I absolutely love it when local governments openly support local business. From the August declaration of Colorado Proud Month to government purchasing preferences being given to local contractors, institutions everywhere are refocusing their energy. Is your local government giving lip service to the local? Check out the info below for a working example; taken from http://www.bouldercolorado.gov:
Support the Local
Local independent businesses are owned in the Boulder area and include many one-of-a-kind stores. These unique stores help define Boulder shopping. The benefits of shopping at local independent stores are broader than meets the eye.
Check out the Organic Consumers Association's Breaking the Chains campaign:
Using universal equity as the meeting point, this campaign appears to be bridging the gap between the environmentally-focused local movement and that which has been focusing on economic/community security.