Table of Contents

1. Introduction Rhonda Phillips and Terry L. Besser 2. Achieving Sustainable Economic Development in Communities Ron Shaffer 3. Gleaners, Do-Gooders, and Balers: Options for Linking Sustainability and Economic Development Ted Bradshaw and Karri Winn 4. The Community and Economic Development Chain: Validating the Links Between Processes and Outcomes Robert Pittman, Evan Pittman and Rhonda Phillips 5. Economic Development in the Nonmetropolitan West: The Influence of Built, Natural, and Social Capital Jessica Crowe 6. Development of Last Resort: The Impact of New State Prisons on Small Town Economies in the United States Terry L. Besser and Margaret M. Hanson 7. Chain stores and local economies: a case study of a rural county in New York Stephen Halebsky 8. Micro Businesses as an Economic Development Tool: What They Bring and What They Need Glenn Muske and Michael Woods 9. Citizen Participation in Nonprofit Economic Development Organizations Daniel Monroe Sullivan 10. Community Development Corporations as Vehicles of Community Economic Development: The Case of Rural Manitoba Kenneth C. Bessant

About the Author

Rhonda G. Phillips, Ph.D., AICP, CEcD is a professor, a planner and community economic developer whose work fosters innovative development approaches. Her research and service outreach includes assessing community well-being and quality-of-life outcomes. She holds professional certifications in both economic development and planning.


Terry L. Besser, Ph.D. is a professor of rural sociology. Her research focuses on rural economic vitality, social capital, business networks, and business social responsibility. Most recently she has examined these topics for rural prairie towns experiencing dramatic increases in Hispanic immigration.