Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Economic development used to be about "things": developing an industrial park, recruiting a business, building a spec building.
Increasingly, we are coming to understand that this "thing theory" of economic development is inadequate. Sustainable economic development requires balanced investment in a range of areas. EDPRos need a deeper, systems view of their economies.
Here's a report that illustrates importance of understanding interdependencies. A report that will be released this week in albany notes that if EDPros are successful in recruiting high tech companies, there are not enough skilled people around to fill the jobs. Read more.
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:
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.
Economic development: its about balanced systems
