The OECD Chicago Metropolitan Tri-State Territorial Review defined the region as 21 counties in 3 states. When the grant to engage the OECD was originally awarded and key stakeholders were notified, there was a lot of resistance and uncertainty of the value of working together. Now, several years later, previous barriers and obstacles are continuing to come down. One of the most interesting things uncovered during the working teams kick-off in March was the lack of understanding regarding prominent organizations, initiatives, programs, and infrastructure in this region.
So that is where we are starting. As an example, the Alliance Innovation team is collecting data on our innovation assets and mapping the ecosystem. This goal came out of the team discussion using the Strategic Doing process and tracks one of the key findings in the Review. This newsletter and future editions will keep you posted on the four teams and their progress. Each team set its own goals and the initial projects will help set the foundation for future project identification and cross jurisdictional collaboration.
There are an abundance of regional assets and best practices that can be tapped into, replicated and expanded. In fact, recently, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced two Investing in Manufacturing Community Partnership designations from this region. Only 12 communities were designated nationally. This program is designed to accelerate the resurgence of manufacturing and it is a source of pride. Congratulations to the Illinois counties and the Milwaukee 7—we look forward to supporting your efforts.