The role of economic development in communities is multi-faceted, having an array of antecedents, impacts, and implications. This volume explores the relationships between economic development and community development, focusing on the aspects that impact communities such as social capital, participation, and business development. It discusses the need for aligning the goals of community betterment more closely with economic improvement and finding ways to enhance leadership and other resources. Including both current contributions and "classics," the evolution of the relationship between’ and roles of, the two kinds of development is explored.
The articles in the volume present several theoretical perspectives of development. Most common among them are sustainable economic development and social capital theories. Utilizing these theories and data from various sources, the authors are able to suggest specific development strategies for improving community economic and quality of life outcomes. The volume offers an exploration of directions for future research, including the need for more theoretical and empirical work on the role of amenity development on rural community economic and quality-of- life outcomes. Practitioners of community and economic development, along with researchers and students will find this volume useful and relevant for both theory and application.
This book is a compilation of articles published in the Journal of the Community Development Society.
1. Introduction Rhonda Phillips and Terry L. Besser 2. Achieving Sustainable Economic Development in Communities Ron Shaffer 3. Gleaners, Do-Gooders, and Balers: Options for Linking Sustainability and Economic Development Ted Bradshaw and Karri Winn 4. The Community and Economic Development Chain: Validating the Links Between Processes and Outcomes Robert Pittman, Evan Pittman and Rhonda Phillips 5. Economic Development in the Nonmetropolitan West: The Influence of Built, Natural, and Social Capital Jessica Crowe 6. Development of Last Resort: The Impact of New State Prisons on Small Town Economies in the United States Terry L. Besser and Margaret M. Hanson 7. Chain stores and local economies: a case study of a rural county in New York Stephen Halebsky 8. Micro Businesses as an Economic Development Tool: What They Bring and What They Need Glenn Muske and Michael Woods 9. Citizen Participation in Nonprofit Economic Development Organizations Daniel Monroe Sullivan 10. Community Development Corporations as Vehicles of Community Economic Development: The Case of Rural Manitoba Kenneth C. Bessant
Biography
Rhonda G. Phillips, Ph.D., AICP, CEcD is a professor, a planner and community economic developer whose work fosters innovative development approaches. Her research and service outreach includes assessing community well-being and quality-of-life outcomes. She holds professional certifications in both economic development and planning.
Terry L. Besser, Ph.D. is a professor of rural sociology. Her research focuses on rural economic vitality, social capital, business networks, and business social responsibility. Most recently she has examined these topics for rural prairie towns experiencing dramatic increases in Hispanic immigration.
