These are not articlesWorld Bank Launches Open Data Initiative Last week, the World Bank launched its new data.worldbank.org website as part of its open data initiative. This new website makes global economic and development statistics and indicators available in English, Spanish, French and Arabic. Visitors to the site are able manipulate and reuse that data without restrictions, allowing them to create applications, programs, visualizations, and other tools in order to measure the progress of development initiatives. The website also includes additional tools to help users find and use indicators and data quickly, including download and visualization options and a how-to guide. The launch of the open data website coincides with the release of the World Development Indicators (WDI) 2010, which are also available in the websites data catalogue. The World Bank will add datasets and indicators in the coming months and encourages users to provide feedback on the data, the usability and the features. Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing Launches Going-3D: Visualizing Land Use Planning tool The Province of Ontario is dedicated to developing “Complete” and sustainable communities that manage population growth through innovative land use planning policies. A population of 11.5 million people and 5.6 million jobs is forecasted for the Greater Golden Horseshoe area of the Province alone by 2031. To accommodate this growth and create communities where people can live, work and play, policies encourage transit-oriented development, intensification, and the protection of employment lands. But these are also factors that create competitive cities and regions that can attract talented people and innovative businesses. Since economic development and land-use planning goals are closely linked, what types of tools can be applied that achieve them both? The Provincial Planning Policy Branch (PPPB) of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing launched its interactive Community Planning and Development 3D Visualization Portal on April 13, 2010. The “Going 3D” portal is premised on the idea that “a picture is worth a thousand words”, and is intended to raise awareness and understanding of Ontario’s policy-led land-use system for planners and non-planners alike. It engages that wide audience with hypothetical "on the ground" scenarios and potential outcomes in different theme areas - economic development, intensification, climate change, transit supportiveness and community design - at five different scales – town, village, district, block and site. The portal provides a basic understanding of how communities could look if the Province achieves it goal of more complete communities. For those outside of Ontario, it provides an understanding of how land use policies are responding to the changing policy and natural environment that Canadian communities are subject to. For more information, access the 3D InfoSheet. If you prefer a text version, take a look at the portal’s resource list. Fast Company Announces the Fast Cities of 2010 Fast Company magazine has released its annual Fast Cities list highlighting innovative ideas being put into action in twelve American cities. This year’s Fast Cities are: Dallas, Texas; Austin, Texas; Cleveland, Ohio; Denver, Colorado; Boulder, Colorado; New York, New York; Portland, Oregon; Oakland, California; Savannah, Georgia; Boston, Massachusetts; San Francisco, California; and Minneapolis, Minnesota. These cities have been recognised for a range of initiatives covering energy, transportation, the environment, arts and culture, education, industry development, technology, neighbourhood renaissance efforts, sustainable local food programs, and in the case of San Francisco, California, developing an “open-source” approach to municipal government. Take a few minutes to read the links to each city above, you will certainly come away inspired. How Creating Quality Jobs Can Transform the Economic Development Landscape The report Creating Quality Jobs: Transforming the Economic Development Landscape was released by the International Economic Development Council in March 2010. This report aims to identify the role of economic developers in creating quality jobs and improving the quality of existing jobs. The need for communities to create skilled people in order to create quality jobs is emphasized. The bulk of the information was obtained through in-depth case studies in seven US locations: Ponca City, Oklahoma; San Jose, California; Newton, Iowa; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Tupelo, Mississippi; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Akron, Ohio. These case studies are good examples for economic professionals to use to benchmark their employment initiatives. In today's market, the role of economic developers is rapidly changing in response to a changing economy, and this report also discusses some of these changes and new roles in the economic development profession. To view the full document click here. Education in Finland: Why are they so much better at it than us?As communities struggle with preparing children for the knowledge economy, Finland is increasingly being held up as a model of education approaches. Each year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) – an association of developed, industrial nations – measures educational achievements within its schools. The OCED’s PISA exam measures the knowledge of 15 year olds in the fields of science, reading and mathematics. Finland ranks #1 in science and #1 in reading, and is ranked #2 (behind South Korea) in math. At the same time, Finnish students actually spend fewer hours in school than anywhere in the industrialized world. They also only begin school at age 7, much later than in other countries. In many parts of Canada, for example, students may start attending junior kindergarten as young as age 4. This striking disconnect – less school, better results – prompted more than 100 educational fact-finding missions to Finland last year, from all over the world. Some analysts attribute the success to high levels of continuity from year to year in Finnish education, high levels of prestige for teachers, and a focus on ensuring that students falling behind are given extra help by additional teachers in the classroom. |
Client Corner St. Thomas Credits New Strategic Plan for MASCO ExpansionThe City of St. Thomas recently announced that Masco Canada Ltd., a subsidiary of Masco Corporation, is consolidating its London and St. Thomas operations into a single operation located at the former Sterling Truck Factory in St. Thomas. In addition to a current St. Thomas-based workforce of 120, Masco will move more than 185 additional positions into the community. Dennis Broome, President of the St. Thomas Economic Development Corporation (EDC), noted that “Masco Canada’s decision to grow in St. Thomas further enforces the EDC’s focus on an enhanced Business Retention and Expansion program, as identified in the recently completed Economic Development Strategic Plan.” This Plan was developed by the EDC and Millier Dickinson Blais in 2009, and lays out a series of programs and targets for the EDC and the community. Resource ReviewAutism and Economic Development: Create Your Own Economy This definitely isn’t your standard economics text. Tyler Cowen, a professor of economics at George Mason University in Virginia, has penned a quirky but insightful book on how to Create Your Own Economy. He begins with an extended analogy, looking at autism as a model of how we might better learn to organize information in our own lives in order to focus on what is truly important, and better position ourselves to pursue economic opportunities. Essentially, Cowan suggests that we have unfairly stigmatized autistics, and that their ability to focus on specific issues and fields of interest represents a positive aspect of autism, one that we might try to emulate. With digressions into the life of Sherlock Holmes, the world of classical music, and the practices of Tibetan Buddhism, there’s lots here to keep the book interesting. And while the autism analogy may oversimplify things a little, it’s fascinating to follow Cowen as he links tools like Google and the rise of the Internet economy, and we may use those tools to focus very intensely on specific economic opportunities, in much the same way that some people with autism become key experts in their chosen fields. Create Your Own Economy is definitely not like anything else on your bookshelf, but is well worth a look. You can purchase the book here. Out and aboutMembers of the Millier Dickinson Blais team will be participating in these upcoming events: May
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Employment Development Index March 2010 Our Employment Development Index is a visual representation of changes in regional employment figures over time. For a Statistics Canada map of the economic regions highlighted in the Employment Development Index, click here. |
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Brock Dickinson will be delivering part of the