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"[its] not so much having a new idea as stopping having an old idea."

Edwin Land, inventor

Web

American Independent Business Alliance

http://www.amiba.net

AMIBA provides communities with tools and resources to help them preserve a vital part of what makes "community." We do this through:

  • Raising awareness of the many benefits independent, community-based businesses provide to their communities.

  • Providing tools like the Independent Business Alliance model and resources for action that communities can use.

  • Networking communities and sharing their ideas so that good ideas can grow.

Institute for Local Self-Reliance

http://www.ilsr.org

The Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) is a nonprofit research and educational organization that provides technical assistance and information on environmentally sound economic development strategies. Since 1974, ILSR has worked with citizen groups, governments and private businesses in developing policies that extract the maximum value from local resources.

New Rules Project

http://www.newrules.org/

Why new rules? Because the old ones don't work any longer. They undermine local economies, subvert democracy, weaken our sense of community, and ignore the costs of our decisions on the next generation. The Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) proposes a set of new rules that builds community by supporting humanly scaled politics and economics. The rules call for:

  • Decisions made by those who will feel the impact of those decisions.

  • Communities accepting responsibility for the welfare of their members and for the next generation.

  • Households and communities possessing or owning sufficient productive capacity to generate real wealth.

We make the rules and the rules make us. Thus, the heart of this web site is a growing storehouse of community and local economy-building rules--laws, regulations, ordinances, statutes--because these are the concrete expression of our values. They channel entrepreneurial energy and investment capital and scientific genius in certain directions.

National Main Street Center

http://www.mainstreet.org

The National Main Street Center is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Two decades ago, the Center created the Main Street Approach to commercial district revitalization. Today, it advocates the use of this approach for communities to revitalize their traditional commercial areas, using historic preservation and grass roots-based economic development. It serves as the nation's clearinghouse for information, technical assistance, research and advocacy on preservation-based commercial district revitalization. The National Main Street Center:

  • Provides direct, on-site technical assistance to towns, cities and urban neighborhoods

  • Publishes a wide range of training materials

  • Offers membership in the National Main Street Network which includes Main Street News

  • Sponsors an annual conference, the National Main Streets Conference

  • Offers a professional training and certification programs, with the National

  • Main Street Institute - Organizes the Main Street Awards annual competition.

Regional and Urban Design Assistance Teams (R/UDAT)

http://www.aia.org/liv_rudat

Communities across the country are constantly changing. Some of the challenges they encounter include the loss of major employers, new bypass roads, gridlock, unfocused suburban growth, crime, loss of open space, regional conflict, unaffordable housing, abandoned mills and industrial plants, environmental problems, vacant storefronts, and loss of identity. A R/UDAT can help you to respond to these kinds of issues, develop a vision for a better future for your community, and implement a strategy that will produce results. Because the R/UDAT process is highly flexible, it is effective in communities as small as villages and urban neighborhoods and as large as metropolitan regions. R/UDATs are conducted by the American Institute of Architects.

Rural Community Assistance Corp

http://www.rcac.org

Our Community could use some assistance.... where do we begin? Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC), a nonprofit organization, helps rural communities in 13 western states. We build strong partnerships, advocate for small communities and develop capacity. To begin, determine your needs from the following:

  • We want technical assistance to develop affordable housing.

  • We want to upgrade our water, wastewater or solid waste operations and management.

  • We need financing for housing, environmental infrastructure or community facilities.

  • We seek resources for Native American projects.

  • We seek resources for agricultural workers.

Santa Fe Alliance

http://www.santafealliance.com/index.php

The Santa Fe Alliance is working to build a diverse network of local businesses, community members, and non-profit and governmental leaders to educate them about the importance of buying goods and services from our locally-owned businesses. By doing so, we help to create more and better job opportunities and successful businesses that enrich our community and create a prosperous regional economy,

Salt Lake Vest Pocket Coalition

http://www.vestpocket.org/

The Salt Lake Vest Pocket Coalition is a group of locally owned and managed independent businesses who are passionate about their community and about their unique contributions to it.

The Coalition works actively to ensure the future of Salt Lake's local independent businesses, so that we can continue to contribute to Salt Lake's rich character and vibrant quality of life.

As a group, we believe that by preserving what is unique about our city, we can all continue to thrive as well as avoid becoming "Anywhere USA."

Sierra Business Council

http://www.sbcouncil.org

The Sierra Business Council (SBC) is a nonprofit association of more than five hundred businesses, agencies, and individuals working to secure the social, environmental and financial health of the Sierra Nevada region for this and future generations. Founded in 1994 and based in Truckee, California, the council explicitly rejects the notion that Sierra communities must choose between economic and environmental health. On the contrary, we view environmental quality as key to the Sierra Nevadas economic prosperity, and natural resource conservation as essential to building regional wealth.

Sprawl Busters

http://www.sprawl-busters.com

An International Clearinghouse on Big Box Anti-Sprawl Information. No matter what the logo on the building says--Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Target, Lowe's, Kohls, CVS--if its unwanted development, Sprawl-Busters can help you stop it. In hundreds of communities, we have helped citizens groups strategize and carry out a plan to stop the superstores. Our Newsflash page contains the latest on big box battles from around the globe, and the book "Slam Dunking Wal-Mart" has become a citizen's classic for hands-on combat with Sprawl-Marts. If a big box store is causing you a big problem, call on Sprawl-Busters! Local visits can be arranged.

Taos Business Alliance

http://www.taosba.org/

The mission of the Taos Business Alliance is to establish and guide a long-range economic development initiative for Taos fulfilling the mandate of the Taos Vision 2020 Master Plan:

  • Growth and development that protects Taos' landscape and natural resources

  • Diversification and improvement of the economy

  • Preservation of open space and agricultural lands

  • Enhancement of quality of life, small town character, and sense of community through the use of history and traditions, appropriate technologies, and design

  • Provision of community facilities and housing that allow a diverse community of various cultures, classes and ages to flourish.

The Taos Business Alliance is a community based non-profit corporation with 501-C-6 tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service. Membership in TBA is open to businesses, individuals, organizations and regional government bodies interested in supporting the development of a long-range economic development plan for Taos.