Turning the Tide on Poverty: Strategies and challenges related to tackling poverty in rural communities in the South

Abstract

This special issue of Community Development on the Turning the Tide on Poverty (Tide) initiative addresses a number of elements that are vital to the ability of impoverished rural areas to take steps to improve conditions in their communities. This article is intended to highlight the key findings from this study in the southern US that are of value to community development practitioners. The Tide research team devoted special attention to the efforts that have become part of the fabric of many communities engaged in the Tide program. Our observations include evidence of the expanded involvement of local residents in the civic life of their communities, the renewal of economic activities in the target communities, and the accumulation of valuable lessons learned. These lessons can help inform and guide the poverty alleviation and improvement efforts of other communities that have decided to promote a brighter future for their places of residence. Furthermore, we discuss policy implications of our “in-the-field” work in low-wealth communities.

Keywords:

• Civic engagement
• community development
• poverty
• rural communities

Notes

1. At the inception of the Tide effort, Southern Rural Development Center (SRDC) leaders assembled a team of both research and Extension professionals (“the research team”) from within the region served by the SRDC to help shape this work. Each member of the team was affiliated with a land-grant institution in his or her respective state. The research team guided the development of materials as well as the implementation of the program in local communities and ongoing program assessment. As the work continued, the team continued to guide and evaluate its impacts, helping to clarify and refine the path of the Extension outreach efforts. While the composition of the team has varied over the years, the team’s overall mission to ensure evidence-based directions has remained focused. For this special collection, all current, active research team members participated in the evaluation of lessons learned and outcomes from Tide to date. Research team members actively interviewed participants, coded and analyzed data, and prepared manuscripts to develop the body of knowledge contained in this journal edition.