Vibrant Capital

Partners for Rural Washington works with rural communities to develop their capacity to create a prosperous and sustainable future.

Washington state is extraordinarily blessed with an abundance of natural capital, a diversified economy, community-minded citizenry and a plethora of economic development programs driven by the state, federal programs and NGOs. However, with all that going for us, the benefits are not positively impacting all citizens. Many of our rural areas have high unemployment and stagnant or declining economies.

Partners for Rural Washington starts by asking, “What’s not working and why?” We help aggregate resources, facilitate sound policy and collaborate with rural communities to help them thrive in the 21st century. By doing so we enhance the resilience and competitiveness of our state to the benefit of all its residents.

Operating Principles

• The importance of individual and community self-sufficiency.
• The interdependency of communities.
• The value of building local capacity.
• Respect for locally made decisions.
• Respect for Washington’s unique culture.
• Respect for the individual and the nature of each community.
• Respect for the balance between economic stability and environmental integrity.
• The importance of effective participation in the global community of the 21st century.