Enhancing the quality of life and economic vitality of rural America through design

Committed to supporting rural America, the Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design (CIRD) helps communities convert their own good ideas into reality.

Architect Jim Leggitt creates sketches for Valentine, NE's Main Street. Photo by Jenny Nixon.

Discussing design concepts during a workshop in Frederiksted, VI. Photo by Courtney Spearman.

What is the

Citizens’ Institute
on Rural Design?

The Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design (CIRD) is a leadership initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Housing Assistance Council.

Focusing on communities with populations of 50,000 or less, CIRD empowers local citizens to use their unique artistic and cultural resources to guide local development and shape the future design of their communities.

Community members share ideas for Penobscot Avenue during the workshop in Millinocket, ME. Photo by Malorrie Ann Photography.

Cleanup activities along the Gallinas River following a workshop in Las Vegas, NM. Photo courtesy Hermits Peak Watershed Alliance.

Community members in Hidalgo County, TX. Photo by Omar Hakeem.

What we do

CIRD offers competitive funding to host multi-day, community design workshops guided by design, planning, and creative placemaking professionals as well as design-driven peer learning programs and events.

Design Learning Cohorts

Building a network of community leaders engaged in design, across rural America.

Community members discuss their projects at the Design Learning Cohort Summit. Photo by Bella Green.

Touring and talking with local business owners in Thomas, WV, during the Design Learning Cohort Summit. Photo by Bella Green.

Ribbon cutting ceremony at the opening of the Tuttle Rural Innovation Center (TRIC) in Tuttle, ND.

Migrant farm workers in Wasco, CA, discuss affordable housing and community design. Photo by Omar Hakeem.

Local Design Workshops

Supporting small towns and rural communities in addressing local design challenges.

Mural painting in Laramie, WY. Photo courtesy Laramie Main Street.

Learn

Exchanging ideas, resources, and inspiration.

Stories

Explore ideas and experiences

Webinars

See best practices and get inspired

Community resources

Find tools and learn from experts

Featured resources

December 8, 2023

Rural Design Featured at the National Rural Housing Conference

Members of CIRD Design Learning Cohort were among the nearly 700 practitioners and policymakers gathered in Washington, DC, in October for the Housing Assistance Council’s 2023 National Rural Housing Conference. Over the course of three days they explored arts, culture, and design-driven community development in Frederick, MD, took in placemaking sessions at the conference, and connected with each other about shared design challenges in their communities.

November 21, 2024

Arts-Driven Economic and Community Development in Mt. Sterling: A National Model

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, is ground zero for showcasing the power of arts-led economic and community development in rural communities. The 2024 CIRD local design workshop, hosted in this small town where the distinct cultures and landscapes of eastern and central Kentucky come together, is already informing the national rural design conversation. Gateway Regional Arts Center and their partnerships in Mt. Sterling offer insights for any community that wants to anchor the future of public space in arts, culture, and design.

August 20, 2024

An Interview with Rory Doyle

CIRD recently engaged Rory Doyle, a nationally renowned photographer based in Cleveland, Mississippi in the rural Mississippi Delta, to document their time working with community members in Grenada, Mississippi, through CIRD’s local design workshop focused on Grenada, Mississippi’s Chakchiuma Swamp. In this interview, CIRD caught up with Rory to talk about rural development, his approach to photojournalism, and amplifying rural storytelling.

On

October 24, 2024

CIRD’s Local Design Workshops: The Process Explained

View the Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design (CIRD) 2023-2024 local design workshop showcase. CIRD design workshops bring together local residents and local leaders from non-profits, community organizations, and government to develop actionable solutions to a specific design challenge. Learn more about CIRD’s workshop process from the perspective of our workshop communities, our design partners at TBD Studio, and others.

On

April 17, 2024

Design and Disaster Planning for Rural Communities

Disaster planning – whether for wildfires, floods, or hurricanes – can be an overwhelming process, especially for rural communities and small towns where leaders and resources already may be stretched thin. These two CIRD webinars seek to demystify the planning process by bringing together innovative disaster resiliency and response practitioners who center design, arts, and culture in their work.

Community Resources

Heartland, Heartwork: A Field Guide to Place and Possibility for Rural Leaders

Springboard for the Arts and the Blandin Foundation offer "Heartland, Heartwork: A Field Guide to Place and Possibility for Rural Leaders." This resource is primarily designed for rural leaders in both formal and informal capacities (community development staff, artists, volunteers, board members, activists, elected officials, etc.)—the people who are starting, managing, or exploring a creative placemaking project in their community.

The Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design (CIRD) is a leadership initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Housing Assistance Council.