A FEW KEY QUOTES: New Ways of Living and Working Will Drive Post - Crash Prosperity – with Richard Florida, Author ‘The Rise of the Creative Class’
“Economies and societies invariably remake themselves in the wake of a crisis. It’s a necessary component of rebound and recovery.”
“…place and geography has a significant impact on economic systems. With this Great Reset (The Recession of 2008-09), we will see an even greater emphasis on place – more specifically the rise of the mega region, which are new and incredibly powerful economic units. No longer will we focus on the city versus suburb but on how to increase our connection to our respective mega regions.”
“The First Reset (1870) saw power and communication grids and streetcar and subway systems spread across the country, speeding the movement of goods, people, and ideas. The Second Reset (1930) brought huge developments in media, mass-produced consumer goods, and the role of large corporations, when companies like IBM rose to prominence and when what was good for General Motors was good for the nation.” [Note: The Resets of 1870 and 1930 are references to the Panic of 1873 and the Great Depression.]
“Most importantly, cities have to recognize that in times of crisis they have to help themselves. Governments, no matter how well intentioned, can only do so much, especially when they themselves are so strapped for cash…Every city has hidden seeds of opportunity waiting to be nurtured.”
(About the Sunbelt) “The boom in housing and the influx of population generated a thriving retail and service economy, but there were no economic drivers underpinning it all. There was nothing to generate new capital, only the capital that people were bringing with them. When that bubble burst, there was nothing to fill the gap. The potential solutions in the Sunbelt aren’t much different from those in the Rust- Belt: Build on real underlying economic strengths and tap into the creative core in the existing population and its valuable human capital.”
“For the first time in human history, the basic logic of our economy dictates that further economic development requires the further development and use of human creative capabilities. The great challenge of our time is to find ways to tap into every human’s creativity”
“Places like Detroit, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh are among my favorite cities. They have great universities, clusters of innovation across a range of industries, and pools of innovative and creative talent to build on. They need to stop their penchant for megaprojects like new stadiums…and stop depending on federal bailouts. They need to understand that rebuilding takes a generation or two – it will not happen overnight – and that it has to come from building upon local strengths and capabilities organically.”
“Transportation systems that are fast and efficient and environmentally clean are going to enable the formation of these new mega-regions…We need to be able to accelerate the movement of people, goods, and services – the very movement of ideas, knowledge, and creativity – between our major population centers.”
Read Bob Morris' complete interview about The Great Reset with Richard Florida on the Wall Street Cheat Sheet http://bit.ly/thegreatresetwsj
This blog entry provided quotes from Richard Florida’s The Rise of the Creative Class. Though there is a risk of misinterpretation when taken out of context, these quotes seem to have important implications for economic developers in Northeast Florida. If it is true that recessions often prompt a “reset” or remaking of economies and societies, then economic planners need to be open-minded and creative when planning and promoting regional economic development in this region. In other words, a region that is heavily dependent on selected sectors of the economy (e.g., insurance industry, the military, and product distribution) would benefit from openness to new economic drivers. Northeast Florida would probably benefit from innovative ideas generated by a regional economic “Think Tank” focused on economic and societal development issues. If not a think tank, then a joint effort involving business and educational leaders may be appropriate. One may argue that the latter already exists. If so, how open has it been to new ideas and how many creative ideas has it generated?
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