Aspen CSG partners with Rural Development Hubs across the country to strengthen local leadership, align funding, and build regional capacity. Through research and peer learning, we support Hub leaders to refine strategies and apply what works across regions.
In Idaho, we work with Hub partners that coordinate across sectors, align resources, and connect communities to advance long-term regional strategies.
Craft3
Service area: Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
Craft3 is a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution dedicated to strengthening the Pacific Northwest by investing in people, businesses, homeowners, and communities, particularly those underserved by traditional lenders. Through its integrated approach of combining flexible capital with relationship-building and amplifying community voice, it addresses systemic challenges such as racial inequities, the climate crisis, and rural and Tribal economic disparities.
Visit organization: craft3.org
Innovia Foundation
Service area: Idaho and Washington.
As the community foundation for Eastern Washington and North Idaho, the Innovia Foundation envisions vibrant and sustainable communities where every person has the opportunity to thrive. It works with donors to invest in long-term solutions, supporting opportunities that make the region vibrant and healthy.
Visit organization: innovia.org
Kaniksu Land Trust
Service area: Idaho, Montana, and Washington.
Kaniksu Land Trust (KLT) was originally founded in 2002 as the Clark Fork-Pend Oreille Conservancy with the purpose of supporting the land conservation needs of Avista Corporation’s protection, mitigation, and enhancement measures as required under the Clark Fork Settlement Agreement. KLT has since transitioned to a stand-alone nonprofit organization operating in Idaho and Montana and has diversified its land protection and community engagement programs.
Visit organization: kaniksu.org
Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC)
Service area: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.
The Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC) is a nonprofit organization, founded in 1978, dedicated to supporting underserved rural and Indigenous communities across the Western U.S. through technical assistance, training, financial resources, and advocacy. RCAC’s work spans environmental infrastructure, affordable housing, community resilience and disaster planning, economic and leadership development, and community finance. RCAC acts as the Western hub for the national Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP) network.
Visit organization: rcac.org
Rural Development Initiatives
Service area: Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
Since 1991, Rural Development Initiatives (RDI) has trained more than 8,000 leaders in hundreds of rural communities throughout Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. Its staff continues to support and partner with this network of leaders as they create community and economic vitality in small towns and rural regions.
Visit organization: rdiinc.org
Salmon Valley Stewardship
Service area: Idaho.
Salmon Valley Stewardship improves relationships between people, restores land and water, increases living-wage jobs, and fosters awareness of rural issues. The organization strengthens the rural way of life by educating the next generation, creating employment opportunities, telling the stories of the region’s heritage, and developing collaborative land management solutions. It combines local knowledge with local resources to advance innovation in business, natural resource management, education, and community development.
Visit organization: salmonvalley.org
Featured in Aspen CSG resources: Land Stewardship & Development Alignment in Rural West, Mapping a New Terrain: Call to Action, and Collaboration and Innovation for a Better Rural West.
