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 ARS is pleased to announce the official unveiling of RegionLink, a new resource for practitioners that combines the many features of internet technology with personal networking to provide up-to-date practical tools, case studies, reports, and access to experts and peer practitioners who are working to build stronger regions.
RegionLink is moderated by the Alliance for Regional Stewardship (ARS) team, and is designed to facilitate user contributions and quick leveraging of resources to get ideas to solve problems when you need them. The RegionLink website (www.regionlink.org) includes:
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Issues Database allows users to search the many resources available by sector, topic, or specified question.
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Practitioner Network provides contact information for regional practitioners around the country, along with issues being addressed by their organization.
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Library includes presentations from ARS National Forums and other conferences, monographs, research reports, case studies, book reviews, and archived news articles.
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Discussion provides a place to ask questions and post answers, resource references, and make announcements.
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Links provides connections to regional initiatives and organizations as well as national organizations and think tanks.
Other interactive elements of RegionLink include listserv and survey capacities. Listservs can easily be created for connecting practitioners interested in a particular topicsay smart growth or affordable housing. The survey capacity makes it easy to identify and get feedback on priority issues as well as schedule meetings/conference calls and gather information from users.
We are using ?Mambo,? an award-winning full-featured content management system that allows new tools and components to be easily added to the RegionLink website. This will allow us to expand the site as contributions and participation grows. We have a growing network of over 750 regional stewards, researchers, funders and others -- a reservoir of knowledge and innovation that RegionLink will help make more accessible for all of us.
Ultimately, the success of any online resource depends on the energy and capabilities of its participants. These social and intellectual assets are what make RegionLink distinctive. Its true value lies in the network of experienced practitioners, coordinated by the ARS team who help collect the knowledge and connect stewards who are doing leading-edge work.
We encourage you to take some time to visit the RegionLink website (www.regionlink.org) and learn more about what it offers. Please take a moment to register your organization (a link is provided on the home page), and visit our discussion page to leave feedback on RegionLink.
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