Southeastern Massachusetts Council on Sustainability
Economic Development Working Group
DRAFT #4
VISION FOR A SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY
A vibrant, ecologically responsible regional economy that is characterized by both high levels of economic growth and employment that effectively integrates local renewable resources and shares opportunity and prosperity. Its features include:
- Diversity: A resilient regional economy that promotes prosperity for all and is varied in industry type and size and diverse in worker talent, experience and occupation.
- Self-Reliance: An economy that nurtures local business and talent while meeting local and regional needs to the greatest extent practicable with outside trade and commerce adding value.
- Prudent use of resources: An economy that maintains and renews natural capital (resources), while protecting historical resources and supporting cultural amenities.
- Investment in human capital: An economy that develops a skilled workforce and promotes the expansion of intellectual assets.
GOALS FOR A SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY
1. The regional economy will achieve a competitive level of prosperity and sustainability as measured by indicators of employment, education, income and productivity, while maintaining or improving the region’s quality of life.
- Short and Long Term Goal: Meet or exceed statewide indicators and report to the community on the sustainable health of the region.
- Immediate Actions:
- Establish measurable goals.
- Identify indicators for measuring progress toward those goals.
- Assemble data to assess the current state of the region’s economy to establish a baseline to measure progress.
- Identify gaps.
- Develop an action plan.
2. The regional economy will maintain and promote a critical mass of support for emerging industry clusters through workforce development programs to attract and retain businesses in sustainable industries and collaborative associations and linkages to educational and financial institutions. Emerging clusters will include, but not be limited to, marine science, medical devices, biotech, precision manufacturing, energy efficiency, renewable energy, value-added agriculture, viticulture, aquaculture and natural resource restoration.
- Short Term Goals:
- Provide support to businesses in emerging clusters that are already located in the region by identifying and responding to their specific needs.
- Anticipate emerging clusters and prepare the region to support them.
- Establish collaborations and linkages between and among educational and financial institutions.
- Establish appropriate workforce development programs
- Long Term Goal:
- Continuous updating and identifying of clusters and cluster needs.
- Immediate Actions:
- Identify and characterize emerging clusters.
- Assess the current state and needs of the emerging clusters to establish a baseline for further action
- Identify gaps.
- Develop an action plan.
3. The regional economy will be supported by a lifelong learning system that produces knowledgeable consumers and a workforce that meets the needs of existing businesses and emerging clusters.
- Short Term Goal:
- Develop a collaborative system of training delivery that is based on labor outlook for a green economy, an understanding of needed skills, an assessment of current training delivery capacity and closing the gap between needed skills and current delivery.
- Develop career pathways, skill-based job descriptions, and counseling to assist in training and retraining, and lifelong learning.
- Create a knowledgeable consumer base and workforce conversant in economic trends and the value of local purchasing, and with the skills needed for their chosen occupation.
- Long Term Goal:
- Establish a regional center to support future economic and environmental objectives
- Immediate Actions:
- Identify labor force outlook requirements for a green economy.
- Buy local campaign
- Assess educational capacity to meet short term goals
4. The regional economy will be based on the sustainable use of natural resources and will support organizations, businesses and NGOs in the adoption of green business practices.
- Short Term Goal:
- Research and develop targets to determine sustainable levels for use and consumption of energy, water, materials, habitat, fisheries, forests, agricultural soils and land.
- Develop an award for businesses that rewards efforts in sustainability.
- Long Term goal:
- Zero emissions and 100% recycling
- Immediate Actions:
- Assess the current state of use and consumption of all natural resources to establish a baseline for further action, particularly consumption of local vs imported goods.
- Regional energy audit
5. The region will develop a world class infrastructure that includes state of the art communications networks, a widely accessible and diverse transportation system, a road network free of congestion, materials reuse and recycling facilities, reduction and treatment of stormwater, and sustainable public water and sanitary sewer service where appropriate. Growth policies will be in place that direct development to areas with excess infrastructure capacity.
- Short Term Goals:
- Broadband internet access throughout the region.
- South Coast Rail
- Access throughout the region by means of public transit operated seamlessly by the Regional Transit Authorities.
- All new development in areas served by public transit
- Long Term Goal:
- Shift the primary reliance on the auto centric transportation system to a regional/local public transit system.
- Immediate Actions:
- Sustainable development practices handbook and training for the development community.
- Education and promotion of sustainable zoning ordinances and land use practices.
- Support SouthCoast Rail initiatives
6. The regional economy will be characterized by profitable, locally owned businesses that are ecologically and socially responsible and are supported by purchasing practices that favor green, locally owned enterprises.
- Short Term Goal:
- 5% reduction in annual regional business closings
- Long Term Goal:
- Change the mix of local, regional and state businesses to account for a high percentage (??%) of total employment
- All regional businesses apply green business practices
- Immediate Actions:
- Study: Assess the Value of a $ spent at a locally owned business.
- Identify the support needed for green businesses in the region
- Green Business certification program.
- Buy local program; conscious consumerism
- Eco-design training, especially green building and development
- Coordinate and promote available regional business advisory services
7. The region will promote sustainable development with suitable financial tools that enhance business performance and encourage spinoff businesses.
- Short Term Goals:
- Review and remove institutional, legal and financial impediments that prevent agriculture from being more profitable and sustainable.
- Identify and remove institutional impediments to sustainable development
- Provide financial incentives to help businesses become more sustainable.
- Long Term Goal:
- Development of green industrial parks.
- Immediate Actions:
- Support Gateway Cities legislation
- Promote local economic growth initiatives
- Support expedited permitting processes
- Support SMART growth initiatives
8. Effective governance: Establish transparent, strategic regional leadership for sustainable economic development, efficient delivery of services, and protection of natural and human resources and capital.
- Framework for decision-making, esp. for development of regional significance.
- Policy integration.
- Best practices transfer
- Fiscal prudence
- Education
- Civic engagement and empowerment
(SMART=Specific; Measurable; Attainable; Realistic; Time sensitive)
- Employment, job growth by target sectors
- Household income
- Educational attainment
- Productivity
- Registered patents (indicator of emerging business)
- Employment in Marine Science and Technology Industry
- Enterprise and Employment Diversification
- Annual value of agricultural sales
- Number of persons employed
- Total Business Establishments, biz starts
- Housing Affordability Gap
- Poverty rate
- Average wage vs. living wage
- Green GDP or Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) (factor out crime, eco-harm, pollution and health impacts)
- Intellectual capital: patents
- % of retail sales purchased from locally owned enterprise
- % of enterprises expecting to hire, grow, or have confidence in the economy
- Economic security index (linked to happiness index, income security, income protection, income equality, UN)
- Bank deposits
- Quality of life (confidence, happiness, open space and cultural amenities…)
IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES
- Buy local campaign
- Gateway Cities Legislation support
- SouthCoast Rail Initiative support
- Broadband access
- Education and promotion of sustainable zoning ordinances and land use practices
- Regional energy audit.
- Assemble data to assess the current state of the region’s economy to establish a baseline to measure progress.
- Assess the current state and needs of the emerging clusters to establish a baseline for further action
- Identify labor force outlook requirements for a green economy.
- Immediate Actions: Assess the current state of use and consumption of all natural resources to establish a baseline for further action.
- Study: The Value of a $ spent at a locally
12/3/09