is a bottom-up intermediary -- a regional collaborative working together to dramatically increase the flow of philanthropic and development capital to the South's poorest rural communities.

USDA Economic Research Service and Rural Housing Service: Best federal government sites for background information on rural America.

USDA Rural Development: USDA's Rural Development branch which is committed to helping improve the economy and quality of life in all of rural America.

Welfare Information Network Rural Issues: Resources on child care, transportation and housing in a rural environment in the context of welfare reform.

Health Resources

Rural Information Center Health Service: RICHS is a joint project of the Office of Rural Health Policy (DHHS) and the National Agricultural Library (USDA). RICHS' role is to collect and disseminate information on rural health issues. The site has links to funding sources, research centers and projects, Hispanic health topics, health care case studies, publications, catalogs, bibliographies, organizations, and a calendar of conferences as well as to federal and state health agencies and national associations.

Housing Links

Fannie Mae (FNMA): A private corporation since 1968, Fannie Mae is the nation's largest source of financing for home mortgages. The site provides information on Fannie Mae's secondary market role in purchasing single-family home loans from banks and other primary lenders and on its financing programs for multifamily housing and community development. The site's Home Path^sm offers people in the process of purchasing or refinancing a home a useful online guide (in eight languages) for making decisions and finding local advisors and lenders.

Fannie Mae Foundation: This site provides information on the program and grants of the foundation launched by Fannie Mae. Some areas include: housing research and policy; homebuyer assistance; literacy, basic education, ESL, and higher education; graduate fellowships; housing and community initiatives; and, a national walkathon to benefit the homeless. Grant applications and housing research reports are available online.

Freddie Mac: Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation chartered by Congress in 1970 to create a continuous flow of funds to mortgage lenders in support of homeownership and rental housing. Freddie Mac purchases mortgages from lenders and packages them into securities that are sold to investors. This provides homeowners and renters with lower housing costs and better access to home financing. The site provides information on Freddie Mac's products and services for the mortgage industry, investors and homebuyers, including a bilingual consumer home inspection kit and its single-family home sales program.

Freddie Mac Foundation: This site provides information on the program and grants of the foundation launched by Freddie Mac to support nonprofits working with children, youth and families at risk. Eligible groups include national organizations and local groups in cities where Freddie Mac has its national and regional corporate offices.

Ginnie Mae (GNMA): This site provides information for homebuyers, mortgage finance professionals, and security investors about the secondary mortgage market and Ginnie Mae. An entity of HUD since 1968, Ginnie Mae assures that mortgage funds are available throughout the country, including rural and urban areas where it has traditionally been harder to borrow money to buy a home. It guarantees FHA, VA, and RHS mortgage loans, and it sells securities backed by pools of these insured mortgages to investors through approved private financial institutions. Its securities provide lenders with a vehicle for originating, funding and servicing mortgages in a highly structured and liquid market. At the same time, its securities provide investors with an investment that offers safety of principal, liquidity and attractive yield.

Federal Housing Finance Board: The board ensures the soundness of the Federal Home Loan Banks, their access to capital markets, and their housing finance and community lending programs. These programs provide banks which are members of the Federal Home Loan Bank System with liquidity to fund affordable housing and community investment projects. The board establishes standards of community investment or service that member banks must meet in order to maintain access to long-term financial advances.

USDA Rural Housing Service: This site accesses RHS' opportunities for nonprofits, lenders, public agencies, developers, and individuals and families. It has notices of funds available, information about the new Rural Community Development Initiative, and external links to an exhaustive, un-annotated list of sites covering accessibility, architecture, building codes and standards, construction, engineering, environment, housing, community development, and water supply and wastewater management.

U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): HUD's home page. Includes links to notices of funds available, to program highlights and best practices, to numerous housing topics, and to special, one-stop shopping pages for groups involved in housing and community development like, for example, lenders, first time homebuyers, senior citizens, farmworkers, nonprofits, multifamily housing developers, small businesses, investors, etc.

U.S. Census Bureau-Housing and Household Economic Statistics: This is the "home page" for the Census Bureau's links to data on major topics relating to the housing stock itself, as well as to socioeconomic data about the households which occupy that stock.

The Nonprofit Resource Center: Established by California lawyers, this site is designed for managers, board members and volunteers of nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations, as well as people who are considering forming a nonprofit organization. It tries to offer a one-stop Directory of Internet Resources for Nonprofits.

The Rural Alliance of NeighborWorks�: A special coalition of organizations within the national NeighborWorks� network targeting low-income housing and community development in rural areas. This site is one of the services offered by the national network, the national Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation and Neighborhood Housing Services of America. The site links to a newsletter, members in 15 states, and periodic training programs in the areas of leadership and management, affordable housing, community building, construction and production management, economic development, community planning, community development lending and homeownership.

Habitat for Humanity International: A faith-based housing program at work in all 50 states and 63 other countries to mobilize volunteers to end substandard housing in local areas. Site has search engine to locate program affiliates in your area that you can join to help out, a directory of special events, and information on college campus programs, international volunteer opportunities, environmentally-friendly building, donating funds and/or building materials, and applying for a Habitat home.

Housing Assistance Council: National nonprofit created to increase the availability of decent and affordable housing for low-income people in rural areas. Headquartered in Washington D.C., with field offices in GA, NM, CA and MO, HAC provides many services for local, state, and national organizations (not individuals), including loans, publications, technical assistance, training and special projects. Convenes periodic intensive training workshops around the country, plus the annual National Rural Housing Coalition conference in Washington D.C. The site has a comprehensive list of annotated links to advocacy and policy analysis, fund raising, government agencies, technical assistance providers, private lenders, research sources, telecommunications, and other links including listservs and HUD's Policy, Development & Research section.

National Low Income Housing Coalition/Low Income Housing Information Service: A national organization especially concerned about low-income renters and tenants of public housing. Committed to education, organizing and advocacy, including faith-based housing programs. The NLIHC site contains publications and an e-mail, fax an internet network with forums for discussion. It also maintains a summary of pending legislation with a link to Thomas' legislation finder; a calendar of national, state and local low-income housing events; links to statewide housing coalitions, to members of congressional committees on housing authorizations and appropriations, and an exhaustive un-annotated list of national and local housing organizations, policy and advocacy groups, government agencies, banking and financing sites, data sources, and other lists of links.

Enterprise Foundation: Though its programs focus on 1,200 community based nonprofits in 17 metropolitan areas across the country, the foundation's site offers products, tools, best-practices guides, resources and bi-weekly updates on policy and federal funding information that can be very useful to practitioners of affordable housing and community development in rural areas.

National Congress for Community Economic Development: The trade association and advocate for more than 3,600 community development corporations across America. The site includes: (1) information on federal legislation, funding, budget and award programs; (2) online shopping links supporting NCCED; (3) local success stories; (4) advisories on policy conferences and training workshops; and (5) links to newsletter and general information about the community development industry.

National Housing Institute: An independent nonprofit that examines key issues affecting affordable housing and community development practitioners and their supporters, including jobs, safety, education, poverty, racism and disinvestment. Links to its online, bimonthly, subscription-based magazine Shelterforce, a leading source of information for innovative strategies.

Infrastructure Resources

Foundation for Rural Service: Established by the National Telephone Cooperative Association, this foundation aims to inform and educate the public on the rural telecommunications industry and to improve the quality of life throughout rural America. Site has information about its scholarship program for rural high school seniors, its annual Youth Tour to Washington D.C., its research and advocacy efforts, and links to 20 listservs relating to the telecommunications industry or other issues affecting rural America.

National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA): This Commerce Department agency works to ensure that affordable phone and cable service and advanced telecommunications technologies are available to all Americans, including those in rural areas. Site has information about grants for developing information infrastructures and services in rural areas, student internships, research publications, and a selected list of annotated links to other telecommunications and information sources on the Internet.

National Transit Resource Center: This site develops or acquires new resources to help transit systems, including those in rural areas. It has links to the Rural Transit Assistance Program, the Community Transportation Association and Assistance Project, and the USDA's rural public transportation assistance programs, as well as a Transit Forum for posting questions about community transit.

State Departments of Transportation: From the State of Washington's Department of Transportation, this site links to the websites of the highway and transportation departments of the other 49 states.

US Department of Transportation: Home page for this cabinet department with links to and a search engine for all of the department's programs and agencies.

Labor/Job Training Resources

National Workforce Assistance Collaborative: NWAC's web site seeks to help small and midsized businesses in the areas of workplace literacy, employee training, work restructuring, and labor-management relations.

U.S. Department of Labor: The home page for the department provides access, directly or via the search engine, to its agencies, programs, and publications and to the laws and regulations governing its operations. It has links to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, OSHA and MSHA data, and FEDSTATS (the one-stop link to federal statistics on the web) as well as to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Labor Relations Board, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, and to other branches of the federal government.

Legislation and U.S. Code Resources

The United States Code: The home page for accessing the laws of the United States codified as the U.S. Code. The site provides a database and search engine to the code, the ability to view and download titles and chapters, a table classifying sections of the code affected by newly-enacted legislation, and the Thomas legislative search service of the Library of Congress. From the site, major statutes affecting rural communities can be reached, including:

Safe Drinking Water Act � 42 U.S.C. Sec. 3001
Rural Industrial Assistance Act of 1986 � 7 U.S.C. Sec. 1921
Rural Health Clinic Act of 1983 � 42 U.S.C. Sec.201
Rural Electrification Act of 1936 � 7 U.S.C. Sec. 901
Rural Crisis Recovery Program Act of 1987 � 7 U.S.C. Sec. 2661
National Forest - Dependent Rural Communities Economic Diversification Act of 1990 -
7 U.S.C. Sec.6611
Morrill Acts � Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges - 7 U.S.C. Sec. 301
Hatch Act of 1887 - 7 U.S.C. Sec. 361(a)
Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act - 7 U.S.C. Sec. 1921
Title 7 U. S. Code: Agriculture

Code of Federal Regulations: The home page for National Archives and Records Administration. This site accesses the Code of Federal Regulations, the Federal Register, the weekly compilation of presidential documents, and recently enacted public laws.

Native American Resources

Index of Native American Resources on the Internet: This portal links to information on Native American art, culture, education, health, history, languages and indigenous knowledge. The site contains extensive and detailed information on Native American art and provides links to artists, museums, galleries, etc. The site has searchable indices.

Native American Resources: This site provides links to the Native American Report, the Native American calendar, the URLs and home pages of numerous tribes, nations, colleges and educational organizations, arts and cultural groups, and governmental agencies.

Native American Sites: This site provides access to home pages of individual Native Americans and Nations and to other sites that provide solid information about American Indians. Categories include: individual Native Nations; Native Organizations and Urban Indian Centers; Tribal Colleges, Native Studies Programs, and Indian Education; Languages; the Mascot Issue; Native Media; Powwows and Festivals; Native Music and Arts; Native Businesses; and, a general Indian-oriented home page.

Regional Information

TVA Rural Studies: This site publishes the results of previously funded research projects on rural development in the South.

Research and Reference Sources

Bureau of Labor Statistics: The home page for accessing BLS data on employment, unemployment, prices, consumer behavior, etc., plus the Occupational Outlook Handbook and other research publications.

FEDSTATS: This site provides easy access to the full range of statistics and information produced by more than 70 agencies of the federal government. Data can be profiled by state, county, and congressional districts.

FinanceNet: A public financial management site operated by the National Science Foundation and sponsored by the U.S. Chief Financial Officers Council. The site links government financial management administrators, educators and taxpayers worldwide to improve the productivity of government personnel and the stewardship and accountability for taxpayer resources. The site also links to sales and auctions of public assets and surplus property by federal, state and local governments and international agencies as well as a listserv and a search engine for government financial documents, audit requirements and Treasury regulations, for government jobs, for financial training programs and conferences.

Library of Congress: The home page of the nation's preeminent library and research tool.

Population Reference Bureau: The Population Reference Bureau is a leader in providing timely and objective information on U.S. and international population trends and their implications to policymakers, educators, the media, and concerned citizens around the world. This site provides a one-stop link to a broad range of publications, information services, seminars and workshops, and technical support.

Rural Information Center: The Rural Information Center provides information and referral services for rural communities, officials, organizations and citizens. The site includes a search engine, a calendar of conferences, an e-mail address for customized research questions, a library of RIC's publications on numerous rural topics, and links to RIC's rural health service, to community foundations in the states, to USDA agencies and, through them, to a comprehensive un-annotated list of links to private and public resources and databases plus technical assistance, advocacy, and stakeholder organizations.

Rural/Community Development

The Aspen Institute's Rural Program: This foundation-funded program fosters collaborative learning, leadership and innovation to advance rural community and economic development in the United States. The site offers a free, e-mail monthly newsletter. It links to the Aspen Institute's home page and to dozens of diverse online resources on rural life and community economic development, including listservs, databases, bulletin boards and newsgroups.

Community Development Institute at Cornell University: CaRDI links professionals, community organizations, elected officials and Cornell's departments, programs and extension services on issues of community development and policymaking affecting rural New York state.

National Rural Development Partnership: Home page of the National Rural Development Council with links to 36 state development councils, to an exhaustive but un-annotated laundry list of sites on rural issues, and to a comprehensive list of conferences on rural affairs that is updated monthlty.

Southern Rural Development Center: One of four regional USDA-sponsored, university-based research, education and information centers. Based at Mississippi State University, this one covers: AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, TX and VA plus Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The site offers grant information to faculty of twenty-nine land grant institutions in the region and links to research sites on rural development at these institutions. It accepts submissions to its calendar of events and publishes a quarterly newsletter offering a Southern perspective on major topics.

North Central Regional Center for Rural Development: One of four regional USDA-sponsored, university-based research, education and information centers. Based at Iowa State University, this one covers: IL, IN, IA, KS, MI, MN, MO, NE, ND, OH, SD and WI. The site links to resources in the states it covers, e.g. universities, extension services, government agencies, policy organizations and nonprofits. It accepts submissions to its calendar of events and has specialized links not found elsewhere.

Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development: One of four regional USDA-sponsored, university-based research, education and information centers. Based at Penn State University, this one covers the New England states plus DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA and WV. The site links to resources in the states it covers, e.g. universities, extension services, government agencies, policy organizations and nonprofits. It accepts submissions to its calendar of events and has links to other organizations' calendars. It also offers a small grants program and the applications are available on the site.

Southern Rural Development Initiative: A foundation-funded, regional collaborative of 33 member organizations in 11 states helping nonprofit, community based institutions to attract and use capital effectively to promote sustainable social and economic development in the poorest areas of the rural South. The site has a highly selective, annotated list of very useful links for community based philanthropy, grantmakers, national organizations, public policy and research. A real time-saver.

USDA Rural Development Site: The home page for --with links to-- all of USDA's rural housing, community development, business development, and utilities programs as well as its proposed rules and regulations.

Western Rural Development Center: One of four regional USDA-sponsored, university-based research, education and information centers. Based at Utah State University, this one targets issues and projects shaping the future of rural regions of the West (17 states and territories). This site will accept submission of your organization's events on development issues by state.

Senior Citizen Resources

American Association of Retired Persons (AARP): The AARP is the largest organization of midlife and older persons in America, with over 30 million members. This nonprofit, nonpartisan association is dedicated to enriching and shaping the experience of aging Americans. The web site contains information about the membership and benefits; community and volunteer programs; computers and the Internet; health and wellness; legislative issues; leisure and fun; life transitions and independent living; modern maturity; and money and work.

Resources for State and Local Resources

Cornell Local Government Program: This Cornell University program works to improve the ability of small municipalities in New York state to govern effectively. The site provides access to on-line financial management tools -- Municipal Budget Worksheet, a spreadsheet that aids in the budgeting process, and Capital Plus, a stand-alone program for developing a multi-year financial and capital plan.

Innovation Groups: A membership organization of city, town, and county governments that provides networking research and training opportunities to local governments. The site provides access to an online library of more than 10,000 local government documents, free newsletters, discounts on workshops, books, publications and tapes, and a variety of training opportunities, a calendar, and links to websites of local governments and agencies.

Library of Congress Page on State and Local Government: Meta-indexes for state and local government information with links to data about, organizations serving, and resources available to state and local governments, as well as links to state and local government web sites.

Municipal Information Exchange: The Municipal Information Exchange is a full service information bank providing enterprise-scale data warehousing and advanced Web applications to municipal governments. It was founded on the idea that no local government should be deprived of quality information management simply because it is small or rural or fiscally strapped.

Sustainable Development Resources

Agriculture Network Information Center: AgNIC is a distributed network that provides access to agriculture-related information, subject area experts, and other resources. It was established by an alliance of the National Agricultural Library, land-grant universities, and other organizations committed to facilitating public access to agricultural and related information. The site includes a database that describes and links to 1,000+ web-based agriculture information sources and a bibliographic database of more than 3 million records created by NAL and its cooperators as well as a calendar of agricultural conferences of scientific significance.

Center of Excellence for Sustainable Development: Sponsored by US Department of Energy, the Rural Issues section of the center�s web site is dedicated to helping rural people and communities discover each other's efforts and learn through sharing mutual experiences. It aims to open new electronic lines of communications between rural people. The site includes case studies in sustainability, a forum for directly sharing ideas, various research publications, and annotated links to sustainable agriculture and rural community development sites. A subsection will be devoted to sustainable agriculture.

Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems: Based at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, CIAS brings together farmers, researchers, policy makers, and others to study farming practices, farm profitability, the environment, and rural vitality. The site has links to research programs, the Wisconsin Farmer Networks, sustainable agriculture organizations, a calendar of Wisconsin events, and a search-and-listing service for agriculture-related conferences nation- and worldwide.

Center for Rural Affairs: Located in northeast Nebraska, the center engages in research, education, advocacy, and service work to further a vision of America�s family farms and rural communities that encourages principles of social justice, economic opportunity, environmental stewardship, and personal and social responsibility. The site links to the center�s newsletter, programs and publications, and contact information and/or links to a laundry list of un-annotated sites in the areas of beginning farmers, federal agriculture research, funding sources, hog factories, microenterprise, rural development, sustainable agriculture policies and practices.

Center for Sustainable Agricultural Systems (CSAS): Based at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln�s Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, CSAS aims to enhance the university�s capability to design and evaluate sustainable production systems and incorporate this capability into its research, teaching, extension and international activities. Evaluations of production systems look at their capacity to improve productivity and resource use efficiency, reduce environmental degradation, and promote short- and long-term economic viability. The site links to an exhaustive laundry list of un-annotated links to state and federal government agencies, universities and research centers, and other activist organizations.

Communities by Choice: Founded by a cluster of counties and economic development groups in eastern Kentucky and Central Appalachia, this is a web-based community of people who share a common interest in building sustainable communities. It aims to create a dynamic learning organization for individuals, community groups, businesses and policy makers by providing them with the best sustainable community development resources available and an opportunity to share their lessons and experiences. The site has a search engine, a community calendar, a job bank, an online forum, and links to numerous resources related to sustainable households, sustainable communities, sustainable businesses and public policy and sustainable communities.

EnviroLink Library: A comprehensive resource of environmental information available on the Internet. Information is categorized by types of resources (organizations, publications, etc.) and environmental topics, including agriculture, forests, and sustainable development. Site has extensive searching tools, and user may suggest a resource if it does not already appear in the library.

Farming Alternatives Program: Based at Cornell University, this site maintains a listserv for discussing agriculture development in the Northeast and strategies for improving the economic vitality of farming in the region. Topics include: market development for farm products, farmer markets, value-added processing; economic development resources for agriculture; fostering diversification; assisting beginning farmers and farm transfers; agritourism and other development strategies, linkages between farmers and urban ethnic markets. Research publications and a quarterly newsletter available by subscription.

International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISDNet): The Manitoba-based International Institute for Sustainable Development is an independent, nongovernmental organization that collaborates with partners around the world to produce policy research on sustainable development, and uses electronic communications to disseminate the results. The site has links to the Sustainable Development Communications Network, to Business and Sustainable Development, to measurements and indicators of sustainable development, to a highly selective, annotated database of sustainability tool kits and resources for communities in Canada and the United States, to the Great Plains Sustainability Program, and to the free, e-mail Earth Negotiations Bulletin, a clearinghouse for information on international meetings related to environment and development policy.

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy: The Minnesota-based Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy's mission is to create environmentally and economically sustainable rural communities and regions through sound agriculture and trade policy. The institute assists public interest organizations in coalition building and influencing both domestic and international policymaking through monitoring, analysis and research, education and outreach, and information systems management. The site includes contact information, research and policy publications, action alerts, job announcements, intersnhips, and links to other resources of interest including a watchsite on the World Trade Organization.

Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture: At Iowa State University, the center supports projects that involve people throughout Iowa in the process of developing a more sustainable agriculture. The site has information on the center�s competitive grants program and its regional and statewide conferences as well as a calendar of state events.

National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT): NCAT champions sustainable technologies and community based approaches that protect natural resources and assist people, especially the economically disadvantaged, in becoming self reliant. The site links to the national sustainable farming information center, Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas, the Center for Resourceful Building Technology, the Resource Efficient Multifamily Housing Project, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program Clearinghouse, and NewHorizon Technologies' consulting programs. The site also has an online newsletter, publications, resources, and an exhaustive list of un-annotated links to sites on sustainable agriculture, integrated pest management and biological controls, livestock grazing and forage management, vegetable and fruit production, soil and fertility management, and online management tools for farmers.

The Sustainable Agriculture Network: Hosted by North Carolina State University, SAN is the communications and outreach arm of USDA's Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. SAN is dedicated to the exchange of scientific and practical information on sustainable agriculture using a variety of printed and electronic communications tools. The site has information on SARE's competitive grants program, the professional development program for cooperative extension agents, and natural resources conservation program for farmers and ranchers as well as publications and research reports, a national project database, a calendar of sustainable agriculture events, tip sheets for small farms, and links to a laundry list of un-annotated national and regional sites on the web.

Sustainable Resources on the Internet: This page from Colorado State University�s website Communications for a Sustainable Future links to numerous agricultural topics as well as to the broader issues of sustainable and earth-friendly development.

Web Page Basics

Beginner Guide to the Internet

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