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The Growth of Hispanic Populations Across the West
Hispanics account for roughly one in four westerners and one in six rural westerners.
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Disasters and Populations at Risk: Lack of Vehicle Makes Evacuation Difficult
Lack of access to a vehicle, poverty, and disabilities, can make evacuation difficult or impossible for some households.
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Fire & Flood: Lessons from Hurricane Harvey for Wildfire
A lack of land use planning amplified the devastation from Hurricane Harvey. Wildfire-prone communities should take note.
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Best Practices for States to Fund Outdoor Recreation
Seven case studies illustrate best practices and lessons learned to develop programs for outdoor state recreation funding.
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Which Counties Are Most Reliant on Medicaid?
National interactive map and charts show Medicaid-dependent counties and populations at risk.
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Montana’s Economy, Public Lands, and Competitive Advantage
This report summarizes Montana’s economy analyzing recent growth and what is driving its performance, including a description of how federal lands help attract people, investment, and businesses.
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The Economic Importance of National Monuments to Communities
This research and interactive charts show that the local economies adjacent to all 17 national monuments studied in the West expanded following the monument’s creation.
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Resilient Taos County: Living with Wildfire
This story map provides Taos County residents with information about the ecological role of fire, the region’s wildfire risk, forest restoration projects, and emergency preparedness.
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Minority Populations Driving County Growth in the Rural West
Minority populations are growing in nearly all rural western counties, helping booming communities expand and slowing the decline in counties that otherwise would have lost people.
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Economy Surprisingly Dependent on Non-Labor Income
Non-labor income sources such as investments, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid often are the largest and fastest growing sources of personal income for many counties. Rural counties especially are surprisingly dependent on non-labor income.
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The Context and Status of Colstrip’s Coal-Fired Power Plant
A guide to planning for the long-term social, economic and environmental well-being of the community of Colstrip, Montana.
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Rural Economic Development in Lincoln, Montana
Many rural western towns face economic uncertainty. This report—informed by interviews and public meetings with residents—compares Lincoln to peer communities and outlines rural economic development options building on the town’s strengths.
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President’s Budget Proposal Cuts County Payments
New analysis and interactive map show how the President’s budget proposal cuts county payments and the impact for every county in the nation.
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Why the Rural West Matters
The rural West matters for at least three important reasons: the vitality of the region’s landscape; its impact on local, state, and national politics; and the future of the area’s people and communities.
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The Value of Public Lands
Headwaters Economics compiled a number of regional reports, case studies, tools, research library, and related news articles on the value of public lands to nearby communities.
