How Home-Based Care Could Fix the Rural Childcare Drought

Many small towns in rural Appalachia are struggling to adapt to the greater evolutions of the American economy away from the coal industry. But some places, like the little town of Hemphill in Kentucky, are using the opportunity to get creative with local enterprise and unite the community in launching new ventures. The Hemphill Community Center is now a central resource for launching new small businesses, arts and cultural events, and fostering shared resources and renewed growth for the town.

In South Africa, the extreme gap between rich and poor is the root cause of cyclical poverty, and those living in slums face particularly high barriers to education, healthcare, and quality of life. The Ubuntu Education Fund is using a comprehensive approach that includes sustainable investment in community leadership and infrastructure, a cradle-to-career household stability service, and a dexterous, community oriented approach to helping break the cycle of poverty.

The nonprofit GiveDirectly provides refugees with cash to help them sustain themselves, focusing on those living in cities, as they’re less likely to receive the same assistance as humanitarian camps do. Nearly 1,200 people were given $925 to spend however they wanted — some opening bank accounts, others starting businesses — and reported they were able to nearly double their monthly income and after six months, 88% of recipients were earning more money than ever before.

The Mar a Mar association is slowly improving the 174-mile hiking trail, Camino de Costa Rica, with new infrastructure to attract more tourists. The path was built to bring tourism profits inland to the local communities that need it. The association is also helping members of those communities develop small businesses around the trail.

The small town of Iola, KS, and Allen County's GROW Council offer a case study of how local communities across this prairie state have worked to solve the absence of grocery stores in many rural areas. Through local resourcefulness and organizing efforts; knowledge and financial support from the state government; and partnership with Kansas State University's Rural Grocery Initiative, towns have succeeded in bringing grocery stores, from locally-owned coops to school-based distribution hubs, back to their Main Streets.

Amid an ICE enforcement surge that destabilized housing for immigrant families in Minneapolis, residents organized a grassroots rent relief effort that distributed about $14 million across 40 community funds. The community-driven response bypassed typical income restrictions and eligibility requirements by relying on trusted neighborhood relationships, which contributed to a dip in eviction filings in January and February. Their organizing effort also pressured state lawmakers to pass a $40 million emergency rental assistance bill.

The Heurich House Museum in Washington, D.C., has created two targeted initiatives—the Urban Manufacturing Incubator and the DC Makers' Guild—to support local small-scale artisan businesses facing barriers to growth such as high rent fees and limited visibility. These programs provide mentorship, business coaching, market entry opportunities, like various mini markets throughout the year, and advocacy support to improve market conditions for these small businesses.

The nonprofit YIAGA Africa is increasing voter participation in general elections by providing grants to youth across Nigera looking to launch their own voter engagement projects. The grant recipients help people register to vote, run awareness campaigns, and work with local organizations.

When the Westside Mobile Home Park went up for sale, it brought the threat of displacement to those who lived there. So, the Elevation Community Land Trust partnered with the residents of the Durango, Colorado, community to form a housing cooperative. Now, the park's land is owned by a community land trust that offers each resident 99-year leases for significantly cheaper than if the park was attached to the real estate market.

Unite Here, a 300,000-member labor union of hotel and restaurant workers, has organized mass protests to pass voting rights legislation. In 2020 they ran a huge door-knocking operation with 500 full-time paid canvassers. The weekly salary helped canvassers, many of whom were hotel workers that lost their jobs due to the pandemic. And the well-organized ground campaign that encouraged over 48,000 infrequent voters in Arizona to vote for Biden, likely helped push Biden to a narrow and surprising victory in that state.