Thursday, June 21, 2007
EDPros need to shift their thinking on incentives from companies to people.
In particular, compare the potential economic returns for attracting companies with incentives (a relatively low return) with investments in early childhood education (a relatively high return). It stands to reason. State and local taxes represent a relatively small component of the total cost structure of any company.
At the same time, investments in early childhood are critically important to building brainpower, the main competitive asset that any community or region possesses. Brain science teaches us that a child's brain develops rapidly after birth. Now we have the economic studies that translate these insights into financial returns.
All of these thoughts ran through my head, as I read this commentary on early childhood education.
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.
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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.
Investing in early childhood education
