All News & Tools
Announcement
2025 Impact Report
Building a stronger democracy and shared prosperity in Rural America
In 2025, Rural Democracy Initiative continued to invest in the leaders and organizations creating thriving rural places. With inspiring grantee stories, our 2025 Impact Report shows what can happen when rural communities have the resources, leadership, and power to drive change. From school board funding and strengthening local economies to winning elections, our network is delivering results in places too often overlooked by traditional philanthropy.
The report provides program highlights and financials. We also share four themes that guide our work in driving progress across rural America.
Agile, collaborative strategy
Rural Democracy’s close relationships with our grantees and deep sector-specific expertise enabled us to quickly pivot, provide tailored support, and fund our network’s pressing needs. By cultivating partnerships and working closely
with communities, we’re driving outsized impacts.
Committed and trained leaders fuel highly effective grassroots efforts
The stakes are clear for rural people as federal policies impact costs, whether our rural hospitals stay open, and the safety of our immigrant neighbors. More rural people than ever are clamoring to take action. We’re supporting organizations to develop an expansive team of skilled leaders to meet this demand and convert large-scale volunteer action into meaningful policy change.
Organizing and communication must now be considered one integrated skill set
Successful grassroots rural efforts use online spaces as a recruitment funnel for volunteers. They train their leaders to reach thousands of people through local digital platforms, and they share success and accountability stories that inspire new audiences to join them. Helping organizers leverage the power of communications will require retooling organizer training to include new skills, and funders must prioritize resources for this work.
In 2025, Wisconsin Public Education Network activated thousands of volunteers in all 72 Wisconsin counties, supporting dozens of school referenda teams to victory at the ballot box and leading the charge to demand education funding that works for Wisconsin.
We scale “bright spots” into effective, replicable innovation
Top-performing rural groups often have exceptional leaders who establish highly effective and innovative strategies. Many build broad coalitions with unexpected allies. We support them to craft authentic, personal stories about the benefits they’ve created for their communities. Then, we help produce and distribute their stories to neighboring counties, peer organizations, and national audiences so these bright spots can be widely replicated.
Explore the 2025 Impact Report to learn more about the work driving progress across rural America.
