The Rural Livability Project

News and Updates

In the news: “The Wobbly Infrastructure Behind Aging in Rural Communities” in Shelterforce
Shelterforce interviewed ​Erin Gaede about rural housing challenges for older adults. The article highlights findings from the Rural Livability Project, showing how housing costs, deteriorating…
In the News: Rural Livability Research Featured in News Works Lab
News Works Lab interviewed Erin Gaede about her research on private equity firms buying up rural manufactured homes. Read the feature here!
New Publication: “Some Rural Residents are Trading Nutrition for Shelter” in the Daily Yonder
Erin Gaede, Yang Cheng, and Tessa Conroy wrote an article for the Daily Yonder based on their research about the impact of housing financial stress…
In the News: Rural Livability Featured on Spectrum News
The Rural Livability Project gets a shout-out during a Spectrum News feature about health and prosperity in Wisconsin rural communities. Interview starts at 20:55.
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New Report: The Impact of Housing Financial Stress and Food Insecurity on Rural Health
Yang Cheng, Erin Gaede, and Tessa Conroy have published a new WIndicator Report about how rising housing costs increases food insecurity as rural populations are…
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New Publication: Move, Stay, and Commit: Place-based Quality of Life in the U.S.
Yang Cheng, Steve Deller and Tessa Conroy published a new article in Social Indicators Research about a methodology for measuring quality of life based on…
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New Report: Assessing the Link between Urban and Rural Prosperity
Danielle Schmidt-Larios, Mckenzie Boyce, Tessa Conroy, and Steve Deller published a WIndicator about the spillover effects of a community's prosperity on surrounding communities. Read more…
Media Mention: Rural Livability in Forbes Magazine
A Forbes article, "The Future of Rural Livability is Connectivity," featured the Rural Livability Project and its data tools.
Media Mention: The Livability Lens
The Wisconsin Counties Association featured the Rural Livability Project in its March 2026 issue, with an article by Tessa Conroy called “The Livability Lens,” p.…
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New Publication: Impacts of Housing Financial Stress on Community Health
Steve Deller, Erin Gaede, and Tessa Conroy published a new study about the impacts of housing financial stress on expenditures on healthcare and nutrition. Using…
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New Publication: Multidimensional Measures of Quality of Life
Yang Cheng, Tessa Conroy, and Steven Deller recently published new research on how different data-driven methods translate into different quality of life measures. The study…
Groupshot of the Rural Livability staff at NSARSC Workshop Conference
Research Recap: North American Regional Science Council Annual Meeting
Led by Tessa Conroy and Steven Deller, interdisciplinary scholars from around the country gathered to discuss rural livability in a pre-conference workshop. Scholars discussed cutting-edge…
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