Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs

Chris Merrett, Dir., Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs, shares a status of our rural areas, with postive and challenging developments as part of Community Voices effort to amplify rural voices.

Farm towns in Illinois have been shrinking for decades, and the trend doesn’t show signs of reversing.By 2025, rural counties with populations of less…

Last year NPR Illinois toured the state in partnership with NPR member stations to hear how the two-year state budget impasse impacted communities in…

NPR Illinois and Tri States Public Radio host the seventh Illinois Issues Forum on the state's financial health and the lasting impacts of the…