Field Work is LOR’s search for innovative answers to persistent problems that plague rural communities. Our goal with each Field Work research initiative is to get money quickly into the hands of the people on the ground—in communities where LOR works or in other rural parts of the region—who have innovative ideas. This year, LOR is focusing on mental health.

About 20 percent of people in rural America live with mental illness. This is a difficult issue nationally, and rural America is particularly challenged by a lack of access to mental health resources and specialty care. When these rural communities look for help, local people often provide it. In recent years, more than 100 locals in communities where LOR works have designed and led creative ways to address this issue. For example, in southwest Colorado, one Montezuma County woman launched a mental health forum for the ranching community to combat suicide. In Montana, a youth group brought mental health and substance use awareness training to a community traumatized by recent teen suicide attempts. And in Wyoming, a performing arts group tapped into the power of community theater to help locals address trauma and grief exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

We know more ideas that address this persistent challenge are out there. So our 2025 Field Work effort seeks to uncover innovative ideas that improve mental health in rural communities. Projects may be innovative in many ways: from how they engage residents to where they take place or even who is leading them. Our hope is that ultimately, these ideas can be shared and replicated in other rural places.

Beginning May 12, LOR invites people with creative ideas about how to improve mental health and social well-being in rural places to apply for between $1,000 and $25,000 in funding.