Tri-State leaders, Brookings tap mutual growth outlook - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

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Officials at the Washington, D.C.-based knew when they releasesd their Blueprint for American Prosperity last Novembedr that Ohio would be a critica state inthe campaign, just as it is in this year's presidential race. But Brookings has focusec more intensely onthe Tri-State in recengt months, hoping to build upon the time and efforr that elected officials and local busineszs and community leaders have invested in developing plans to grow the region's economic base. And the blueprint has become part of the local conversatiobn aboutthe region's future. "We've really stepped up to identifuy opportunities to support thework they're President Ellen van der Horst said.
"We very much 'We think the work you're doinvg is important, and we'd like to understan how we can be supportive of Plus with thework we're doing in this region, we becoms sort of a beta site for a lot of their work and theirf policy agenda." At a gatherinf at the April 21, University of Cincinnatki President Nancy Zimpher explained to dozens of electecd officials and business and community leaders how Cincinnatui Mayor Mark Mallory's GO Cincinnati plan overlape with the regional Agenda 360 planning which is modeled aftert Northern Kentucky's Vision 2015 plan.
The Brookingds Blueprint, she said, is connected with all of thos efforts because of the federal changes it advocates and what thos e could mean for the regionlong term. "We're a regiojn that's ready. That's what's so exciting about Zimpher said. "All this buildup - identifyingy industry clusters, investing in entrepreneurshipp and commercialization throughCincy Tech. That's all groundwork that Southwest Ohio isready for, and that puts us ahead of the Two policy papers released by Brookings April 22, for recommend new federal approaches to innovation programd and regional industry clusters.
One argues the federalk government should establish a devoted to supportin g business effortsto innovate. The othef calls for the government to establish a federal industryg clusters program to encourage companiess and other groups to organize in clustersx to produce more commercial innovationand higher-payinfg jobs. Both proposals would benefit the Tri-State, said Doug Moormann, vice president of economic development for the Cincinnati USARegional "Anything we can do to spur innovationn is essential because that is one of the placew that America competes best," he "We can't always produce things at the lowesg price anymore, but we can be the people who figuree out how to do it The partnership already has focused on promoting industryt clusters to attract companies that have similar products or services and, need similar resources and labor.
And the GO Cincinnatk plan unveiled earlier this year has a similar focuws as a way to grow the economy andcreatd jobs. The federal government could help by makinhg moreinformation available, Moormann "Right now it is very difficulr to find out which companiesd are in a particular cluster," he said, becaused it keeps that data confidential. The key with both proposala is to make the government ahelpful partner, said Howardc Wial, an economist with Brookings and coauthor of the innovatio n policy paper.
"In our proposal, government doesn't pick which industry to favor," Wial "We think that there is plenty of room for this sort of innovatiob in just aboutany industry." And Tri-State busineses leaders hope it starts The Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy Program unveiled its Blueprint for Americanb Prosperity campaign last year. The goal is to changr the federal government's approach towarrd the nation's metropolitan areas, which account for the vast majoritty ofthe country's population, jobs and wealth.
Brookingz released two new policy papers as part of the campaignmApril 22: "Boosting Productivity, Innovation and Growtn through a National Innovation Foundation" and "Clusterxs and Competitiveness: A New Federal Role for Stimulating Regional Economies." More informatioh at www.brookings.edu under recent research and commentary.