Incentives to think regionally Friday, December 02, 2005 Regional economic development efforts ordinarily start with business leaders. The reason is easy to understand. Many business leaders think regionally, because they operate regionally. In recent years, business leaders have been pushing regional solutions for two other reasons. First, they want to operate economic development more efficiently: lower the ED overhead. Second, many regional business leaders are facing global pressures in their own businesses. These pressures are shifting their perspectives. If you are confronting pressure from China, it's a little harder to tolerate local disputes that are grounded in old high school football rivalries. In contrast, it's unusual to see a political leader calling for regional solutions. We should not be surprised. Politicians are sole proprietors. They have a single brand: me. We elected them to represent us, not to think, necessarily, beyond their political boundaries. So, it should not be surprising that, given their incentives, it is hard for politicians to choose regioonal solutions. If we want our political leaders to think and act more regionally, we need to create the incentives for regional action. The simplest place to start is on regional intiatives that save money (and reduce the pressure to increase taxes): sharing fire services, for example. Occasionally, you find a political leader are who is thinking regionally because they are young enough to understand the stakes or secure enough to risk it. Here's an example from the Mayor of Evansville, IN. Read more. posted by Ed Morrison |		This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. 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. So, spread the word...Share the knowledge. Tell a friend about EDPro Weblog. 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.

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