In one of the premier coal counties of Appalachia, a new initiative is pushing for an alternative foundation for the local economy and culture.

More than 340 rural leaders from across the country gathered in St. Paul, Minnesota, in late June for the 2011 Gathering of the National Rural Assembly. Participants networked and discussed a wide array of rural – and more broadly American – issues: education, green energy, socioeconomic development, and many topics of rural policy.

Many of the problems first found with shale gas production came to light in Wyoming, and some of the first research on hydrofracking in shale gas formations was done there. But Wyoming is not included in EPA's national study of the issue.

The closing of rural news bureaus in Appalachia and the report on the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster suggest that the deadly dangers of mining will go on, unreported and unabated.