Open Mic #8: Rural Communities: Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about challenges for communities of all sizes across the United States. Rural communities are often overlooked in public, private, and philanthropic strategies to address such a crisis. However, the urgency for action to support both response and economic recovery in rural places presents opportunities for innovative partnerships between local leaders from all sectors and both national and local philanthropies. The critical challenges faced by rural communities also call for an expanded toolkit that includes impact investing.
Join this informal webcam-enabled conversation with colleagues including Deb Markley of LOCUS Impact Investing, Ines Polonius of Communities Unlimited, Fayetteville, AR, and Lora Smith of Appalachian Impact Fund at Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky. You will have the opportunity to test your ideas, tell your stories of local innovation, and hear directly from foundations and rural practitioners building solutions especially for communities that are rural and remote from urban centers.
Open Mics are lightly structured calls for MIE members to come together and discuss ideas and opportunities to create impact. Intended to be flexible, Open Mics embody the goal of mobilizing with urgency, employing a simple concept:
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What ideas, projects, or resources exist within the MIE community — and how can we help each other respond to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) crisis?
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How can we work quickly to bring together a variety of voices, investment opportunities, and best practices in an action-oriented conversation?
This Open Mic was built in coordination and with gratitude to the T.L.L. Temple Foundation, East Texas.
MIE members, log in to access dial-in information, a self RSVP sheet, and additional resources.
