RCAP engages in applied research – developing and implementing best practices in technical assistance and training for community development.
RCAP believes that we make progress in addressing critical issues facing rural communities only by reflecting on those issues, developing or amending actions based on that reflection, and, in turn, taking stock of progress and emerging issues. To carry out this important reflection and assessment of critical issues and advancement of practices in rural communities, RCAP is committed to applied research that is methodologically sound, timely, draws on case studies, and has direct implications for practice and policy.
Our work in this area over the last several years has looked at emerging issues such as water privatization, small utility variances, regionalization, sustainability, safety and security, and source water protection. Our research has also involved illuminating the conditions of rural residents through publications such as Still Living without the Basics in the 21st Century [1], which calculated the population of the United States still living without access to water and wastewater services, and “Tapping Untapped Potential,” [2] which describes the role of technical assistance providers in building financing, implementation, and management capacity for water services in the U.S. The latter report also discusses the potential applications of this model outside the U.S. We have also looked at the role of technical assistance providers in facilitating source water protection and watershed management.