Kirk Siegler
Kirk Siegler is a national correspondent for NPR News, reporting on rural America and small-town issues. He moderated an Aspen Ideas: Economy panel on entrepreneurship in small towns and rural America.
Rural Entrepreneurship Depends on Local Capacity, Not Just Capital
Rural entrepreneurship requires more than investment: communities need the capacity and coordination to put capital to work locally. Derek Kilmer of the Rockefeller Foundation identifies capital, capacity and coordination as essential; Danielle Samalin of the Center on Rural Innovation adds connections and argues that housing belongs in economic-development planning from the start. In Bozeman, Mayor Joey Morrison described technology investment as raising the prospect of new jobs while intensifying pressure on affordability and local businesses.
Meeting Rising Power Demand Requires More Than Building Generation
At Aspen Ideas: Economy in Tulsa, ONE Gas CEO Sid McAnnally argued that meeting rising electricity demand requires treating energy sources as complements, not rivals—and distinguishing generation from the infrastructure needed to deliver power affordably and reliably. Commonwealth Fusion Systems CFO Lorence Kim and Cornerstone Government Affairs principal Mark Yates added that the choices involve more than technology: grid connections, local economic benefits and policy stability will shape which projects get built and who benefits.
Agency Neglect Risks Turning Public Ownership Into a Case for Selloffs
Former Bureau of Land Management director Tracy Stone-Manning argues that public lands will become vulnerable to privatization or transfer if federal agencies are too depleted to manage them effectively. Joined by Patagonia’s Corley Kenna and conservation advocate Benji Backer, she makes the case that stewardship must pair federal capacity with local participation, Indigenous co-management, and a broader coalition built around the places where people experience climate and environmental change firsthand.