Understanding the Drivers of Rural Development – How Can we Bridge the Gap Between Research and Policy?

Despite the important research being conducted related to rural development, policymaking rarely is based on the research. How can we bridge this gap and help rural areas? In this presentation, Heather Stephens, an assistant professor in resource economics and management at West Virginia University who has a background in public policy, explores this question by identifying existing research, areas in which more research is needed, challenges faced by policy makers, and examples of efforts aimed at bridging the gap between research and policy making. <1MB PDF