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 Ohio, we work with Hub partners that coordinate across sectors, align resources, and connect communities to advance long-term regional strategies.
ACEnet
Service area: Ohio.
ACEnet is a community-based economic development organization serving the 32 counties of Appalachian Ohio. Its mission is to grow the regional economy by supporting entrepreneurs and strengthening economic sectors. ACEnet achieves this by providing business incubation, technical assistance, access to capital, training, and infrastructure, including sector-specific facilities like food and wood processing centers, to help local businesses start, connect, and thrive.
Visit organization: acenetworks.org
Appalachian Community Capital
Service area: Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Appalachian Community Capital is a nonprofit community development financial institution (CDFI) focused on attracting new sources of capital for small businesses, including minority- and women-owned businesses, in underserved places across Appalachia and similar energy communities nationally.
Visit organization: appalachiancommunitycapitalcdfi.org
Featured in Aspen CSG resources: Resources for Rural Communities, Aspen CSG in Action, How Can We Secure Enduring Capital for Equitable Rural Prosperity?, and more.
Appalachian Partnership
Service area: Ohio.
Appalachian Partnership is a nonprofit organization of CEOs representing businesses across Ohio’s 32 Appalachian-designated counties. Its mission is to increase the prosperity of local citizens and businesses by deploying robust economic development strategies.
Visit organization: appalachianpartnership.org
Foundation for Appalachian Ohio
Service area: Ohio.
The Foundation for Appalachian Ohio (FAO) is the first and only community foundation serving all 32 counties of Appalachian Ohio. Since 1999, it has grown into a trusted philanthropic partner, stewarding more than 700 charitable funds totaling over $133 million in assets.
Visit organization: appalachianohio.org
Invest Appalachia
Service area: Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Invest Appalachia (IA) is a collaborative impact investment platform created by and for the people of Central Appalachia working to make the region’s collective potential greater than the sum of its parts. They are a regionally representative fund that leverages deep relationships and investments from our partners in philanthropy community finance, and community economic development.
Visit organization: investappalachia.org
