May 28, 2026
In 2025, Washington made sweeping funding cuts to federal grants and tax incentives designed to help disadvantaged communities. This hurt many Appalachian towns and counties that were beginning to see economic revival thanks to federal support for sustainable industries from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. With government backing diminished, many communities must seek private investment to protect their momentum. But with less federal funding to leverage, in many cases, it will be harder to appeal to private investors.
2026 offers new hope, as this year, states will designate new opportunity zones to attract investors to distressed communities using tax incentives. Communities and advocates can amplify sustainable projects in the newly-announced zones to draw capital from environmentally and socially conscious investors. But to do so effectively requires a different approach from that of seeking philanthropic dollars. Communities and advocates must showcase the scalability of, and demand for sustainable and new economy projects in addition to amplifying the community and environmental benefits. They must also make the case for why these projects are still viable despite government disinvestment. ReImagine Appalachia was recently joined by experts from Appalachian incubators and financial intermediaries who shed light on how this might be done.
Every year ReImagine Appalachia holds a strategy summit, hosting a wide range of stakeholders, coalition members, and involved community advocates to determine our work plan goals for the year. In 2026, private investment was central to the discussion. Breakout session 2C, “Storytelling With an Investment-Focused Approach” was designed to specifically address this topic from a communications perspective. Here’s who we heard from:
- Elizabeth Wilkes, Partner Community Capital
- Liberty Newberry, Partner Community Capital
- Osayamen Asemota-Bartholomew, Appalachian Community Capital
- Meggan Loveland, Appalachian Center for Economic Networks – ACEnet
In this session, experts in the room and participants took a deep dive into how Appalachian communities and businesses can adapt their messaging to appeal to environmentally responsible and socially conscious private investors.
It’s Not Philanthropy, It’s Partnership
Osayamen Asemota-Bartholomew, Communications Director at Appalachian Community Capital and Founder at The Gift Agency LLC, outlined the importance of deemphasizing philanthropic appeals when seeking private investment.
“One of the biggest shifts that I’ve encouraged across my client work including at ACC is to position communities from being beneficiaries to being partners. Community leadership and local organizations that help to reduce risk, rather than a barrier, amplify their investment strength. When communities tell their stories, they are not waiting to be saved; they are trying to attract the right kind of capital.”– Osayamen Asemota-Bartholomew
In a government fundraising context, soliciting capital by pointing to how it will help struggling communities is more central. However, in a private investment setting, it’s more about emphasizing demand, demonstrating community execution capacity, and showing what the investors will get for their money. Investors want to know who is involved in moving the project forward, what their track record is, and how much growth potential there is.
Meggan Loveland, Programs and Communications Coordinator for ACEnet, shared that while reduced federal funding and disruptions to community capital programs may raise concern among investors, it is still entirely possible to show how communities can build wealth and opportunity when they receive private investment.
“Communities don’t need heroes, they need partners. Appalachia doesn’t need to be rescued. It needs to be understood as investment-ready, asset-rich, and serious about long-termstewardship. The most successful investments are the ones where capital is mobile butcommunity decision-making remains local.” – Meggan Loveland
Speakers encouraged Appalachians to position themselves as active partners in development who have built local leadership and ownership into their projects. Local control can be framed as a strength because it shows the community is a place of growth, not one that needs to be saved. This mindset shift can attract the right types of investment that benefit the community long term.
Reframe The Challenges. Showcase The Strengths
The struggles facing Appalachia are well-documented. Underinvestment, poverty, youth outmigration, and a history of boom and bust cycles leaving communities stranded. However, speakers in this workshop suggested emphasizing small wins and reframing difficulties in a way that shows resilience and efficacy. Meggan Loveland shared some key strengths and assets Appalachians can project to investors to signal lower operational cost, reduced reputational risk, and strong potential for partnership.
- “You can translate community stability into risk reduction. As Appalachians, we oftenemphasize social continuity. Our stable communities with long-term residents reduce labor volatility.
- We have strong local institutions like extension offices, trade schools & AMP; co-ops.
- We have deep informal networks that can accelerate hiring and problem-solving.”
Appalachian communities often face significant capacity issues as well, but that doesn’t have to be presented as a liability. Liberty Newberry, Manager of Business Support Services at Partner Community Capital, discussed how when framed correctly, small wins can feel even more impactful than larger ones because they can show the close personal connections of the communities that executed them.
“These small wins are less about high-impact numbers, but more about the breadth and depth of the work; demonstrating connections is important.” – Liberty Newberry
Show the Trackrecord and Demonstrate Growth Potential
Investors respond positively to concrete proofs of previous wins, signals of interest in new projects, and indications of future success. Communities throughout the Appalachian region boast a higher density of manufacturing skill than the national average (See a map of manufacturing skill density here). Speakers discussed ways communities can leverage this fact to signal to investors that they are ready to execute projects:
- Letters of intent or local government resolutions can show seriousness and governance strength.
- Tangible details like land ownership, appropriate zoning, and an understanding of utilities show investors that there are clear plans in place to reduce risk and increase capacity for the successful execution of the project.
- A community with long-term residents can signal continuity and low labor volatility – more qualities that investors love to see.
Another key component that shows project viability is local buy in and community support. Elizabeth Wilkes, Manager of Business Support Services at Partner Community Capital, shared simple ways communities can demonstrate this and tied it back to renewable energy.
“Any kind of investment, public private, they want to see that track record and community support. Crowd funding can also be very important. Capital stack. When it comes to energy: bottom line, costs are rising, even where tax credits are going away which is that opportunity zone vehicle, solar will continue yielding returns by the very nature of the technology.” – Elizabeth Wilkes.
The New Era of Funding and Capital Stacking
Funding these days can be challenging. There is no doubt about that. However, there are real strengths and assets within Appalachia, and communications can help investors see this potential and get excited about the future of the region as well.
Sustainability and resilience work is not instantaneous; it takes time, often decades. Today, many projects find success through capital stacking, or combining a number of funding opportunities and credits to support their work. Incorporating private investments into a funding portfolio can help reduce gaps in funding so that projects can find continued support across the dips and gaps of federal funding cycles. Incorporating these expert tips can go a long way in connecting projects with the capital they need so Appalachians can bring their visions into reality!