Clues to Rural Community Survival, written by Heartland Center co-directors Vicki Luther and Milan Wall, is a modest paperback book of 164 pages, but after 15 years, its lessons on rural community survival continue to inspire people across the nation and around the world.

“Clues” was first published in 1987 on the heels of a farm crisis considered the most devastating since the Great Depression. Then as now, commodity prices were severely depressed, and land values in some areas had declined by a staggering two-thirds. Headlines such as “Decaying Great Plains towns the rural ghettos of tomorrow” (Peirce 1988) foretold gloom and doom. One highly controversial suggestion, advanced by researchers from Rutgers University, was that vast rural areas of the Great Plains should be transformed into a “Buffalo Commons,” as a nature preserve.

Other analysts thought that size and location would determine the future of small towns. If you were “too small” or “too isolated” your community would eventually fail. There were plenty of examples to support these theories. There was also danger in that these prevalent attitudes were leading to self-fulfilling prophesies. Following a bank closure in Broken Bow, Nebraska, 26 store fronts were emptied. To many it seemed like the only people making ends meet in farm and ranch country were the auctioneers.

In 1985, a project called “Visions from the Heartland” sponsored a series of seminars across Nebraska featuring Robert Theobald, a futurist and author of The Rapids of Change: Entrepreneurship in Turbulent Times. The workshops were designed to help small town leaders view the future in more positive terms. As the series concluded, an idea for a follow-up project emerged: Why not study small towns that were thriving, even in tough economic times, rather than towns whose future seemed dim?

Founders of the Heartland Center translated this query into a key question to focus research: “Why are some rural communities coping with fundamental restructuring when others seem to have surrendered to crisis?”

The initial step was to identify communities with relatively stable populations and diverse economies, although in every instance the towns were significantly dependent on agriculture. In 1985-86 we visited five communities in Nebraska with populations between 450 to 6,000. Eventually, 18 communities in 14 states were profiled, from Ohio to California and North Dakota to Texas. We talked to positional leaders, reputational leaders and average citizens in county offices and coffee shops.

A series of questions covered four topics: economic trends, quality of life, planning for the future, and leadership.

After interviews and site visits were complete, a case study was written for each community. The Heartland Center looked for patterns of characteristics that appeared to contribute to a community’s success. These characteristics formulate our “20 Clues to Rural Community Survival.”

The most telling lesson that we learn from the 20 Clues is that success is dependent on characteristics that community leaders and active citizens can control. And what we discovered 15 years ago holds true today. Leadership–not location–is the key to community success.

Certainly other factors play a role - proximity to natural or historic resources, scenery, climate, the siting of government facilities– these can all be advantages or disadvantages. It is local leadership, however, and its ability to meet the challenges of change, that ultimately determines our future.

1. Evidence of Community Pride:
Successful communities are often showplaces of care, attention, history and heritage.

2. Emphasis on Quality in Business and Community Life:
People believe that something worth doing is worth doing right.

3. Willingness to Invest in the Future:
In addition to the brick-and-mortar investments, all decisions are made with an outlook on the future.

4. Participatory Approach to Community Decision Making:
Even the most powerful of opinion leaders seem to work toward building consensus.

5. Cooperative Community Spirit:
The stress is on working together toward a common goal, and the focus is on positive results.

6. Realistic Appraisal of Future Opportunities:
Successful communities have learned how to build on strengths and minimize weaknesses.

7. Awareness of Competitive Positioning:
Local loyalty is emphasized, but thriving communities know who their competitors are and position themselves accordingly.

8. Knowledge of the Physical Environment:
Relative location and available natural resources underscore decision-making.

9. Active Economic Development Program:
There is an organized, public/private approach to economic development.

10. Deliberate Transition of Power to a Younger Generation of Leaders:
People under 40 regularly hold key positions in civic and business affairs.

11. Acceptance of Women in Leadership Roles:
Women are elected officials, plant managers, and entrepreneurial developers.

12. Strong Belief in and Support for Education: Good schools are the norm and centers of community activity.

13. Problem-Solving Approach to Providing Health Care: Health care is considered essential, and smart strategies are in place for diverse methods of delivery.

14. Strong Multi-Generational Family Orientation:
The definition of family is broad, and activities include younger as well as older generations.

15. Strong Presence of Traditional Institutions that are Integral to Community Life:
Churches, schools and service clubs are strong influences on community development and social activities.

16. Sound and Well-Maintained Infrastructure:
Leaders work hard to maintain and improve streets, sidewalks, water systems, and sewage facilities.

17. Careful Use of Fiscal Resources:
Frugality is a way of life and expenditures are considered investments in
the future.

18. Sophisticated Use of Information Resources:
Leaders access information that is beyond the knowledge base available in the community.

19. Willingness to Seek Help from the Outside:
People seek outside help for community needs, and many compete for government grants and contracts for economic and social programs.

20. Conviction that, in the Long Run, You Have to Do It Yourself:
Thriving rural communities believe their destiny is in their own hands. Making their communities good places is a pro-active assignment, and they willingly accept it.