ED Now

Young Smart & Local (YSL), a groundbreaking national network dedicated to fostering diverse talent through attraction, inclusion, development, and retention, will host its third annual conference November 13–15 in New Orleans. This three-day event has become a valuable platform for leaders from various sectors to collaborate and share insights and best practices. Launched with a national conference in Philadelphia in 2019, YSL has rapidly grown to encompass more than 900 professionals in economic development, city government, higher education, and business. Co-founded and managed by Deborah Diamond, former president of Campus Philly, and Cecelia Thompson, executive director of Action Greensboro (N.C.), the network provides a ...

IEDC’s 2023 Annual Conference will be held next month in Dallas. A few of our conference speakers shared some exciting economic development projects happening in the region.

Kevin Crowder, CEcD, EDP, founder of BusinessFlare Economic Development Solutions, is part of the third cohort of certified Entrepreneurship Development Professionals. IEDC’s EDP credential is designed to build capacity for those supporting entrepreneurship in their communities, and demonstrates the skills and expertise to lead communities through entrepreneurship-led economic development (ELED). Why did you decide to pursue the EDP credential? In my experience, entrepreneurship has become the most important element of economic development, connecting jobs and talent to placemaking. It is also the least understood area of economic development for practitioners, and I wanted to make sure to stay relevant in this area. I also did it ...

Given the ongoing labor shortage, many communities are putting efforts into attracting and retaining talent that 20 years ago would have focused exclusively on business. The latest report from IEDC’s Economic Development Research Partners program explores how EDOs are taking strategic, proactive approaches to improving the assets they have to offer this smaller pool of workers, and promoting their communities with talent marketing collateral, remote worker attraction programs, and more.

IEDC's Accredited Economic Development Organization (AEDO) program recognizes organizational excellence in the areas of internal and external operations, structures, and procedures. This series profiles recently accredited AEDOs, putting some of economic development's highest-performing organizations in the spotlight. This edition: City of Brampton (Ont.) Economic Development Office.

EDA is now accepting applications for the FY23 STEM Talent Challenge. Applications are due June 12. The FY23 STEM Talent Challenge will award $4.5 million in grants to strengthen regional innovation economies by building a robust STEM workforce in high-growth sectors such as aerospace, aeronautics, biotechnology, advanced manufacturing, and cybersecurity. Eligible applicants include EDOs, cities, counties, states, Tribal Nations, nonprofit organizations, public-private partnerships, institutions of higher education, federal laboratories, and science and research parks. Applicants should demonstrate how they will develop or expand regional STEM workforce capacity to support entrepreneurship, innovation, and industries of the future.

IEDC held its Annual Conference last week in Oklahoma City featuring dozens of sessions covering today’s most important economic development topics. Here are a few of the highlights.

The Fifth Industrial Revolution (5IR) and How It Will Change the Business Landscape was a session at IEDC’s 2022 Economic Future Forum. The Fifth Industrial Revolution (5IR) was defined during the presentation as technology that enhances quality of life and the digital landscape in which business and society live, especially inventions such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT), digital platforms, and virtual and augmented reality. 5IR differs from the Fourth Industrial Revolution in that it focuses on keeping people in the workforce as well as using sustainable environmental practices. The session aimed to answer questions such as: What does 5IR mean for land use? What do these technologies mean for ...