Monday, July 30, 2007
Regional economic development is, in large part, about changing the stories we tell ourselves. The stories are valuable. They create shared meaning and guide alignments within networks.
A new story is emerging in Pittsburgh. Here's an good approach to distill and spread the new story. Read more.
The approach takes some interesting and valuable lessons from Seth Godin's book Unleashing the Idea Virus.
You will likely see Pittsburgh's neighbor, Youngstown, follow Pittsburgh's lead. Youngstown is already well on its way to recrafting the story of the city, as this report demonstrates.
Contrast how they are changing the story in Ft. Collins Colorado through a more traditional branding strategy. Read more. The idea is the same...change the story.
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.
Manifesto for a New Pittsburgh
