Quick hits: Rural leaders speculate on what Biden might do for rural America; soil degradation costing corn farmers

Here's a roundup of stories with rural resonance; if you do or see similar work that should be shared on The Rural Blog, email us at heather.chapman@uky.edu.

Kansas researchers say wind energy can revive many rural economies. Read more here.

A transgender-owned alpaca ranch in Colorado may foretell the future of the rural queer West. Read more here.

Soil degradation costs American corn farmers half-a-billion dollars every year. Read more here.

As the Biden presidency begins, advisors to the Rural Assembly speculate on what the new administration might accomplish with regards to rural America. Read more here.

Trump didn't come through on promise to put coal miners back to work. Read more here.

The Biden administration promises to clean up mine land and create Appalachian jobs. Here are some things it can do to make that happen. Read more here.

An editorial from The Roanoke Times muses on Thomas Friedman's call for Biden to appoint a rural czar, and notes specific actions such a czar would need to take to be effective. Read more here.