CHALLENGE

Across the American West, rural communities hold vast potential for economic vitality through outdoor recreation and tourism, given their world-class natural assets and unique cultural identities. However, they often lack the requisite capacity to plan and coordinate as outdoor recreation destinations. Without intentional planning, communities may see visitors bypassing local businesses and leaving poor word-of-mouth reviews. That opportunity cost is huge. Additionally, communities can face repercussions resulting from a high volume of visitors without proper infrastructure in place, i.e. parking fiascos and overflowing garbage receptacles.  Proactive investment in the outdoor recreation experience maximizes positive economic and social impacts. Besides attracting visitors, it can also significantly increase quality of life for locals while creating a place where people want to move and stay.

SOLUTION

EPA’s Recreation Economy for Rural Communities (RERC) program provides tailored technical assistance and a simple framework for planning. A centerpiece of the program is uniting local leaders around a detailed, concrete action plan for advancing outdoor recreation, many times connecting localities with other resources to support their plan. As of 2026, RERC has reached 25 communities and regions across the country.

Serving on the RERC national facilitation team, Crosscurrent delivered this program to the following communities:

Republic, a community in Northeastern Washington

Clearwater County, surrounding the Clearwater River in central Idaho

Prince William Sound, a vast region in south central Alaska

Crosscurrent Collective enacts RERC’s three-step process for local communities: 

Phase 1: Assess, Engage & Plan For each community, Crosscurrent facilitates four pre-workshop planning calls with a steering committee and planning team. These calls help establish the community’s current state of assets and resources. They are also an opportunity to identify federal and state agency partners, as well as community partners (municipal leaders, Tribal representatives, land managers, small business owners, and outdoor advocates). Referencing this information, Crosscurrent prepares workshop logistics and drafts goals and strategies to be refined during the workshop process.

Phase 2: Convene & Develop an Action Plan Crosscurrent supports and facilitates a two-day public workshop, both virtual and in-person, which includes a community tour. Over the two days, Crosscurrent guides local partners in defining community goals, as well as specific actions to advance each goal and address challenges.  After settling on a shared vision for recreation-driven opportunities, Crosscurrent presents relevant case studies that inform a process of generating ideas and potential strategies.

Phase 3: Finalize Plan & Identify Resources
Using the insights and guiding vision from the two-day workshop, Crosscurrent finalizes the RERC Community Action Plans over the course of three follow-up conference calls. Strategic roadmaps are created that outline clear goals and refined actions, ranging from Main Street connectivity and active transportation to trail infrastructure and cultural stewardship. These follow-up meetings also strategize a framework for maintaining capacity and momentum during multi-year enactment.

IMPACT

Republic – Northeastern Washington

The RERC program established planning infrastructure aimed at transforming Republic’s outdoor recreation into a powerful and more resilient part of its economy. With the goal to position the town as a regional recreation hub, businesses stand to benefit from foot traffic, and locals will enjoy more expansive recreation opportunities. The planning also addressed resilience around the wildfire smoke, creating summer season contingencies for wildfire scenarios.

Clearwater County – Central Idaho

In Clearwater County, RERC program developed a countywide outdoor recreation tourism strategy that connects its water, forest, and trail resources. While the planning stages currently are still in process, community partners are looking to synchronize efforts across the county, channel visitor dollars toward local businesses, unite around a shared strategy, and address resilience around wildfire and flooding disruptions.Prince William Sound – vast region of Southeastern Alaska

Rather than focusing on a single town or recreation project, the RERC program is currently in the process of working with Prince William Sound to develop a coordinated regional outdoor recreation strategy across multiple communities. This area is roughly 10,000 square miles of water and surrounding land along Alaska’s south central coast, including more than 3,000 miles of shoreline and dozens of islands. An imperative from the RERC workshops was to connect disparate communities around the Sound and improve coordination among government and tribal partners, under a shared goal to promote outdoor recreation.  As fisheries decline, communities look to recreation tourism to diversify the regional economy.

SERVICES PROVIDED:

1. Served as lead facilitator on a national facilitation team to the EPA
2. Facilitated broad, multi-stakeholder steering committees to form and produce the program locally
3. Designed and led two-day community strategy workshops tailored to distinct rural Western geographies
4. Supported the development of community action plans with a broad cross-section of local partners alongside state and federal agency contributions
5. Authored community summary reports to summarize work accomplished and showcase the community action plan

PROJECT PARTNERS:

1. Northbound Ventures
2. Alaska Outdoor Alliance