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 Founded 1997, the Institute for Local Governance and Regional Growth is housed at the University at Buffalo, part of the State University of New York system. The Institute has built a reputation in the Buffalo-Niagara community as an organization committed to sound research and analysis of issues affecting the region. In addition to leveraging the resources of the university, the Institute often partners with the community to address matters of regional concern, particularly in the areas of economy and governance.
Through its 12-member staff and rotating cadre of graduate assistants, the Institute has addressed issues critical to Buffalo-Niagaras quality of life, including regional economic development, the design of quantitative measures of regional performance (featured in annual State of the Region reports), the application of technology to governance, and the design and maintenance of regional information databases. Recognized for its expertise, objectivity and nonpartisanship, the Institute has been consulted by government at all levels and often is called upon to facilitate projects crossing sectors and boundaries, sometimes on controversial issues.
Numerous publications and status reports on ongoing projects are available online from the Institute. Examples include Municipal Cooperative Agreements in Western New York, Regionalism: From Agenda to Action and State-County Relations in New York: Key Partnership Issues. Most may be downloaded using Adobe Acrobat Reader.
John B. Sheffer, II is executive director of the Institute for Local Governance and Regional Growth; for more information, visit the website http://regional-institute.buffalo.edu.
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