Tuesday, January 13, 2004
Oklahoma's governor establsihed the EDGE committee to develop an action plan to jumpstart the state's economy. (EDGE=Economic Development Generating Excellence). The committee produced a report of recommendations. Many are bold: a $1 billion endowment to suport university research and technology transfer, for example.
Here's what's valuable to EDPros outside Oklahoma: In the new economic development, we need to design strategic planning as a process that involves both public participation and leadership direction. The Oklahoma EDGE process includes both. In addition, the process did not take long. It started last August and finished in early January, about five months (with holidays sandwiched in the middle).
The EDGE process involved regional public forums at 29 locations across the state. The forums took place last November. Nearly 2,400 business, education and community leaders met to share their reactions to the initial EDGE proposals.
You can download the report from this page. 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.
If you are using a news reader, here is the link to syndicate this site:
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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.
Oklahoma's "action plan" for economic development
