by Christiana Brennan

What do Hartford, Conn.; Fresno, Calif.; and White County, Ill., have in common? In all of these cities municipal leaders and others are implementing dynamic approaches to ensure the vitality of their local and regional economies.

In this age of new economic challenges, innovative strategies such as the Hartford-Springfield Economic Partnership, the Fresno-Clovis Regional Jobs Initiative and the White County Economic Development Group prove that cities can and are acting regionally to build competitive economies.

Last month municipal, business and civic leaders met during the Alliance for Regional Stewardship (ARS) Forum in Chicago to explore the important role of regional approaches.

A new monograph released at the meeting noted, ?Clusters of communities acting as regions are large enough to achieve a critical mass of companies, institutions, infrastructure, and talent ? yet small enough to allow for the close interactions among people, firms and organizations required to innovate and ultimately compete in the global economy.?

In his discussion of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership (RTRP), Ted Abernathy, executive vice president, stated that one of the main hurdles to achieving success in his region has been providing a stable structure to support the variability of business leaders and the local concerns of municipal leaders.

To address these challenges, leaders of neighboring counties came together to develop a RTRP, a public-private partnership of economic development agencies that work collaboratively to market the collective assets of the 13-county Research Triangle Region of North Carolina for the economic benefit of its communities.

NLC?s Advisory Council similarly concluded that ?place matters? and in a world of increasing mobility of capital, labor and knowledge, economic development policies that highlight regional assets such as quality of life and high-quality workforce are more likely to fuel economic growth than traditional policies that often pit cities against each other in competition for a new employer. The first product of the Advisory Council?s work on economic vitality will be a 2006 CityFutures Report to be released at the Congress of Cities in December in Reno, Nev.

Each year, ARS sponsors two National Forums on Regional Stewardship that bring diverse leaders from across the country together to share their experiences and exchange ideas about effective approaches to regional challenges.

At each forum, regional leaders share critical issues facing their regions, identify best practices, and develop affinity groups for long-term sharing of new ideas and approaches. Visit www.regional
stewarship.org to download a copy of the new monograph a ?Building Regional Competitiveness through Economic Innovation.?

Details: For more information about the activities taking place in Hartford, Fresno and White County, please visit NLC?s Examples Database at www.nlc.org.