Thursday, January 09, 2003
The Charlotte Observer has completed a year-long look at the impact of globalization on the economy in the Carolinas. The main point: Global competition tends to strengthen urban economies and weaken rural economies. State legislators need to retool their incentive packages that are geared to luring manufacturers to rural locations.
The article notes that the challenge for elected officials is making sure people in rural communities don't fall further behind. But trends in manufacturing will make that difficult. The union-free labor, low cost power, railroads and extensive rural road networks that once lured manufacturing to the region are less valuable to modern manufacturers.
Here's a good quote: "The nature of contemporary manufacturing is small, more flexible companies that have to work within fairly dense networks of suppliers and vendors, as opposed to the kind of thing you see out in rural North Carolina -- a big box that uses repetitive skills," said Alfred Stuart, a retired professor of geography at UNC Charlotte and co-author of the N.C. Atlas. "Those are dinosaurs." Read more. Go
posted by Ed Morrison |
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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.
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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.
The challenge of globalization in the Carolinas
