White House Rural Council Blog

The White House Rural Council and six federal agencies have selected 26 communities to participate in Local Foods, Local Places, a federal initiative providing direct technical support and expertise to community partners integrating local food systems into regional economic action plans.

From historic homesteaders to contemporary cattle ranchers, women have been the cornerstone of America’s agriculture heritage. We’ve produced food to feed our families, feed our neighbors, and to feed the world.

In July 2013, the Administration launched the Sentinel Landscapes partnership to accomplish three critical goals: preserve agricultural lands, assist with military readiness, and restore and protect wildlife habitat.

Local Food, Local Places is a new federal initiative providing direct technical support to rural communities to help them build strong local food systems as part of their community’s economic action plans.

Following the lead of the White House Rural Council, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the VA are working with their public and private partners to ensure rural providers and the communities they serve have the health IT tools they need.

Forty-two percent of the Appalachian Region's population lives in rural areas. President Obama’s Made in Rural America export and investment initiative presents a strategic opportunity to expand the region’s exporting sector, grow jobs, and ensure long-term sustainable growth.

Today, the Obama Administration is excited to announce a new partnership between seven Federal agencies that will help communities better prepare for droughts and reduce the impact of drought events on families and businesses. The interagency National Drought Resilience Partnership is part of the President’s Climate Action Plan. Federal agencies are already working with communities, businesses and farmers and ranchers to build resilience to drought on the ground, and this Partnership will enhance those efforts.

The Delta Regional Authority partnered with the Department of Defense to provide health care via the Innovative Readiness Training program.

The Obama Administration announces "Sentinel Landscapes," which will preserve agricultural lands and restore and protect wildlife habitat.

On Thursday, September 6th, Doug McKalip, Senior Policy Advisor for Rural Affairs attended the grand opening of Dillon Middle School in Dillon, South Carolina.

The U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently hosted a conference call with rural community colleges to discuss federal resources avaiable to expand training for health information technology workers.

Three federal agencies announced a new project to assist high-need rural areas facing chronic poverty along the U.S.-Mexico border. This new project is part of a series of initiatives delivered through the White House Rural Council, which recently released a report detailing the historic steps President Obama and this administration have taken to support rural America.

This week marks the one-year anniversary of the creation of the White House Rural Council, an Administration-wide initiative to support and strengthen America’s rural economy. SBA announces efforts to ensure that entrepreneurs who live in rural areas have the access and opportunity they need to start, build, and grow their businesses.

Working Lands for Wildlife is a new effort to focus both conservation dollars and wildlife management expertise on the recovery of wildlife species.