The Center for Industrial Research and Service (CIRAS) is the recent recipient of an award for "Excellence in Research and Analysis" from the University Economic Development Association. CIRAS received the award for their work on the Sustainable Economies Program, which has enabled regional trade centers in rural Iowa to receive information, tools, and mentoring to develop plans for strategic growth.

Dave Swenson, associate scientist with the Department of Economics, and Liesl Eathington, director of IPIC, have worked as part of the CIRAS team and have contributed to the Sustainable Economies Program. Through their role, they identified and operationalized sustainability indicators for the project, and also developed a user-friendly system to portray them.

"This project serves non-metro counties containing a central city of 5,000 to 49,999 residents serving as an important employment, trade, and service hub for the surrounding economy," says Eathington. "Thus far, we have selected four regional trade centers for in-depth technical assistance on this project: Carroll County, Lee County, Appanoose County, and Cerro Gordo County. For each, we produced detailed economic and industrial analysis in addition to the sustainability indicators. Our research helps to establish a baseline from which community development strategic planning can be based, and against which future progress can be measured."

Learn more about CIRAS and the recent honor at: www.extension.iastate.edu/article/sustainable-economies-program-iowa-state-receives-national-award