Participants

December 7-9, 2009 over 150 rural leaders and government officials from the West and beyond came together at the RVCC Ninth Western Annual Policy Meeting in Troutdale, Oregon.  Participants representing over 90 organizations and 21 states gathered to identify areas of focus and opportunity to build better policy for rural America that will revitalize and strengthen Western landscapes, communities, and ecosystems.

View photos from the meeting.

Learn about the RVCC leaders recognized at the meeting.

Speakers

The presence of a number of officials from the Administration and Congress encouraged an earnest exchange of ideas around collaboration between rural advocates and policy officials.

Keynotes

• Jay Jensen, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment
• Victor Vasquez, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development

View keynote bios.

Political Realities Panelists

• Jeremiah Baumann, Office of Senator Merkley, OR
• Christina Goldfuss, House Natural Resources Committee
• Stephenne Harding, Office of Senator Tester, MT
• Lenise Lago, Deputy Regional Forester, USDA Forest Service-Region 6
• Scott Miller, Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources
  

View panelist bios.

Meeting Presentations

Why Rural Matters

History, Orientation and Annual Policy Meeting Process

Mini-Policy Training

View Schoolhouse Rock's How a Bill Becomes a Law.

2010 Working Groups

The 2010 working groups, which were formed at the meeting, engaged in productive discussion that will establish the focus for the year ahead. Working groups will use the draft planks (below), which were developed at the Annual Policy Meeting, as a framework to create the 2010 RVCC Policy Platform.

• View the draft Biomass plank.
• View the draft Climate Change plank.
• View the draft Public Lands Stewardship plank.
• View the draft Rural Conservation-based Economic Development plank.
• View the draft Private Lands plank.
• View the draft Ranching plank.

Click here to join a RVCC working group or contact Sustainable Northwest: issue@sustainablenorthwest.org

Reference Materials

The RVCC Operations Manual provides an orientation to coalition processes, gives an overview of RVCC events, and describes RVCC issue paper development.  It also includes FAQs about the coalition and the policy platform. 

The RVCC Toolbox includes templates and guidelines to help working groups advance their issues. 

Pre-meeting Survey ("homework") Synthesis

2009 RVCC Policy Platform

Participant Evaluation Summary Report