Bell presents research on community resilience at international regional science conference

Dr. Kathleen Bell, Professor in the School of Economics (SOE), recently presented her research on community resilience at the 69th Annual North American Meetings of the Regional Science Association International in Montreal, Canada. Her talk, Learning about rural community resilience and capacity from municipal actions during the COVID-19 pandemic, focused on local government participation in community grant programs during times of crisis. Her research, done in collaboration with Dr. Vanessa Levesque (University of Southern Maine), Dr. Eileen Johnson (Bowdoin College), and several undergraduate students from University of Maine (Ben Cotton, Asrai Brainerd) and University of Southern Maine (Annie Cobourn), explored municipal participation in Maine’s Keep Maine Healthy community grant program. Their work to date suggests community participation in grant programs during times of crisis increases with dedicated grant staff, partnerships with other communities and organizations, and responsive local government structures.

For more information about the 69th Annual North American Meetings of the Regional Science Association International, click here.