Monday, July 25, 2005
A Washignton conference on the Tennessee Valley Corridor (which touches parts of Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky and Virginia) concluded that job training is a central issue for economic development in the region. An interesting quote came from Deborah Wince-Smith, president of the nonpartisan private Council on Competitiveness.
She cited estimates that the country is spending $20 billion on work-force training for jobs that will never exist or are disappearing. "Most of the country is totally disconnected" on training for long-term, real jobs.
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.
Job training and economic development
