Partnering with the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond on Rural Investment

Join staff from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond to discuss investment in rural communities. The Richmond Fed's Rural Investment Collaborative™️ is addressing a basic problem of supply and demand that keeps small towns from accessing available capital.
On the demand side, rural regions have fewer people who can develop strong project proposals. On the supply side, some sources of funding are missing or are not well coordinated.
We'll strategize on how we can get investment into rural communities....TOGETHER.
Jason Smith, Senior Advisor, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
Jason W. Smith serves as the senior community development advisor for the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. He leads the Rural Investment Collaborative, a new Bank initiative to improve economic improvement in small towns and rural communities. A signature focus of the Collaborative is to provide training that can help more communities develop viable proposals. The Richmond Fed is partnering with rural hubs to make this happen. Simultaneously, partners are working with national and regional funding organizations to help them increase the availability of and access to the funds needed to bring projects to life.
Erika Bell, Community Development Regional Manager, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
Erika W. Bell is the Community Development Regional Manager for the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond serving North Carolina and South Carolina.
She joined the Bank in January 2020, bringing with her extensive experience in nonprofit management, youth development, community health, and work with low- and moderate-income individuals and families stemming from an 18-year stint in the nonprofit sector and in leading a small business.
Prior to joining the Richmond Fed, Bell served as the chief operations officer of a South Carolina YMCA association with oversight of 16 branches. She holds a degree in mass communication from Winthrop University, is pursuing a Master of Business Administration at Clemson University, and is a member of Leadership North Carolina Class of XXVIII and of numerous community organizations.
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