Any discussion about Virginia peanuts needs to start with a clarification between Virginia peanuts and Virginia Peanuts. The lowercase former refers to peanuts grown in the Commonwealth; the capitalized latter is one of four peanut cultivars grown in the United States. If you’ve ever cracked a peanut out of a shell at a baseball game, that was a Virginia Peanut.

Four centuries after the advent of the agriculture industry in Virginia, the Commonwealth is again at the forefront of agricultural innovation.

CEA companies bring food production to the people

Jonathan Zur is president and CEO of the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities (VCIC), a nonprofit organization that works with schools, businesses, and communities to promote inclusion. VEDP President and CEO Jason El Koubi spoke with Zur about VCIC’s mission, its activities, and the importance of pairing diversity with inclusion.

The Commonwealth of Virginia has existed as a business venture since its inception in 1607. More than 400 years on, Virginia is still known as one of the best states in the country for business and is top-ranking for business climate, business friendliness, or their overall state rankings. Today, companies across industries call Virginia home. 

Virginia’s higher education system, consistently ranked as one of the best in the country, is well established as an elite talent incubator. But the Commonwealth’s universities, both public and private, also serve as a launching pad for startup companies.

Dr. René Rodgers, head curator at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol, spoke about Virginia’s role in the popularization of what’s now known as country music.

Virginia Offers Challenge and Respite as Midpoint for Thru-Hikers

Author Philip D’Anieri spoke about the history of the Appalachian Trail inside and outside Virginia, why he chose to cover the trail’s history through a human lens, and the inseparability of urban planning from the natural environment.

Piedmont Virginia Community College offers the Commonwealth’s only workforce training certificate programs for training future viticulturists, winemakers, brewers, and tasting room managers.