August 14, 2025

A Conversation about Rural Prosperity and its Connection to Policies, Past, Present & Future with Tony Pipa, Brent Orrell and Matthew Hildreth

1 hour 8 minutes

In this Rural Impact Extra Episode: A Conversation about Rural Prosperity and its Connection to Policies, Past, Present & Future, Michelle leads the episode with a discussion with two esteemed experts in the field. Tony Pipa, a Senior Fellow in the Center for Sustainable Development at the Brookings Institution, and Brent Orrell, a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute(AEI), bring their wealth of knowledge and experience to the conversation.

Tony, Brent, and Michelle discuss the Brookings-AEI Commission on US Rural Prosperity, a significant bipartisan endeavor. This commission has a shared mission to enable rural prosperity in the 21st century by strengthening economic opportunity, resilience, and quality of life across rural America. Drawing on rigorous analysis and informed by a series of research symposia led by Brent and Tony, America’s Rural Future will share regular insights through policy briefs, public events, and narrative storytelling, informed by site visits and conversations with rural leaders across the country.

The discussion explores the challenges and opportunities facing rural America, including economic transformation, workforce development in the age of AI, the importance of infrastructure, climate change resilience, health outcomes, and the need for effective governance and policy coordination. Together, they emphasize the crucial role of civic engagement and community involvement. This is not just a conversation, but a call to action for all those who care about the future of rural policy.

In part two of this episode, Michelle is joined by Matt Hildreth, who serves as the Executive Director of RuralOrganizing and RuralProgress, a nationwide network of nearly one million advocates and civic leaders in small towns and rural communities that have successfully pushed for over $1 billion in new economic prosperity programs for economically disadvantaged communities.

Matt and Michelle delve into the importance of empowering rural leaders, the impact of Medicaid on small communities, and the innovative 2050 Festival. This festival, aimed at engaging the next generation of civic leaders, is a beacon of hope for the future of rural America, inspiring optimism and confidence in the potential of our rural communities.

This episode is brought to you by The National Association of Rural Health Clinics. NARHC invites you to rendezvous in Reno!!!

Beginning October 20th, the two and a half day NARHC Fall Institute features a powerful in-person agenda plus three pre-conference webinars the week before. It’s your chance to engage deeply with the pressing issues facing Rural Health Clinics today.

With unmatched networking and a throwback 90s Bash, you’ll leave energized and reconnected.

Registration closes the evening of October 19th, so don't wait! Head to narhc.org to register.

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