Deb Brown, Co-founder of SaveYour.Town, and a nationally known advocate, consultant, and speaker for creative, practical approaches to revitalizing small town Main Street and economic development in rural America will be speaking at the Radically Rural Summit, on Thursday, September 27, 2018.

Brown’s programs on small business, what to do with empty buildings, customer service, marketing and economic development in small towns, innovative rural business models, and others have helped local chambers, economic developers, tourism specialists, museum experts, business groups, and small town conferences (for more information about Deb Brown, visit buildingpossibility.com).

“Deb delivers engaging, common sense advice based on her broad entrepreneurial experience and the experiences of the many small towns she’s helped,” said Shannon Hundley, of the Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship. “Deb is passionate about helping people create the kind of community they want to live in. We are thrilled to have her join us at Radically Rural.”

Radically Rural is a two-day summit expected to attract 500 people from the Monadnock Region, New England, and across the Northeast, who are passionate about creating vibrant, robust rural communities and eager to learn, connect, and lead change. The Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship and The Keene Sentinel are partnering to present Radically Rural, which will be held in Keene, September 27-28, 2018.

Brown’s presentation, “Tactical Innovation for Small and Rural Towns” will illustrate how other communities are using Innovative Rural Business Models to bring more businesses to their community. She will share her experiences with the Empty Building Tour and how one town used The Tour to fill 10 of 12 empty buildings. Attendees will learn how to gather their crowd, build connections, and take small steps to implement big ideas in their small towns.

Brown grew up on a farm outside of Geneva, Iowa, population 141. Her insights, expertise, and practical advice come from real world experience. Over 60 years on the planet have given Brown knowledge on how to do a lot of things and how to work with many different types of people. Growing up on a farm she learned quickly how to be an entrepreneur with the first hog she owned. Many side gigs paid for her education. Brown also worked 30 years in Chicago doing everything from foreign casualty insurance underwriting to retail management.

All are welcome to attend Radically Rural. For more information and to register, visit radicallyrural.org.