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RURAL DEVELOPMENTmanufacturing, since it is proximate to plentiful hydroelectric power from the Loup Project. Hispanics makeup over 16 percent of the population and are well represented in the economy, working not only on farms andmanufacturing plants, as well as owning a number of small businesses that serve Columbus.One recent activity that Nebraska is Home conducted to engage both immigrant and U.S.-born communities inColumbus was a small-business tour, where Columbus residents got to know some of the diverse local businessesthat help Columbus community thrive. Participants were bussed to eight Columbus businesses where they couldmeet with the business owners and learn a little about each one. The group toured local businesses offering a rangeof services and retail options, from photography to tax preparation to massage therapy to boutiques. “Sometimes itcan be hard to walk in a new store for the very first time,” said Christa Yoakum, coordinator of Nebraska Is Home.“This was a fun way for friends to visit some new establishments together — particularly cross-culturally –andfor business owners to chat with community members aboutwhat they offer.” 20Entrepreneurship ProgramsIn addition to pro-active integration efforts, communities havedeveloped entrepreneurship efforts to target immigrant communitiesin rural areas. These have included replicating fairlytraditional entrepreneurship programs, as well as more innovativeapproaches that specifically seek to address language andcultural barriers, as well as take advantage of the unique assetsof immigrant entrepreneurs and unique challenges of ruralcommunities, including its aging challenges that are leavingnumerous rural businesses without leadership succession.Developing entrepreneurship and business supports thattarget immigrant communities in rural areas can be a challenge.The University of Northern Iowa conducted a study of ruralLatino business owners in 2004. 21 The goal of the study was toassess the business conditions, support programs and financingavailable to Latino entrepreneurs in rural parts of the state ofIowa. The study’s conclusion are well chronicled in a July 2006guide to assist economic development practitioners workingwith immigrants in rural areas developed by the Iowa Centerfor Immigrant Leadership and Integration at the University ofNorthern Iowa and the U.S. Small Business Administration. 22Specifically, the guide notes:The study found that most business development activityamong Latino immigrants was spontaneous in nature: itwas driven by individual entrepreneurs who were largely20See http://nebraskaishome.org/?p=648.21Mark Grey, Nora Rodríguez and Andrew Conrad, “Immigrant andRefugee Small Business Development in Iowa,” uni.edu. University ofNorthern Iowa, November 2004, http://www.bcs.uni.edu/icili/pdfs/Immigrant-and-Refugee-Small-Business-Report.pdf.22Maureen Collins-Williams and Mark Grey, “A Rural Service Provider’sGuide to Immigrant Entrepreneurship” uni.edu. University of NorthernIowa, Regional Business Center/Small Business Development Center,Iowa Center for Immigrant Leadership and Integration, July 2006,http://www.bcs.uni.edu/icili/pdfs/latinomanual.pdf.23See Ontario Immigrant Network, http://oinweb.ca/site/.Ontario ImmigrantNetwork – UtilizingImmigrants to AddressRural BusinessSuccession ChallengesAcross rural Ontario in Canada, there arenumerous small-town businesses withaging owners. While profitable, these successfulbusinesses often face closing when theirowners want to retire, simply because of alack of someone willing to take it over. TheOntario Immigrant Network works to solvethis problem by connecting these businessowners with immigrant-entrepreneurs lookingfor a business opportunity. The initiativefirst analyzes businesses for sale and assemblesa list and the requirements for ownership. Itthen screens for candidates by working withcommunity stakeholders to pre-screen idealcandidates based on their entrepreneurial skills.After connecting the entrepreneurs with theopportunities, they provide technical support forthe immigrants by connecting the newcomersto mentors, business, settlement, and othersocial services. 23 The program benefits ruralcommunities by finding new entrepreneursto invest in businesses that would likely closeotherwise, thus creating continuity of servicesand improving the local economy.WELCOMING AMERICA | GUIDE TO IMMIGRANT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | CHAPTER 860