Tuesday, August 12, 2003
In the early to mid 1990's rural areas gained over 150,000 manufacturing jobs. Then, starting in the late 1990's, the trend reversed. Since 2000, manufacturing job loses have hit rural areas hard.
In urban areas, factory shutdowns accounted for 25% of all manufacturing job loses. But in rural communities, plant closures accounted for 45 percent of all manufacturing job losses.
Urban centers lost 8.9 percent of their factory jobs between 1998 and the end of last year. But rural towns have lost 13.4 percent of their manufacturing employment.
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.
Manufacturing job losses hit rural areas hard
