Records of the Ozark Institute were assembled and donated to Special Collections in 1986 by Edd A. Jeffords of Austin, Texas. Jeffords directed the Conference on Ozark In-Migration in Eureka Springs in May, 1976, which led to the establishment of the Ozark Institute. Jeffords, who was executive director from 1977 until 1982, helped to establish the Ozark Institute as a resource center to address the needs of the rural low-income and elderly in the areas of food, energy, and shelter. The Institute sponsored Futures Forums in several county seats in Arkansas and provided job training and resources to rural people through programs such as the Ozark Producer-Consumer Alliance, the Family Farm Development Service, and publications and seminars on solar energy, energy conservation, forest preservation, the small farmer, and appropriate technology.

Entrepreneur and political leader from Mountain Home, Arkansas, during her time in the Arkansas state assembly as a representative and senator, Sheid was instrumental in building bridges and improving educational offering in the Ozarks of Northwest Arkansas.

This collection is comprised of the senatorial and personal papers of Senator Dale Bumpers, who served in the U.S Senate from 1975 to 1999. A celebrated orator and advocate for the agricultural industry in Arkansas, Bumpers was also recognized as a leader on environmental policy and land conservation, as well as his criticism of certain defense programs as the strategic missile defense initiatives of President Ronald Reagan. Bumpers was a Marine veteran who served two terms as Governor, after a successful law career, before challenging and defeating longtime Senator J. William Fulbright.

Materials relate to David Haenke, including biographical materials,his writings, and professional activities. Materials also pertain to the activities of other individuals and organizations involved in environmentalism, the Green movement, and the Greens/Green Party U.S.A.