A compilation of news links about and for regional communities pursuing local and regional development.
Published on line since November 11, 2003.
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Contents
Top Regional Community stories … 1. – 9.
U.S. Regional Communities - sub-State, State or multi-State – news articles … 10.01 - .36
Other Regional Community News for Our Local Planet … 11.01 - .27
Blogging about Regional Communities … 12.01 - .29
Announcements and Regional Links … 13.01 - .08
Custom search: region, regions, regional communities … 14.
Top Regional Community stories
1. Denver’s lessons for Milwaukee - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Milwaukee, WI, USA
The Democratic Party National Convention brought new attention to Denver. And in almost every television picture of the Denver skyline, there was one feature: a construction crane, the symbol of a growing economy. Denver’s growth offers mile-high lessons for Milwaukee.
Regions compete in sports - and in economic development. The Packers beat the Broncos. The Brewers have a better record than the Rockies. Milwaukee and Denver split the decision for the Miller-Coors headquarters. But in the growth of good paying jobs, Denver crushes Milwaukee.
In the past 12 months, despite the national economic trends, metro Denver has gained nearly 10, 000 jobs. Metro Milwaukee has lost 7, 000. The average wage per job in metro Denver is $50, 100 - more than 10% above the national average. The average wage in metro Milwaukee is just over $43, 000 - below the average for metro areas.
Denver's lessons offer something for liberals and conservatives; for Republicans and for Democrats. …
Denver is frequently cited for the success of regional government; it has a strong regional mass transit system. If one believed the opponents of regional transit in Milwaukee, Denver should be in trouble. But Denver ranked sixth in a 2008 study of metro area competitiveness.
How can both Wisconsin liberals and conservatives be so wrong? Or so right? And what lessons can be learned from Denver's success?
First, regionalism works. Denver has a widely acclaimed metro area economic development corporation. It has a regional sales tax for transportation - and for the arts. The Denver mayor, a successful businessman, is the region's cheerleader. He helps recruit businesses to the suburbs and professors to the University of Colorado's flagship campus in Boulder, a 45-minute drive from Denver.
Next, metro Denver economic development is focused on six industry clusters - …
RCs: Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission
Denver Regional Council of Governments
2. Mega-regions: We're in world's 2nd-largest economy - Foster's Daily Democrat - Dover, NH, USA
They're called mega-regions, were born under the illumination of night, and a prominent social theorist has us living in the second largest one on Earth.
New Hampshire and Maine — from Portland south — are considered the "northern edge" of the 500-mile Boston-Washington, D.C., corridor that Richard Florida, author and professor at the University of Toronto's Joseph L. Rotman School of Management, has found generates $2.2 trillion in economic activity.
For context, $2.2 trillion is larger than all but two economies as measured by national boundaries — the United States and Japan — Florida wrote in a research paper.
"That Eastern Seaboard of the United States is really the economic powerhouse, " fueled by the technology industry, said Steven Pedigo, who analyzes economic and consumer trends for Florida's Creative Class Group.
The mega-region concept has the potential to change the way regions, let alone nations, shape policy and size up global competition, Pedigo said. Instead of the United States competing with entire countries like China or India, the focus should be on the countries' economic centers, he said.
In an e-mail to Foster's, Pedigo described a mega-region as an area "that hosts business and economic activity on a large scale, generating a lion's share of the world's economic activity and an even larger share of the world's innovation and technological discoveries."
New Hampshire and Maine's portal to the 54 million people-strong economic unit has long been Boston, Mass., largely due to commuting patterns and the rise of technology jobs, said University of New Hampshire professor Ross Gittell, who specializes in business and regional development.
Still, one expert warns against thinking the northern states rely on their neighbor to the south.
Rather, there "is a beneficial synergy, " said Christopher St. John, executive director of the Maine Center for Economic Policy. …
PDF: Northeast Megaregion 2050: A Common Future, November 2007 - Regional Plan Association
3. Here's reality: capital region is one big city - Edmonton Sun - Alberta, Canada
I nearly choked on my own surprise.
…
The cold, hard truth is that no matter how much politicians bicker over petty rivalries, Edmonton and surrounding communities is a single metropolis.
The flow of people, goods and services is not stopped at municipal boundaries. People do not weigh the morality of going into a neighbouring community and making use of public facilities -- parks, hospitals, rec centres, courthouses -- they didn't help pay for. And so they shouldn't.
It's interesting that most of the talk of so-called "regional cooperation" is confined to politicians having esoteric discussions of arcane topics like revenue sharing and interjurisdictional protocols.
It keeps the public from caring, I suppose. Politicians guard their fiefdoms, pretending to be looking out for constituents when really they're hurting them.
Here's a real-life example of how regional cooperation -- should there ever actually be any -- can affect people in the metro Edmonton area: public transit. At present, there are three major, independently-operating transit systems, Edmonton, St. Albert and Strathcona County.
Even though their services overlap -- St. Albert and Strathcona carry commuters to and from Edmonton -- they have their own buses, schedule and rate structures, creating an unwieldy, expensive system for anyone travelling beyond their community. I defy any adult to take public transit from Sherwood Park to St. Albert in less than three hours, and be willing to pay the $9.50. If it was a regular trip, monthly passes would run you a whopping $162.
Each of the three systems also have their own management personnel and bureaucracies to pay for.
Meanwhile, in Vancouver, there's a single transit system for 13 municipalities with a total population of 2.1 million -- one fare structure, one schedule and one bureaucracy.
That's what regional cooperation could mean... if we had any.
- - -
The Alberta Capital Region Alliance has closed its office effective April 30, 2008.
The 25 municipalities in the greater Edmonton area will now be working together as part of the Premier's Capital Region Integrated Growth Management Plan.
To view a contact list of these capital region municipalities, please click here
4. Replacing Federation is An Urgent Matter - The Epoch Times - New York, NY, USA
…
Basically there are three options:
A two-tier system comprising a national government and much improved local government level plus adjunct regional organisations of councils (a mezzanine level);
A two-tier system comprising a national government and a large number of new regional/provincial governments (but no local government), some see this as a new type of federation;
A new non-federal, three-tier system with around 30 regional/provincial governments, plus improved local governments.
Moves towards federal structures elsewhere, like devolution in the UK and the trend in the EU, for instance, may well be positive and appropriate in those circumstances, but it is different here. Federalism is no longer appropriate. Centralism in Australia has been a curse at the state level. We need to move towards much better system of decentralisation radiating from Canberra. That can take the form of functional decentralisation as well. Many unitary states in the world are much better decentralised than Australia. Twomey and Withers argue that federalism is something that is becoming fashionable again and that this is a reason for Australia to maintain, improve, repair what we have. This is not a good argument at all.
Also the language that we heard at the 2020 Summit, e.g. "fixing", "repairing", apparently meant to make "cooperative federalism" acceptable as a new form of piecemeal tinkering, is unhelpful. Let's call a spade a spade: the time has come to replace the federation. That is what the ALP COAG love-in should be used for and a transitional strategic scheme be put in place to allay the understandable concerns of state politicians and public servants.
So much has changed in Australia since 1901 that it makes no sense to continue with nine parliaments, five of which bi-cameral, totaling over 800 politicians, nine civil services, and a ramshackle federal Constitution …
5. Kanawha leaders will observe Ky. government - Daily Mail - Charleston - Charleston, WV, USA
City and county leaders are hoping to learn a lesson or two from their counterparts in Kentucky about how to make the controversial plan for metro government a success.
For two days next week, Sept. 4 and 5, the Kanawha County Commission will lead a delegation of city and county officials to Louisville, where metro government has been working well for the past five years.
The concept of cities and counties merging services is still a new one to West Virginians. But areas that already have combined say it allows them to take advantage of federal grants and other services available only to regions with larger populations.
County Commissioner Dave Hardy said he's eager to learn how the Kanawha Valley could attempt metro government.
"I'm curious to sit down and think how we could do this at a local level, " Hardy said. "The first thing we need to do is educate the public."
Hardy said the first thing he wants to know from Louisville officials is how they spread the word to the public and what feedback was received.
The county already is working with the Charleston Area Alliance to create a task force to promote the idea and explain the concept to residents.
Hardy already has been tapped to work with that group. He represents the county commission on the Alliance's Board of Directors.
Officials still are trying to figure out a way to fully fund the task force's programs.
"We have to walk away with an understanding of what it will take to implement an education plan, " Hardy said. "By talking with officials, I think it will allow us to get the straight facts and not rely on various versions of what happened there."
…
RC: Regional Intergovernmental Council – Region 3
6. Business poachers are abroad in Valley View – The Plain Dealer – Cleveland, OH, USA
A new school year has barely dawned, but Valley View Mayor Randall Westfall and his council are about to flunk two tests: They're ready to undermine regionalism and also gut their school district's budget.
Westfall could welcome a local company that wants to expand -- Brooklyn Heights-based Safeguard, which employs 500 and renovates foreclosed homes -- in a way that honors the collaborative, progressive agreement Cuyahoga County officeholders struck in 2006. The pact isn't legally binding but was historic. It paved the way for the region to work together for growth and stop the cutthroat sniping that happens when the game is winner-take-all.
But instead of upholding the regionalism agreement (which Westfall, a long-time officer of the Cuyahoga County Mayors and City Managers Association, laughably claims not to remember) Westfall is promising Safeguard a desperately generous 40 percent, 10-year income tax break.
Because Brooklyn Heights currently splits income tax revenue from Safeguard between the village and the school district, Valley View's sneaky attack would suck a quarter-million dollars away from the school district, which serves students from both towns.
Just to refresh Valley View officials' memory regarding the regionalism resolution, it calls for sharing taxes 50-50 for up to five years. To which Valley View Council President Marty Johnston ignorantly scoffs, "Resolutions mean nothing."
Gallant political stands aren't convenient or easy. Nor is seeding regionalism, though it is critical to the Northeast Ohio's future.
Brooklyn Heights Mayor Mike Procuk is livid, as he should be. So should everyone who understands that to thrive, this region must stop cannibalizing the meager growth it manages to achieve.
The public and local leaders must …
.7 Building a new bridge does more than span river - Mid Columbia Tri City Herald – Kennewick, WA, USA
In so many ways we need to get past the idea that we live in a particular city and instead embrace the idea of our larger community.
If you've read that message in other Herald editorials, there's a simple reason for it -- the community's progress is limited by our failure to come together in thought and in deed.
But this time were not talking about bridging the chasms created by parochialism but a literal bridge across the Columbia River.
Do we need another bridge?
That's not clear, and may never be unless local governments figure out how to share the costs of a study to determine the answer.
It's a question of cost versus benefits. Someone with the required expertise needs to run the numbers.
Regardless of where or when -- exactly -- a new bridge is built, all Tri-Citians would get some benefit. Few of us live, work, eat, shop and recreate within the boundaries of a single city.
If you're anywhere near the blue bridge at rush hour, you can see the Mid-Columbia is on the move. A new bridge -- anywhere -- would alleviate some of that congestion.
Even those drivers who keep to the blue bridge or Interstate 182 wouldn't fight as much traffic if others were using a Horn Rapids bridge or an Edison Street bridge.
And if all drivers benefit, so would all our cities.
The city of Pasco initially took the lead on a bridge study. Since Pasco's big choking point right now is Road 68, that's where city officials focused their efforts.
Pasco needed partners, but Richland and Benton County didn't see a clear benefit from a study limited to a span at Edison Street.
Some Kennewick leaders were worried the location would interfere with Columbia Park.
Even so, there was some money and a little cooperation behind plans to study the site, but local governments kept pulling out.
We piled on with an editorial calling for a broader study looking at alternative sites, rather than focusing solely on a connection between Road 68 and Edison Street.
Pasco wound up feeling bruised in the process.
"Candidly, we felt like the Pasco council was getting beat up for something unnecessarily, unfairly, when there didn't seem to be much consensus on the willingness to look forward on the issue, " City Manager Gary Crutchfield said at a recent city council meeting.
Council members had pledged $35, 000 toward a $125, 000 study to determine costs and feasibility, but dropped the offer after the cool reception from other government officials.
Now there is no bridge. No study. No money.
So far, parochialism prevents even the research required to determine the need for a new bridge. Unless local governments can agree on a study, the possibility of joining forces to actually build a bridge seems remote.
Can the benefits of a new bridge justify the costs? We don't know. What about 20 years from now? We don't know that either.
Crutchfield suggests the Benton-Franklin Council of Governments should take responsibility for leading the study process, with financial help from the state.
That's an idea worth investigating. After all, the entire region stands to benefit, so a regional agency at the lead makes sense.
The Beatles had the right idea. "Come together, right now, over me."
8. Decade-old report still offers lessons today - Telegraph-Journal - Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada
The suburban towns have had a taste of amalgamation before, and they don't like the smell of what's cooking in the oven.
Former provincial deputy minister Jean-Guy Finn is only weeks away from delivering his report on reforming local government, and part of his recommendations will deal with regionalizing services among municipalities.
In an interview last week, the provincial commissioner was careful not to disclose what his recommendations will be, but even the mention of regionalization makes officials in Rothesay, Quispamsis and Grand-Bay Westfield break out in a sweat.
…
In reaction, the suburban officials are already discussing ways to pour cold water on regionalization, which they consider just short of full amalgamation and half -baked.
No doubt they will point to an influential report written more than a decade ago, one that still offers lessons today. It was hastily commissioned by the suburban towns and villages in response to consultant Skip Cormier's recommendations in February 1997.
Cormier advised the provincial government to abolish the suburban municipalities surrounding Saint John in favour of a supercity. With provincial governments looking to reduce costs and make services more efficient, it was all the rage in the 1990s for municipalities across Canada to amalgamate - with greater Halifax, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal eventually leading the way.
The suburban towns in Greater Saint John, angry over their possible extinction, quickly hired some heavyweights of their own, two professors from Ontario and the accounting firm Coopers & Lybrand.
Their report accused Cormier of doing a shoddy financial analysis and low-balling what would happen to the area's property tax rates. In big bold letters, it declared that the costs of creating a supercity would exceed expectations.
...
9. Interoperability: What's Impeding a National Communications System? - Government Technology - Folsom, CA, USA
It's interesting how issues become "the thing" in government. Following 9/11, when fire and police agencies had no radio contact with one another, communications interoperability became a high, national-level priority.
So what's impeding the establishment of a national interoperable communications system? Let's explore the issues:
Governance: Our country's form of governance impacts many emergency management aspects, including communications interoperability. …
Size: The larger a jurisdiction, the less need for cross-discipline and cross-jurisdictional communications since it can handle most incidents with internal resources. …
Control: A handheld radio can cost several thousand dollars. Yet even with high costs, many jurisdictions are reluctant to partner to buy common systems. The Department of Homeland Security made progress on this issue by requiring regional solutions for regional problems. Still, jurisdictions can find ways to have a common system and yet not talk to one another. They do this by limiting access to talk groups in trunked radio systems. People want to feel like they have control of their operations and aren't subordinating their agency's or jurisdiction's work to others.
People: The common thread in these issues is that it's people, not equipment or technology, who are the problem. Communications interoperability will come when we have people and agency interoperability. You can't buy that - no matter how much money you throw at the problem.
Wake-up calls come in the form of disasters. …
Eric Holdeman is the former director for the King County, Wash., Office of Emergency Management, and is now with ICF International. His blog is located at www.disaster-zone.com
…
Eric, your article is clearly written from the perspective of an urban area that's competitive for UASI funding. Allow me to interject a rural perspective. "Requiring agencies to discard their desire for a customized system" is too cavalier of a dismissal; legitimate operational requirements drive system customization. Rural departments have different operational and staffing constraints from our urban counterparts; we rely on more volunteers and much less money. Our dispatch models don't necessarily look the same as urban departments. Consequently, we have different requirements from our communications system. We will happily acquiesce to the design goals of our larger regional partners with whom we consolidate dispatch and communications functions. However, in return they must step up to help us defray the cost of making changes to our communications systems. For us, these costs could include more paid staff. I challenge you to solicit more input from your rural readership.
10. U.S. Regional Communities - sub-State, State or multi-State - in news articles.
Bold font words are Google search terms. Bold italic words considered worth noting. In this and section 11, links to websites of organizations are added to the news excerpt when this is the first time an organization has been found. A goal of this newsletter is to find every regional council in the U.S. in a news story as well as recognizing other regional organizations. In most cases, where a full name is present, a Google search will quickly get one to that organization. News reports do not always get the organization name correct. Contents
.01 9/11 Commission Heads: US 'Dangerously Vulnerable' to Terrorist Attack
Environment News Service
… To make better progress in protecting the country, the report offers three recommendations: … Strengthen international cooperation. The United States cannot be safe working alone. Terrorism does not respect borders. We must utilize multilateral institutions, regional organizations and bilateral ties. We must be firm in our goals, but flexible in our approach. When the report is made public on September 10, it will online at Partnership for a Secure America.
.02 How do you want southwest Ohio to grow?
Oxford Press - Oxford, OH, USA
A regional planning effort is seeking residents' ideas about what should be the main regional priorities in developing Butler, Warren, Hamilton and Clermont counties.Butler and Warren County residents are encouraged to take a survey available on the Citizens for Civic Renewal Web site, http://citizenscivicrenewal.org , to help prioritize regional planning efforts.
Artvoice - Buffalo, NY, USA
So Scranton is a bellwether for politics and policy—because like everywhere else in the region I call the Republic of Oldistan, Scranton has every measure of economic distress that should lead to support for a populist Democratic ticket that is going to be fiercely focused on economic issues. … But the other divide is regional.. It is between Oldistan, which is the old, cold, shrinking part of America, and the rest of the country, specifically, the Sunbelt, the Coasts, the Rockies, and Chicago.
.04 Educating Hispanics will be key to Atlanta’s future
Atlanta Journal Constitution – GA, USA
Atlanta, as it become more diverse, needs to think about how its labor force will compete in the next 50 years. That’s the conclusion of former U.S. Census Bureau director Martha Farnsworth Riche, who spoke Wednesday morning at Morehouse College to a group of about 150 people interested in demographics. Organized by the Atlanta Regional Commission, the seminar focused on the metro area’s diverse population and how it will evolve by the year 2050. …
.05 'Focus' brings Cape together
Cape Cod Times - Hyannis, MA, USA
Cape Cod Focus was formed, Abbott and Sheehan said, to document and measure efforts, locally and regionally, to keep young people on the Cape. The group will look at case studies where policies have worked or failed in the past; share resources with towns, businesses and other organizations; and debunk myths that can affect public opinion and decisionmaking, they said. Members of the group include representatives from organizations such as the Workforce Development Board, Cape Cod Community College and the Cape Cod Commission.
.06 Calif. bill would tie land use to carbon emissions
The Associated Press
The bill requires local governments to submit regional development plans to state air regulators for approval, making them eligible for billions of dollars ...
.07 Central Valley sprawl bill has perfect timing
Merced Sun-Star - Merced, CA, USA
... Senate Bill 375 would set up incentives for regions throughout the state to draw up broad new visions for future development patterns. That's something that local leaders have been trying to do for the past two years in the San Joaquin Valley Blueprint process. … "There isn't going to be a prohibition on development that doesn't follow it, but there will be carrots, " said Rusty Selix, executive director of California Association of Councils of Governments.
.08 Editorial: Convention success we can build on
Minneapolis Star Tribune – MN, USA
… we do agree with him on this point: Cooperation around the region made this convention possible. That's a foundation on which to tackle some our most pressing problems, such as transportation and growth
.09 Abouhalkah's column: Don't count Funkhouser out, yet
Kansascity-com
The mayor has a policy-wonk approach to government. He still has many attractive ideas — on a slimmer budget, economic development, better infrastructure — that would make him a valuable leader. Funkhouser has the biggest bully pulpit and easily gets the most public attention. To make the most progress for Kansas Citians, though, he’ll need cooperation from a council majority. It’s something he needs to earn in the future.
.10 Education, passion and regionalism can repair Detroit
Model D - Detroit, MI, USA
Detroit should not only be important to Detroiters, but to those who live in the rest of the state. At the center of this dilemma are the residents of ...
.11 Regional court facility still draws interest
Gazette Online - Solon, IA, USA
Merging the Linn and Johnson county courthouses would seem like blasphemy to some. But setting up a regional trial center in the Corridor seems more palatable, ... not only sees this as a chance for a regional trial center but to brainstorm services, such as a bus or light rail system. …
.12 Orange Mayor Crotty Reveals Lynx Funding Plan
Central Florida Political Pulse - Orlando, FL, USA
"If this is truly a regional asset, like a university or an airport, " Crotty said, "then we need to think regionally and pay for it regionally. ...
.13 County, cities begins planning for future growth
Bellingham Herald - Bellingham, WA, USA
Planning directors from each city, the county, tribes, Port of Bellingham and Whatcom Council of Governments meet regularly to provide the council recommendations....
.14 County gives its response to fire findings
San Diego Union Tribune - United States
The county of San Diego, responding to a grand jury report about the region's preparedness for wildfires, said there is no evidence to suggest a consolidated county fire agency would have changed the region's ability to respond to the firestorms of 2003 and 2007. ...
.15 Small Victory for Gaughan in West Seneca
WKBW-TV - Buffalo, NY, USA
The regionalism advocate has visited nearly every town, village and city in Erie County, asking lawmakers to reduce the size of government … Most municipalities have resisted Gaughan's ideas, but he has found some success. The villages of North Collins and Lancaster are considering downsizing plans....
.16 City Extends Pine Tree Waste Deal
Sun Journal – Lewiston, ME, USA
"Our trash is collected regionally; it's incinerated regionally; it's disposed of regionally, " Reed said. "What's not regional is our thinking, and that's not very efficient." ...
.17 Regional economy boosters get state funds
Boston Globe - United States
... budget includes $250000 for the North Shore Alliance for Economic Development, a group formed last year to promote economic growth on a regional level. ...
.18 From the City Manager: Drillers stadium a home run for Sand Springs
Sand Springs Leader - Sand Springs, OK, USA
… We've got a good team of community leaders in Sand Springs, and we are working in league with Tulsa and other neighboring cities to make our region's field of dreams come true.
.19 Shaping a Greater Nashville
Nashville Business Journal - Nashville, TN, USA
What is regionalism and what issues reside with it currently? What opportunities lay ahead for Middle Tennessee? Should we work more as one region? ...
Vienna/Oakton Connection - VA, USA
It’s this kind of coordinated effort, not just among hospitals but among cities, counties and states, that is crucial to preparing for a major catastrophic event, local emergency management officials said. “If there’s another major emergency like 9/11, it doesn’t impact just one jurisdiction, ” Fairfax County spokesperson Brian Worthy said. “It had an impact on all the jurisdictions regionally. That’s why the region is taking a very coordinated response.” …
.21 Warren's EMT ranks dwindle as need grows
Detroit Free Press - United States
The city has seen an estimated 20% rise in its population older than 65 in the past decade, according to the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments. ...
.22 Demonstration of city transit system proposed
Fort Morgan Times –CO, USA
In fact, Larry Worth of the Northeast Colorado Association of Governments said fares usually generate only between 5 and 10 percent of the needed revenue for most systems.
.23 Dispatch centers consider combining
Amherst Bulletin - Amherst, MA, USA
A feasibility study has been proposed to look at the existing system and examine whether regionalization of police, fire and ambulance calls could produce ...
.24 New urbanism can't hide need for regionalism
Richmond Times Dispatch - Richmond, VA, USA
Chesterfield has embraced the new urbanism. A welcome next step would be for the county to gain greater empathy for real, job-seeking urban dwellers by opening its borders to meaningful mass transit. Who knows where we could go from there? Creating this new regionalism, in the heart of Virginia, would indeed be cause for celebration.
Norwalk Plus Magazine – USA
… multi-state lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for failing to regulate harmful pollution from oil refineries. The lawsuit -- filed by a coalition of 12 states, the District of Columbia and the City of New York -- alleges that the EPA is in violation of the Clean Air Act for failing to adopt standards requiring that new or renovated oil refineries install technologies to control global warming pollution. …
.26 HIE Lays Foundation for Longitudinal EMR in Western North Carolina
HiMSS News – Chicago, IL, USA
Whenever the approximately 800, 000 people spread across the 16 far western counties of North Carolina need hospital services, they visit one of the 16 independent hospitals serving that region. … Data Link is one of the nation’s few operational HIEs or regional health information organizations (RHIOs). Approximately 20 RHIOs are operating across the U.S., …
.27 Morganton Historic Festival Q&A
Morganton News Herald - Morganton, NC, USA
I have sponsors who not only give money, but they create partnerships between themselves to help market the event regionally. I have relationships with ...
MarketWatch – USA
Change is what happens when we all unite--across party lines and regional boundaries. Here in Denver, at the edge of the Rocky Mountains, our mile-high altitude encourages us to take the long view. We can see that being pro-business and pro-environment go hand-in-hand. We demand collaboration and common-sense solutions....
.29 Obama supports national catastrophic plan
Bizjournals.com - Charlotte, NC, USA
... John McCain, has said previously that such a bill has little chance of passing the Senate, and he instead supports a fund that would spread risk out regionally among the states bordering the Gulf of Mexico to help with rising home insurance costs.
.30 Another view: M-7 has made a good start in what will be a long race
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Milwaukee, WI, USA
... of our elected officials pushing for regional solutions to regional challenges such as work force development, education, transportation and governance. ...
.31 Pool pact example of good government
Yuma Sun – AZ, USA
I can understand when someone reads the term "intergovernmental agreement" that the eyes can glaze over. The intergovernmental agreement recently made between the city of Yuma and the Yuma Union High School District for a swimming pool complex, however, gives an opportunity to think about what these agreements can mean
.32 Chattanooga: VW incentives, investment records in state
Chattanooga Times Free Press - Chattanooga, TN, USA
“This is an economic anchor for a three-state region, ” said Matt Kisber, commissioner of the state’s Department of Economic and Community Development. ...
.33 Another Voice Warns of an Innovation Slowdown
The New York Times – NY, USA
… entire career in Silicon Valley, a region that thrives on constant innovation. Ms. Estrin, the former chief technology officer of Cisco Systems, has founded four technology companies. Yet she is deeply worried that Silicon Valley — and the United States as a whole — no longer foster the kind of innovation necessary to develop groundbreaking technologies and sustain economic growth. …
.34 News: Football regions undergo a label change
CSTV Networks
Previously labeled geographically, regions now will be renamed "super regionals" and be categorized numerically so as to not create confusion with the geographically based labels in Division II's regionalization model.
.35 Regional Motorcycle and Tattoo Event Slated for Canton, Ohio
MarketWatch – USA
Sturgis in the Midwest? The USA Motorcycle - Tattoo Classic, the hottest new regional event this fall, is coming to the Stark County Fairgrounds in Canton, Ohio. ...
.36 CalTrans $9.5 Million Gets HOT Lane; Folding Bikes Studies
News10-net – CA
Funds were also made available for the Metro Folding Bike Implementation Plan. Los Angeles will get nearly $85000 to develop a folding bike subsidy program that would provide price discounts to transit riders to purchase a collapsible bike to use in conjunction with bus and/or rail systems.
11. Other Regional Community News for Our Local Planet Contents
MorungExpress - Dimapur, Assam, India
Southasia exists – at different levels of intensity and urgency, yes, but it does exist. To many, the region provides the fourth or fifth level of identity, beyond the clan, language-ethnicity, province and nation state.
.02 Smith pushes case for Asia-Pacific body
The Age - AU
Foreign Minister Stephen Smith has again raised the prospect of an Asia-Pacific Community, telling a gathering of business leaders in India that such an organisation is needed to combat the many security challenges facing the region. …
.03 Russia's isolation plays into China's hands
International Herald Tribune – France
But a summit in the region held signs that China, already a powerful regional player, will benefit from concerns about an aggressive Russia. ...
.04 Importance of People Centred Short to Medium Term Regional Strategy
Asian Tribune - Bangkok, Thailand
The four key concepts of the era of 1980s and 1990s were globalization, liberalization, integration and regionalism. The Colombo Summit increasingly extended and focused on enhancing connectivity ...
.05 Regional trade agreements A second-best choice
Economist – UK
… growing patchwork of these deals have widely different rules, the simplicity and predictability of a single global trading system is being superseded by what Jagdish Bhagwati, an economist and a long-standing foe of regionalism, has called the “spaghetti bowl” of preferential deals. ...
Indiantelevision.com - Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Marathi news channels agree that content-wise the needs of local viewers are different.They cannot be fobbed off with infotainment; what they look for is hardcore news - be it regional, national or international. …
.07 EPA spells end of CSME, says UWI professor
Antigua Sun - St' John's, Antigua and Barbuda
The Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) has been superseded by the Caribbean Forum-European Commission Economic Partnership Agreement (CARIFORUM-EC EPA) … the abandonment of the CSME, “would be a severe setback for the cause of regionalism in the Caribbean. This is not because the direct economic benefits of regionalism are substantial, but because of the political and psychological fallout that the failure of the project may have on the credibility of regionalism, as an option for engaging with globalisation, from a position of greater autonomy.”
.08 Rothesay's all ears when it comes to recreation
Telegraph-Journal - Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada
In regards to the regionalization approach, both Bishop and Quispamsis Mayor Murray Driscoll aren't interested. "No, not really, " Bishop said in response to ...
.09 Regionalization rests on value for money
Telegraph-Journal - Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada
When the five municipalities of Greater Saint John agreed on a growth strategy, residents were urged to "think, speak and act as a community with a common focus, common goals and a regional perspective."
.10 Licence to Skill: Streamlining the skills system by devolving skills to local authorities
New Local government Network – UK
The New Local Government Network proposes a new, simplified and more streamlined skills model, in which the regional tier is rationalised and more funding and control moving from Whitehall to local councils. ...
.11 Public Service - Transport, Local Government and the Regions Issue 11
Public Servant Online - Staffordshire, UK
Finally, many local authorities are thinking creatively about how to work together across boundaries. This concerted approach is sometimes the best way to ...
.12 Irish redundancies rise 36% in 2008 to 23545
FinFacts Ireland – Ireland
“These figures clearly demonstrate that job losses are becoming much more regionally spread (43% of all jobs lost in 2007 were in Dublin). ...
.13 Self-financing development
Daily Times - Lahore, Pakistan
Moreover, regional and sub-regional development banks are particularly suited to provide regional public goods. The growing importance of trade integration ...
.14 BioRN Cluster Management GmbH: Biotechnology Cluster Rhine-Neckar Wins German Top Cluster Contest
MarketWatch – USA
BioRN Cluster Management GmbH is a public-private partnership between the Rhine-Neckar BioRegion, the Heidelberg Technology Park, the Rhine-Neckar Chamber of Commerce and the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region....
.15 Regional council gets high marks
Milton Canadian Champion - Milton, ON, Canada
Most local residents say they're happy with the work of the current regional council. According to a poll recently conducted by Environics Research Group, 85 per cent of Halton residents asked are either very or somewhat satisfied with their regional government....
.16 Regional summit called on Zimbabwe
GMANews.TV
More of Zimbabwe's neighbors are stepping in to try to get political rivals here to agree to share power, with regional leaders calling President Robert Mugabe to an extraordinary summit Wednesday.
.17 With or without the Lisbon Treaty ?
EMportal - Belgrade, Serbia
The University Association for Contemporary European Studies (UACES)organized during the first three days of September in Edinburgh a conference on European Organization with the broad title “ Rethinking the European Union”…. Faith on regionalism was widely attested as an integration instrument to counter the pooling of sovereignties. ...
.18 Thaw of polar regions may need new UN laws
Reuters UK – UK
They said existing laws governing everything from fish stocks to bio-prospecting by pharmaceutical companies were inadequate for the polar regions, ...
.19 South Asia Coral Reef Task Force meeting starts
Maldives Chronicle - Maldives
... development for communication strategy, and regional Marine and research; monitoring and policy issues in addition identify ways and sustainable financing and institutionalization of the task force regionally and nationally. ...
.20 Fossil Fuels Are the Bottled Water of Energy
Huffington Post
2) Like tap water, renewable energy is best harnessed locally or regionally. This has several advantages. For one thing, depending on the energy or water available locally forces planners to be smart about how they manage efficiency, conservation and supply.
.21 At Conference on the Risks to Earth, Few Are Optimistic
New York Times, United States
More than 120 scientists, engineers, analysts and economists from 30 countries were hunkered down here for the 40th annual conference on “planetary emergencies.” The term was coined by Dr. Antonino Zichichi, a native son and a theoretical physicist who has made Erice a hub for experts to discuss persistent, and potentially catastrophic, global challenges. The participants were not particularly optimistic. … The threat of cyberattacks was also a focus of this year’s meeting. … “Every single brain on earth is equal and can trigger an attack, ” … governments were not doing enough to anticipate attacks.
.22 Crush hour on board city trains
New Zealand Herald - New Zealand
This is the reality of peak-time commuting in the wake of what Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee describes as an "enormous increase" in passenger numbers....
.23 "European Regions: Partners for Business"- Danuta HÜBNER
eGov monitor
… presentation will highlight the following elements: - the need for public policies to set a favourable environment for business and entrepreneurship; - the importance of regions for businesses in the age of globalization; - the support that cohesion policy offers to regions and businesses …
.24 Belarus to step up cooperation with Ukraine’s regions
National Legal Internet Portal – Republic of Belarus
Belarus plans to step up cooperation with Ukraine’s regions using the scheme utilised for cooperation with regions of Russia, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said …
.25 The Govt has returned most of the public land
New Vision - Uganda
Like many people who have introduced the term “regional tier” in our political language, Mr Kalungi Serumaga’s views exhibit a serious lack of understanding of the realities of the organisation and dynamics of the modern-day African state in which all power belongs to the people....
.26 Not enough service providers forming strategic alliances
Barbados Advocate – Barbados
MORE service providers need to embark upon strategic alliances to strengthen their competitiveness locally and regionally, according to the Barbados ...
Seattle Times - United States
... and have strong written and verbal communication skills and can effectively communicate with all staff levels and across regional boundaries. ...
12. Blogging about Regional Communities Contents
.01 Authentic Ohio
Cleveburgh Diaspora
Re-branding the Rust Belt replaces one stereotype with another. The perception is still one of a homogeneous region (e.g. Richard Longworth's Midwest), an abstraction that will fail to generate a deeper appreciation of place. Each Midwestern state (however you would define it) has at least two regions. For that matter, I would expect that every state has a couple of identities that defy stereotyping. Large-scale myth making won't generate much, if any, economic activity. …
.02 Economic development is a matter of attitude, say experts
By Place Marketing Group(Place Marketing Group)
Instead, Bryant said, counties and communities need to think regionally, and market their combined advantages as a package. Elected leaders need to better understand that what benefits a neighboring county or community can also benefit ...
.03 Why We Should Get Behind A Bold Vision For UM
By Smart City Consulting
In addition, an urban university should adopt “a new version of the three R’s to describe the activities of the new metropolitan university – revitalization, relevance and regionalism.” The good news is that University of Memphis is ...
.04 Doomsday for 6A
New Jersey Left Behind
The accepted wisdom is that it is typical New Jersey residents – not the NJEA members, not the school board members, not the DOE – who value home rule and condemn regionalization. Is it the other way around? Is it the average citizen (whoever that is) who is willing to give it a try and the politicians whom, legislation to the contrary, are committed to the continuation of home rule run amok?
.05 buckeye innovation zones (biz)
I Will Shout Youngstown
"Our Ohio Hubs of Innovation and Opportunity program will leverage our regional strengths to facilitate and catalyze the creation of at least 12 regionally designated places where knowledge and place-based assets intersect; places where ...
Note - Check the list under the sidebar heading: “A Sample of Actionable Ideas”
.06 Regionalism Rears its Ugly Head in Richmond
By Steven Latimer(Steven Latimer)
Yesterday when I saw that the masthead of Thursday's Richmond Times-Dispatch proclaimed that plans are underway to create another unelected transportation (taxing) authority - this time for the Richmond region - I almost had to do a ...
.07 Metro Nation
CEOs for Cities
Much has been written about regionalism and our "metro nation" lately. But there is little evidence that local governments, even within a metro area, can cooperate on the big issues. One organization stands in stark contrast to business as usual -- ...
SEPTA WATCH
This reality forces a reassessment of the perennial transit problems of the region: adapting an essentially late 19th and early 20th century system to the widening spatial gap between work and home and curbing the auto driven sprawl tendencies of the last 60 years. …
.09 Greendale blogger focuses on regionalism instead of solely Milwaukee
By Greg Kowalski
Bob DeRoche, a GreendaleNOW blogger, provides some good points on his blog regarding Milwaukee's overall metropolitan transit network. The big question is, "What transit network!?" Bob correctly notes that it's a pain in the behind for ...
.10 Theory Talk #15
By Peer Schouten
The regionalism you put forward in your book A World of Regions consists, resuming, basically of the recognition of regionally converging trends on various policy issues, an added value in relation to both Realism and Liberalism for ...
.11 Implications of a Sapient Governance, 3
Question Everything
Ethnic differences have overcome national or regional identities. See this article on ethnic cleansing as a response. How are people going to respond to a contracting economic system? Contraction will mean fewer resources per person and ...
.12 Emerging regional architecture in Asia
East Asia Forum
Therefore, the conclusion of India-ASEAN FTA negotiations is an important event in the direction of emerging broader Asian regional architecture for regionalism. The author is director-general, Research and Information System for ...
.13 Independence for England II
By Toque
The “Ministry of Justice” in reply to my recent email: … Government has not conducted and is not aware of any polling concerning the introduction of Regional Ministers. The Prime Minister appointed a Minister for each of the nine English regions in June last year in order to strengthen the regions’ sense of strategic direction and links with central Government.
By nicoladinsdale
‘The role of a regional champion is an interesting one. The post operates strategically by working with third sector infrastructure organisations across the East Midlands.’ Key aspects of the role include: 1. Working regionally and sub-regionally developing ICT strategies, and …
.15 Locals make a difference with disaster response to Gustav
Neighbors helping Neighbors
On Thursday, we deployed two additional ERVs and additional volunteers Other volunteers are enroute to the area. The National Capital Area has activated its Regional Disaster Coordination Center (RDCC) at its Fairfax headquarters. ...
.16 Happy birthday - GlobalHigherEd turns 1
GlobalHigherEd
... an index of indexes; regionalism, interregionalism and higher education restructuring; the EU’s soon to be launched strategic framework on the “coordination of international science and technology cooperation”; bibliometrics; ...
.17 Resources: TK in conservation literature; Regional Environmental Management
By Kirsty Galloway McLean
Results show that this regional environmental management program achieved poor levels of Indigenous participation. This finding, the authors suggest, has important implications for the optimistic claims …
.18 Analysis of EPAs negotiations - July 2008
By Geopolitis
If anything, it is clear that the EPA puts huge pressure on the regional integration process in South Africa and has the potential to regionally disintegrate the region. Zambia. Zambia initialled due to some export products, ...
.19 Notion of 'Azadi' and 'Kashmiriyat'
By M.J. Akbar's Blog: Presented by ilaxi
Paucity in the outlook of nationalism breeds regionalism which gives birth to separatism. A powerful feeling of nationalism is the right weapon for ending separatism. The reason the poison of separatism has spread over many regions in ...
.20 India, Bharat or just a Union of States???
By justcasual(subhajit)
I’m in no mood to draw any conclusions…rather this is not something I intend to do. What I’m out to seek is what exactly Regionalism is? ...
.21 Canadian election: why I’m not worried....much
By Tralfaz(Tralfaz)
But Canadian elections aren't won nationally--they're won regionally: Atlantic Canada, Québec, Ontario, Western Canada (the North has 3 seats in total; rarely a factor). One has to follow polling regionally--usually provincially, ...
.22 Neighborhoodization and British Pubs
By ttaylor
So now that oil companies have stepped on the long tail of the global economy, what’s next?
Localization. Regionalization, maybe? Neighborhoodization? …
.23 Russia, Europe and USA: Fundamental Geopolitics
by F. William Engdahl
Fundamental axioms of geopolitics. What few people realize is that the architect of America's post-1945 grand strategy was a British national, Sir Halford Mackinder. Mackinder, the grand strategist of British imperial power since his landmark 1904 paper, the Geographical Pivot of History, defined how the United States could dominate the post World War Two...
.24 Is Global Studies a Field? (part 2)
By ttuttle15
Area courses can further understanding of how globalization is variously understood and enacted in different parts of the world, through such concepts as global-local and critical regionalism. The final issue that I would like to touch ...
.25 Freshwater Ecoregions of the World
Environment & Agriculture Blog @ CSU Library
This web site provides a new global biogeographic regionalization of the Earth's freshwater biodiversity. Covering virtually all freshwater habitats on Earth, this first-ever ecoregion map, together with associated species data, ...
.26 Hauling away protesters in advance.
By greenchimes(greenchimes)
… every police department in the Metro is under the coordination and … in her 35 years of working in dozens of local and regional venues "for … change in this country, " she had never seen anything the likes of which is occurring this weekend across the Cities. …
.27 Prediction: McClatchy will regionalize newspapers
By McClatchy Watch
Ken's Corner peers into McClatchy's future, and sees regionalization:. It’s obvious that McClatchy is planning to regionalize its news coverage. In other words, one major paper in an area with several regionally zoned editions. ...
.28 Net Loss: Internet Prophets, Private Profits, and the Costs to Community
By admin
… driving force of the Silicon Valley model. He then examines the complex dynamic of the process whereby regional economies have been changing as business alliances built around industries like the Internet replace the broader public investments that fuelled regional growth in the past. A radical restructuring of once regionally focused industries like banking, electric utilities, and telephone companies is under way, with changes in federal regulation helping to undermine regional planning and the power of local community actors ...
Free Printable Maps
Here are some climate regions world map to show you the various climate classifications....
13. Announcements and Regional Links. Contents
.01 Measuring and Understanding the Creative Economy in the Regions: Methodological Approaches and Issues (PDF) - 24-25 September 2008 - School of Geography, University of Southampton, UK – Creative Regions Research Network
The seminar will focus on the methodological approaches used and the issues encountered when investigating the creative industries and their regional dimension. Speakers will be asked to present papers on various methodologies used to the study of the creative and cultural industries. Quantitative, qualitative and ethnographic approaches should be considered. The range of papers should cover both theoretical perspectives and practical examples of the issues and challenges faced by researchers in trying to capture the economic, social and cultural dimensions of the creative economy.
Creative Regions Research Network
This research network aims to address trends and issues around the development of the creative and cultural industries at the regional level in UK and abroad, fostering a multi-disciplinary debate among researchers, practitioners and policy makers in the field. The research network will address four themes which are central to the research on creative industries and the regions, and which require further analysis and investigation:
Regional Studies Association Research Networks are formed by the Association's members to organise a series of events to examine an issue of collective interest. Therefore, the activities of the Regional Studies Association Research Network on Creative Industries, and the Regions are open to any of the Regional Studies Association members and to any other individuals interested in contributing to a better understanding of the topic. If you want to be involved in the activities of the research network or if you want to keep informed about future events, please contact: Creative.Regions@soton.ac.uk
.02 5th Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Roundtable - Moving Ahead: Achieving Regional Leadership on Transportation, Land Use and Environmental Solutions - November 7, 2008 - Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) - Philadelphia, PA
Sponsored by :the Regional and Intergovernmental Planning Division, American Planning Association and APA Chapters: (invited) Delaware, Maryland, National Capital Area, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia Hosted by: Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) and Wilmington Area Planning Council (WILMAPCO)
Registration Contact: Candace Snyder, Director, Office of Public Affairs - E-mail:csnyder@dvrpc.org
.03 Exploring the Past, Anticipating the Future – International Studies Association - ISA's 50th Annual Convention – New York City, NY, USA – February 15-18, 2009
… 2009 ISA Annual Convention investigates different aspects of change and continuity in international relations under the heading of exploring the past and anticipating the future. Regional arms races, globalization, development, secularization, and the earth’s climate are all stories of change. Is mankind being overwhelmed by these changes or can we handle them in piecemeal fashion? Is the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists justified in moving its doomsday clock forward from 17 minutes to midnight in 1991 to just 5 minutes to midnight in 2007, closer to doomsday than at any time since World War II except the 1950s and the early 1980s? Does globalization provide an incremental road to development, democracy, peace, and respect for human rights, or a slippery slope towards increased inequalities and civil strife?
.04 United Nations University - Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS)
The United Nations University - Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS) is a research and training unit of the United Nations University. UNU-CRIS specialises in studying the processes and consequences of regional integration and cooperation. UNU-CRIS, established in Bruges in 2001, is a research and training programme of the United Nations University. …
W-2003/1: Theorising Regionhood - By: Luk Van Langenhove
This paper argues that, notwithstanding the different meanings attributed to the concept of region, and notwithstanding the different ways in which regional integration manifestates itself, there is a meaningful essence to ‘region’ and ‘regional integration’. By introducing the neologism of ‘regionhood’ as well as a metaphor from psychology on what constitutes regionhood, a social constructionist approach to regions is outlined that should constitute a firm basis to a truly interdisciplinary study of regionalism and regionalisation...
.05 IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.
Welcome to the largest bibliographic database dedicated to Economics and available freely on the Internet. Over 600'000 items of research can be browsed or searched, and over 500'000 can be downloaded in full text! This site is part of a large volunteer effort to enhance the free dissemination of research in Economics, RePEc
.06 List of regions in Australia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of regions in Australia that are not Australian states or territories. Note that the regions in this list do not necessarily have any official status.
.07 United Nations Development Programme - UNDP | Regions
UNDP is on the ground in 166 countries, working on global and national development challenges.
.08 GARNET Network of Excellence
GARNET is a Network of Excellence on Global Governance, Regionalisation and Regulation: The Role of the EU funded under the European Commission’s 6th Framework Programme and comprising 42 leading research centres and universities. It is coordinated by the Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation at the University of Warwick. …
Interregionalism: A Case Study of the European Union and Mercosur (PDF)
Valeria Marina Valle2, University of Mexico
GARNET Working Paper No: 51/08, July 2008
14. Custom search: region, regions, regional communities Contents
To search on topics like those in Regional Community Development News use this custom search engine which utilizes regional related sites. Entering the term regional politics returned 294 items; geopolitics returned 204 items. Please recommend links for inclusion.
My name is Tom Christoffel. I've worked in the field of intergovernmental cooperation since 1973. As a consequence, "I see regions work. Regional Community Development News is published bi-monthly, as of May 7, 2008, based on news reports as of Wednesday of the publication week. It was published weekly through April 23, 2008. At the start, it was twice-weekly.
Making visible analysis and actions at multi-jurisdictional regional scales is its purpose. "Think globally, act locally" was innovative in its time. Today the local scale is often too small to address today's needs and opportunities. "Think local planet, act regionally, ” is my candidate paradigm. No one said we're only allowed one paradigm.
We can see that “regional communities” are organized locally and now act both to avoid tragedy in the commons and gain benefits. An effective multi-jurisdictional regional community has DNA. It is geographically Defined; has a common Name and its Alignment is inclusive of smaller communities and participatory in larger communities. So, by scanning this compilation, reading articles and checking organizations - you too will be able to see the regional communities that already exist.
News references are found using the Google News search service. Media article links are “fair use” to transform globally scattered reports to make regional approaches visible. Links go to the publisher and do not compete with it. Such publishers are likely to have related stories and thus be seen by new customers. “Regional” is an emerging news category. There is no charge for this service and no profit is made from its use, though any user can become more aware of the topic itself.
To search previous issues since 2003 go to: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/regions_work/
The term “Development” was added to the name in January, 2006 and the Group was renamed Regional Community Networkers & RCDNews as of March 10, 2008.
For a free subscription use this email link – no additional information required:
regions_work-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
For the Google Groups version go to:
http://groups.google.com/group/regional-community-development-news
Editions since April 11, 2007 and other tools are at: http://regional-communities.blogspot.com/
Questions, comments or items to feature in Regional Community Development News?
Please email the editor: Tom.Christoffel@gmail.com
Thomas J. (Tom) Christoffel, AICP - www.regionalintelligence.com
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