A new economic plan aims to  bridge the gap between rural and progressive communities, a small Illinois town made history by electing a transgender woman to city council and a broadband merger in southern states has some worried customer service will decline.

Rural communities favored for federal funding investments by the Biden administration often lack resources to compete, Colorado artists benefit from rural creative districts and beekeeping finds friends in coal country.

Critics say the crypto mine promise of rural prosperity is more hype than help, data show Black southerners in rural counties are less segregated than their urban counterparts and efforts begin to rid the Great Plains of invasive species.

Vulnerable rural Americans need an electrical grid upgrade to cope with climate change, West Virginians worry Mountain Valley Pipeline construction is damaging their landscape, and 75 years after "Roswell," New Mexico is still a destination for space geeks.

A small fire department in rural Indiana is determined not to fail new moms and babies, the growing election denial movement has caused voting districts to change procedures, and autumn promises spectacular scenery along America's rural byways.

An indigenous project in South Dakota seeks to protect tribal data sovereignty, advocates in North Carolina are pushing back against attacks on public schools and Arkansas wants the hungriest to have access to more fruits and veggies.

Colorado's small towns are caught between a rock and a river to build more affordable housing, mental health services expand in Illinois for rural residents, including farmers, and Big Sky Country pitches its tent as a recreational mecca.

Residents of East Palestine, Ohio impacted by a train derailment get DNA testing, rural communities have a second chance for wildfire protection money, and North Carolina's "Road to Nowhere" is paved with curious tourists.

Millions of Americans are navigating a post-pandemic Medicaid purge, rural "news deserts"  turn to nonprofits for local coverage in response to hedge-fund buyouts, and the Cornhusker State is preserving the stories of Nebraskans who trekked to one-room school houses in days gone by.

Small business owners rebuilding after flooding in eastern Kentucky are getting recovery money from local nonprofits and others; severe heat waves have doubled fatalities for outdoor workers in the past 30 years but helpful legislation is slow in coming; and Virginians say "Yes, we can!" to the resurgence of  canneries.