Though his own experience directing community economic development efforts across the Delta is decades-deep, Hope Credit Union’s CEO Bill Bynam recognizes that for real change to happen in communities there must be local buy-in. And the results are sometimes surprising. Witness the elderly woman who was more concerned about fixing the sidewalks - a project that would reduce elderly falls and improve schoolkids’ experience at the bus-stop - than she was about the raw sewage in her own home. Read more here about HOPE’s work in several Mississippi communities to listen to and work with local leaders to effect change.
Recommended further reading: “Success (in CED work) requires collaboration, inclusivity, and optimism.” Read more on effective CED work as NC Initiative Summer Associate Riley Foster reflects on her summer.