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Appalachian Conversation
Through Appalachian Conversations, faculty, community members, and policy makers from the public, private, and social sectors come together for a structured, facilitated dialogue around a carefully selected topic. These are not simply citizen assemblies that identify Appalachian problems; these are deliberate dialogues aimed at new possibilities and strategies for the region. They are action oriented, and their central organizing principle is “innovation”, rather than simply problem identification or problem solving, as important as these are.
Center Constituents, Associates, and Advisors recommend topics and issue areas for Conversations that are current and of critical importance to the region. When deciding on a topic, it is also taken into consideration where the intellectual assets of the University can translate into the greatest possible benefit for the region.
Current Topic: Local Living Economies
In recent years regional and local economies have had to face increasing challenges. The process of globalization is rapidly altering the status quo and presenting new economic opportunities and risks for cities, regions and nations all over the world.
In this changing context, we are exploring new development strategies in order to cope with and take advantage of existing transformations.
Through dialogue, we hope to help participants discover what the options are for the people and businesses in their local communities and the region as a whole to become more competitive in the global economy. What participatory mechanisms can be used to foster sustainable economic development at local and regional levels? How can local assets and resources be used to improve quality of life in the region?
This Appalachian Conversation aims to maximize the economic potential of participating counties throughout Appalachian Kentucky and enhance economic growth resilience within the context of sustainable development:
- Increasing regional knowledge of the importance of locally-based economic development in creating jobs and establishing a basis for sustainable development in the region.
- Generating new understandings about the potential for local economic development in Kentucky’s Appalachian counties.
- Empowering local communities
The Local Living Economies Conversation will be catalyzed by the ideas of economist Michael Shuman, author of Going Local and the Small-Mart Revolution: How Local businesses are Beating the Global Competition.
Partners:
We are excited and proud to introduce our partnerships for this program:
Michael Shuman - Economist, author, Vice President for enterprise development for the Training & Development Corporation (TDC), and Board Member for Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE)