The Alabama Community College System offers job training at no cost.

This story is one of several “Stories of Change” highlighted in a new evaluation of ARC’s POWER Initiative.

In Appalachian Ohio, local food provides a clear path to opportunity, and resilience, in communities.

WVFFC provides statewide leadership in local food so farmers and agriculture businesses can thrive, ultimately nourishing and strengthening their communities.

Sprouting Farms grows Southern West Virginia’s local food systems through education, resource sharing, land access, and food production.

In Kentucky, Community Farm Alliance has worked for 36 years to help Kentucky communities, farmers markets, and producers reap those important benefits.

EdVenture is driving educational change and empowering Appalachian students.

The town of Erwin, Tennessee is nestled in the mountains of Unicoi County (pictured above) and home to just over 6,000 residents. Though the area is abundant in undisturbed natural assets and access to major roadways, Unicoi is considered economically at-risk and has faced its fair share of challenges. After the coal-industry-related closure of a CSX rail yard in Erwin, around…

In the Great Smoky Mountains, Cocke County is using ARC support on a new biking trail.

Every Appalachian state has ample trail opportunities, from the Tanglefoot Trail in Mississippi, to South Carolina’s Swamp Rabbit Trail and the Great Allegheny Passage in Maryland and Pennsylvania. Trails are incredible gateways for attracting outside visitors and increasing quality of life for community members. ARC partners have long worked to establish trail systems that…

ARC investments help communities and entrepreneurs sustainably leverage this incredible asset.

Fifty state game lands, 29 state parks, 8 state forests, and one National Forest make the Pennsylvania Wilds.

Rural Action is using ARC support, and a partnership with the U.S. Forest Service, to help coal-impacted communities boost trails and tourism.

West Virginia, though improving in many measures, has the most drug overdose deaths per 100,000 people of any other state. Fortunately, the Mountain State also has an incredible host of ARC partners, local leaders, and community members committed to overcoming this challenge. This list includes West Virginia University Research Corporation and the Institute for Community and Rural Health (WVU…

At 39% participation, Eastern Kentucky has the lowest workforce participation rate among ages 18-24 in the nation. This area also finds itself at the epicenter of our nation’s substance abuse crisis, creating a unique challenge for both the health and economic capacity of communities. That’s why a number of organizations, like Kentucky River Community Care, Inc. (KRCC), work every day…