Majority of Rural Counties Gains Jobs
Daily Yonder | READ STORY

The New York Times reported last month that a sudden plunge in demand for commodities was leading to slack business in oil, mining, farming, steel making, heavy equipment production, a slowdown in the sale of most things. This decline has cut employment in parts of rural America, as the map above shows. But overall, the monthly labor figures show that rural America continued to add jobs over the last year. The rate of employment increase is only about half that of the cities. But the jobs keep coming and the unemployment rate in rural counties continues to decline.

New Report Displays Rural America Recovering
USDA | READ STORY

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently released the following statement on Rural America At A Glance, 2015 Edition, an annual report by USDA's Economic Research Service: "Today's report reflects a rural America on the road to recovery. Rural employment has increased; rural population decline did not increase over the past year and some rural counties have seen population growth; and the rural child poverty rate has declined by one percentage point. These trends are promising."

Beyond Distrust: How Americans View Their Government
Pew Research Center | READ STORY

A year ahead of the presidential election, the American public is deeply cynical about government, politics and the nation's elected leaders in a way that has become quite familiar. Currently, just 19% say they can trust the government always or most of the time, among the lowest levels in the past half-century. Only 20% would describe government programs as being well-run. And elected officials are held in such low regard that 55% of the public says "ordinary Americans" would do a better job of solving national problems.

Study Reveals the Uninsured Typically From the South, Live in Poverty
The Guardian | READ STORY

Two years into Obamacare, clear regional patterns are emerging about who has health insurance in America and who still doesn't. The remaining uninsured are primarily in the South and the Southwest. They tend to be poor. They tend to live in Republican-leaning states. The rates of people without insurance in the Northeast and the upper Midwest have fallen into the single digits since the Affordable Care Act's main provisions kicked in. But in many parts of the country, obtaining health insurance is still a problem for many Americans.

LandMark: Protecting Indigenous and Community Lands by Making Them Visible
WRI | READ STORY

Up to 65 percent of the world's land is held by Indigenous Peoples and communities, yet only 10 percent is legally recognized as belonging to them. LandMark is the first online, interactive global platform to provide maps and other critical information on lands that are held and used by Indigenous Peoples and communities. The platform aims to raise awareness, engage audiences, and help these people protect their land rights.

Rapid Climate-Change Response Needed to Keep 100 Million People From Poverty
World Bank | READ STORY

A new World Bank report shows that climate change is an acute threat to poorer people across the world, with the power to push more than 100 million people back into poverty over the next fifteen years. And the poorest regions of the world - Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia - will be hit the hardest. But the report - Shock Waves: Managing the Impacts of Climate Change on Poverty - also points to a way out. This requires that poverty reduction and development work continue as a priority while taking into account a changing climate.

Global Concern about Climate Change, Broad Support for Limiting Emissions
Pew Research Center | READ STORY

As a new Pew Research Center survey illustrates, there is a global consensus that climate change is a significant challenge. Majorities in all 40 nations polled say it is a serious problem, and a global median of 54% consider it a very serious problem. Moreover, a median of 78% support the idea of their country limiting greenhouse gas emissions as part of an international agreement in Paris.