Giving Compass' Take:

• Here are three crucial ways that cities can change their economic trajectories: Build advanced industries for inclusive growth, diversify for resilient growth, and target high job quality industries. 

• How can donors get involved in contributing to these strategies for economic development? What are the main hurdles or challenges for cities to accomplish resilient growth? 

• Learn about the role of philanthropy in regional economic development. 

Every city in America possesses a unique economy and culture. Their values and priorities cannot be captured in a one-size-fits-all prescriptive agenda for regional economic development.

Broadly speaking, a high concentration of advanced or complex industries can generate positive spillovers, allowing cities to push the frontier and accelerate growth. Think of Silicon Valley in California, the life-sciences and high-tech Research Triangle in North Carolina, or the financial sector in New York City.

Yet there are many more ways for regional economies to develop. Around the country, complex, synergistic, and seemingly unexpected industry combinations have taken root.

Examining the industrial structure of more than 900 metro and micropolitan areas spanning diverse regions, cultures, and priorities across the United States produced data insights that can inform strategies for regional economic development. Sophisticated cities may choose to double down on complex industries to accelerate growth, while midsize cities may choose to diversify their economies and expand their capability set. All cities may want to grow good jobs that provide stepping stones for their workforce. In each case, regional planners need to consider their existing economic structure.

The visualization shows three strategies. For 25 selected cities, each strategy will yield a different set of priority industries.

  1. Build advanced industries to encourage job growth. The most advanced metropolitan areas, such as New York, San Francisco, or Seattle, host the most complex industries demanding the most sophisticated capabilities.
  2. Diversify for resilient growth. Regions with middle and low levels of economic complexity grow by diversifying into increasingly complex sectors.
  3. Target high job quality industries to deliberately foster inclusive growth. No matter the state of a regional economy, fostering good jobs is high among regional priorities.

Read the full article about cities can define their economic trajectories by Marcela Escobari and Ian Seyal at Brookings.