From a recent Econ Focus article: “Based on our findings, I think it would be fair to say that 7 percent is probably a generous estimate of the share of philanthropy that’s landing in rural communities,” says Dumont. “Our preliminary research indicates that it’s closer to 3 percent.”
Read article here.
I think we all know the percentage is low from personal experiences but considering 20% of the US population is rural and 62% of the population lives in communities with under 100,000 people, this is extremely inequitable.
Curious how your communities close the gap, if at all. From the article there is public support (sadly sometimes in the form of loans and not grants) that funnel into rural locales. For the arts, often what happens is labor is donated or labor is grossly under compensated. Any success stories? Or maybe share the obstacles you face with this lack of philanthropic support for your arts initiatives?