Sustainable Regional Economic Development
Designing successful economic development programs is a very difficult task. Most state or regional planning boards rely on "ad-based" campaigns that lack any significant strategic content. Most programs simply produce a series of glossy booklets that tout the region's amenities or praise its "hard-working" people. The success gained by these shotgun programs is often very limited. The development that does occur typically fails to benefit the local community beyond a simple job count. Economic development programs must be cognizant of generating sustainable development, sustainable not just from an ecological point of view but also from the viewpoint of preserving the region's economic and social integrity. Economic development can be pathological if the economic change erodes the community base or increases the vulnerability to macroeconomic fluctuations. Development programs must be designed to harbor the core community values while offering new economic opportunities. What is needed is a strategic development plan that contains the tools necessary for the measurement of social and economic change. The purpose of this paper is to establish a method of regional development design which can generate sustainable economic development. The concept of sustainable economic development is expanded beyond its traditional ecological boundaries to include development that is resistant to social degradation as well as insulated from macroeconomic fluctuations. The paper examines the psychological and community core issues that follow economic transformation. It then offers a portfolio-planning option that treats a local economy as if it were a "portfolio" which can be actively managed to avoid unnecessary market risks. It concludes with a brief examination of