Friday, October 14, 2005
In the Puget Sound region of Washington, a new regional partnership -- the Prosperity Partnership -- appears to be heading in the right direction. A collaboration among four counties, the partnership has structured the issues around economic development for the region.
That's an important step. In many regions, the conversations around economic development are not coherent or focused. There's no consensus about what is important. In the worst cases, the agenda gets hijacked by narrow interests. More common, civic leaders focus on the wrong issues. A third outcome: inaction. No one can muster enough enthusiasm and focus to do anything.
Economic development, like all investment, is a game of probabilities. The tricky part is to define those investment partnerships that have can accelerate innovation and productivity. That requires on on-going cycle of figuring out what works. The region needs "civic spaces" where these conversations can take place. It looks like the Prosperity Partnership has created the civic space for these focused discussions.
Here's some background on the Prosperity Partnership. Read more.
posted by Ed Morrison |
links
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.
More on the Propserity Partnership
