Saturday, November 16, 2002
If you have a college or university nearby, you have an economic engine to harness.
The best place to start is by using college and university resources to improve your access to technology in your office. There are a lot of innovative examples around, and they are summarized in the new report, "Opening the Door: Technology and the Development of University-Community Partnerships". Download a copy.
Colleges and universities can play a variety of roles:
-- Consultants to provide expertise and training.
-- Catalysts to conceptualize, design and implement an initiative.
-- Application service providers to host technology tools such as online mapping tools or community information portals.
Some Background on EDPro Weblog
The purpose of this weblog is to help economic development professionals -- EDPros -- keep up with the changes sweeping our profession. Strap on your goggles. It's a whole new game. There are no experts any more. The only place to learn about economic development is from other EDPros who are doing it.
One other point: the prevaling approach (paradigm, if you like) in economic development is shifting from competition to collaboration. There are a lot of reaasons underlying this shift, but here's the important insight: You, your community, and your region will do better by collaborating and sharing information.
If you are using a news reader, here is the link to syndicate this site:
Here's the link if you are a bloglines subscriber:
Speaking and workshops on Open Source Economic Development
As the idea of Open Source Economic Development starts spreading, more people are asking about it. Visit the I-Open web site to learn more. My colleagues and I are happy to explain the basic concepts in a talk or a workshop. E-mail Susan Alshuler if you'd like to learn more about workshops and speaking.
Background on Ed Morrison
Download some background information on me here.
EDPros can leverage colleges and universities
