Sunday, November 13, 2005
Toledo's new economic development leader of the Toledo regional growth partnership is underscored the importance of regional collaboration. The partnership recently became a privately funded organization. Steve Weathers came to Toledo from the Tucson economic Council. Read more.
Now jump to the other end of Lake Erie. In Buffalo, we can see the costs to economic development when civic collaboration breaks down. Read more.
Older industrial areas are facing a major challenge of trying to streamline government services with stagnant or declining populations. Without stronger collaboration, older industrial metros like Buffalo, Cleveland, Toledo, and Detroit can enter into downward spirals. As incomes stagnate or decline, the pressure builds to increase taxes in order to maintain service and public employment levels. Higher relative tax burdens drive out companies and people, and the cycle accelerates.
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:
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.
Avoiding the downward cycle
