RegionWatch Index

MAY 2004

ARS ACTIVITIES


Austin Forum Attracts Media Attention, Record Attendance

Plans Underway for next Forum in Salt Lake City, Utah

Over 100 individuals attended the recent National Forum on Regional Stewardship in Austin, Texas, making for a lively group of practitioners interested in learning and sharing about ways to engage private sector leadership in strengthening regional communities. Highlights of the three-day event included a stimulating program on the contributions of CEOs to improving mobility and closing the achievement gap in Central Texas, and Friday morning plenary on attracting and retaining creative and talented people. The Austin Forum ended on a high note with presentation of the first-ever Regional Stewardship Awards (see story, below), and a preview of the next National Forum on Regional Stewardship, to be held November 10-12, 2004 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Where the Austin Forum focused on the role of corporate and other organizational leaders in advancing the regional agenda, the Salt Lake City Forum will highlight the importance of engaging the media in outreach to the public on regional initiatives, among other topics. This months National Forum on Regional Stewardship did not go unnoticed by the Austin media, having generated coverage in the Austin American-Statesman. One article, appearing on Saturday, May 22nd, shone a spotlight on ARS founding chair Becky Morgan and her husband, Jim Morgan, both of whom have been active in the regional stewardship movement dating back to their involvement with Joint Venture: Silicon Valley. The other, a commentary appearing on Sunday, May 23rd, picked up the general theme of the Forum by noting the Lower Colorado River Authoritys decision to link electric- and water-utility extension to issues of transportation and environmental protection. To view Acrobat compatible versions of the articles, click on the buttons below. A follow-up compact disk with pre-conference materials, session summaries, handouts, and PowerPoint presentations from the Austin Forum is in production and will be available soon. For more information on the upcoming National Forum on Regional Stewardship in Salt Lake City, contact Amy Carrier, Alliance Manager, at or via e-mail at .

[AUSTIN AMERICAN STATESMAN ARTICLES ]

Regional Stewardship Awards Presented in Austin

Four Regions Honored for Excellence in Collaboration for Results

The first-ever Regional Stewardship Awards were presented at a luncheon ceremony in Austin, Texas on Friday, May 21st. Recognized for their achievements were the Greater Wasatch Region, Utah (Gold Award$25,000), Greater Birmingham, Alabama (Silver Award$15,000), the Fresno Region, California (Bronze Award$7,500), and the Gateway Cities Region, California (Honorable Mention$2,500). Cash stipends awarded through the program are provided by the Morgan Family Foundation of Menlo Park, California, which was established by Jim and Becky Morgan in 1993. A press release explaining the Regional Stewardship Award program and detailing the accomplishments for which this years award recipients were recognized may be downloaded by clicking the button below. Additionally, an article on the Awards appeared in The Birmingham News on Saturday, May 22nd. Click below to view that article. For more information on the Regional Stewardship Award program, contact Amy Carrier, Alliance Manager, at or via e-mail at . For more information on the Morgan Family Foundation, direct your browser to .

[DOWNLOAD PRESS RELEASE] [BIRMINGHAM NEWS ARTICLE]


How Can ARS Serve You Better?

We Invite Your Feedback

As members of the ARS community of regional practitioners, your perspectives regarding our activities and services are critical to ensuring our continued value to you and the stewardship movement. A pilot survey on current and proposed activities as well the information needs of regional practitioners was administered at the National Forum on Regional Stewardship in Austin earlier this month. To elicit the views of a larger cohort of respondents, we urge you to download the survey questionnaire by clicking on the button below. Please complete the questionnaire and return it to ARS via facsimile at or by mail (, Philadelphia, PA 19104 ). As we work to upgrade and expand our online resources, we especially invite your input on the form and nature of information services you would find most helpful in your work.

[DOWNLOAD QUESTIONNAIRE]

NEWS YOU CAN USE


Partner Profile: National Association of Regional Councils

Washington, D.C

Each month, we profile a national organization with which ARS has partnered to reach a broader constituency. In profile this month is the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC), which for more than three decades has represented multi-purpose regional councils of government that assist community leaders and citizens in developing common strategies for addressing cross-cutting transportation, economic development, air and water quality, social equity, growth, and other challenges. Today, NARC welcomes membership from other public, private, academic, nonprofit, and civic regional organizations and interests as it works to engage the regional community in achieving regional excellence. Additionally, the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC) fosters regional cooperation and seeks to build regional communities through advocacy at the federal and state levels, the provision of direct training and technical assistance and research on timely regional topics. Robert Sokolowski is the executive director of NARC. For more information on the National Association of Regional Councils, visit their website at www.narc.org.

[FULL ARTICLE]

REGIONAL EXCHANGE


Regional Profile: Center for Collaborative Policy

California State University, Sacramento, California

Formerly known as the California Center for Dispute Resolution, the Center for Collaborative Policy (CCP) is a joint program of California State University at Sacramento and the McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific. The mission of the Center is to build the capacity of public agencies, stakeholder groups, and the public to use collaborative strategies to improve policy outcomes. Specifically, the Center seeks to (1) enhance the existing capacity of governing institutions to use collaborative methods while assisting communities and the public to collaboratively interact with governing institutions; (2) create and share knowledge about collaborative public policy development and capacity building; (3) nurture Californias collaborative policy-development and civic-engagement network; and (4) provide opportunities for practitioners ongoing professional growth. Susan Sherry is executive director of the Center for Collaborative Policy. For more information on CCP, visit their website at www.csus.edu/ccp.

[FULL ARTICLE]

PUBLICATIONS AND MEDIA


New quarterly magazine: The Next American City

Trends in urban development, society and economy

A new quarterly magazine of logical interest to the regional stewardship community is The Next American City, which seeks to explore the transformation of America's cities and suburbs by examining how and why our built environment, economy, society, and culture are changing. The magazine is published by The Next American City Inc., a nonprofit organization that tracks trends in municipal marketing, innovation and demographics, taking the position that America has abandoned the basic assumptions that have shaped debates about urban and suburban economics, policy and culture for the past half-century. The Next American City asks, "Where do we go from here?in this rapidly changing landscape, how can businesses and developers thrive? How can cities and suburbs expand their economies? And how can our society successfully address social and environmental challenges? The organization has just released the fifth issue of its quarterly magazine, in which Richard Florida, author of the best-selling book The Rise of the Creative Class, responds to recent criticism regarding his talent-centered program for urban and regional competitiveness. To access the article, direct your browser to www.americancity.org/Archives/Issue5/florida.html.

[FULL ARTICLE]


OPINION

Cities Scramble for Immigrants


By Neal Peirce


Slowed down a tad by 9/11 and then recession, the tsunami of immigration into the United States again rolls on, creating classes of winners and losers among U.S. cities and regions. How do the winners and losers sort themselves out? Suffice it to say that the traditional American assertion that our diversity is our strength is far more than feel-good rhetoric. Why? Its apparently the combination of sheer immigrant energy with globalizationthe Internet, satellite communications, ease of travel, enabling people from vast areas of the globe to connect, transfer information and money and engage in borderless commerce.

[FULL ARTICLE]


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RegionWatch Index