International Consensus on Regional Development

Nearly two years ago, I was in many meetings with the leadership of the United States Department of Commerce and the Economic Development Administration.  They clearly articulated that they now had research that proved that the only real economic engine was the region and that they wanted to help us achieve a true regional plan, and effective actions.

This new report, Past Silos and Smokestacks: Transforming the Rural Economy in the Midwest, by Mark Drabenstott is a very concise explanation of the research supporting the critical nature of regional economic development.

I have highlighted some of the key points of the summary, and pointed toward the research findings, in this synopsis.

I can’t help but highlight some of the statements from the summary:

The rural Midwest could have an economic future as bright as

its vibrant past. But it is basing its twenty-first-century future on a

twentieth-century playbook. This is not a recipe for success. Towns

and counties compete with neighboring towns and counties for jobs

and investments. Industrial recruitment—“smokestack chasing”—is

the norm. Economic development agencies spend millions on infrastructure

and tax breaks to lure companies from afar instead of creating

new jobs at home. Boosters sell the rural Midwest as a cheap

place to make things, ignoring the region’s many other economic

assets—its natural resources, its hard-working people, its central

location, its schools and universities, and its scientific base, among

others —that could all be leveraged into a competitive new economy.

The path to stronger economies in the rural Midwest is plain.

Partnering regionally to compete globally is what’s needed. This pathway

will lead to scores of multicounty, self-defined regions across

the Midwest. Only by combining their forces to create new businesses

and good jobs at home will the towns and counties of the

rural Midwest compete and thrive in a global economy where this

sort of collaboration is fast becoming the norm.

The rural Midwest needs a bold new development strategy to

transform its economy. The strategy developed in this report stands

on four legs:

• Help rural communities and counties think regionally to compete

globally.

• Focus public investments on transforming economic opportunities

rooted in distinct economic strengths, not on

smokestack chasing.

• Spur innovation and entrepreneurship, turning ideas and innovations

into economic progress.

• Create a world-class entrepreneurial climate and innovation

culture to grow a landscape of new companies, in the process

recycling the region’s considerable wealth.

This is a brand new game plan—a bold game plan.

At the local level, county economic development boards and local chambers of commerce

dominate, preserving the lines in the sand that hinder regional action…

…These examples point to what is needed to embark on a new path

of Midwestern rural development—a more regional approach. To

succeed, regional leaders will need a neutral “safe space” where new

partnerships can be forged. They will also need “coaches” that can

effectively bring local players out of their traditional silos and combine

their strengths on a new economic team. A critical challenge is

that both the safe spaces and the coaches are in very short supply.

The time is now for significant progress in our initiatives for regional development.

What do you think?

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