This presentation was delivered at NADO's 2018 Annual Training Conference, held in Charlotte, NC on October 13-16. For more information, visit: https://www.nado.org/events/2018-annual-training-conference/

1. National Association of Development Organizations (NADO)
Annual Training Conference (ATC) – October 16, 2018
“Investing in the Future of Regional Development”
NADO ATC Session:
Incorporating the Creative Sector in Rural
Economic Development Strategies
Twitter: @NatlGovsAssoc
Facebook: NationalGovernorsAssociation

2. The National Governors Association (NGA)
Founding
1908 - President Teddy Roosevelt invited
governors to the White House
What We Do
NGA is bipartisan in
representing state government and
developing innovative solutions

3. National Governors Association
• Government Relations
• Management Consulting & Training
• NGA Center for Best Practices

4. NGA Center for Best Practices
Policy Areas
1. Economic Opportunity
2. Education
3. Environment, Energy &
Transportation
4. Health
5. Homeland Security & Public Safety
Services
• National meetings of governors & policy
advisors
• Research & reports – NADO member
accessible
• Multi-state policy academies, learning labs
• Technical assistance for states

5. Center for Best Practices
Economic Opportunity (EO)
Division

6. Economic Opportunity Division (EO) Issue Areas
Economic Development
Human Services
Postsecondary Education
Workforce Development

7. EO Division – Example projects in Issue areas
Workforce – skills gap, future work
• Apprenticeships, internships & work-based
learning
• Talent pipeline from school to work
• Occupational licensing
• Disability employment
Human Services - place-based and
2-generational strategies
• Child welfare, juvenile justice
• School nutrition
• Economic Development
• Entrepreneurship (Kauffman)
• Access to capital (Treasury)
• Tech-based economic development
(National Science Foundation)
• Advanced manufacturing (NIST)
• Rural economic development,
particularly related to creative
sector (NEA)

8. NGA - NEA history extends over decades
Film & media Economic Development Literacy

9. Recent Findings
Five roles: Arts, culture and design
1. States can build dynamic industry clusters with their
creative sectors.
2. States can make traditional sectors (such as
manufacturing & tourism) more competitive by
integrating them with the creative sector.
3. States can reinforce their entrepreneurial ecosystems
with place-based arts districts.
4. States can improve their quality of life through historic
preservation & reclamation of abandoned spaces for
the creative sector.
5. States can better prepare their workforce by integrating
the arts with education.

10. Current project partnership, a
cooperative agreement

11. I. Identified promising practices
Extensive NASAA research > rural examples
II. Engaged national experts
Experts roundtable > Spring 2018
III. Developing governors’ guide > to be released December
2018
• What are best practices for strengthening rural economies through the arts?
• What unique policy roles can governors and the state level play?
Current project activities

12. Governors’ roles:
1. Provide leadership for the state’s creative sector to benefit rural
communities
2. Capitalize on existing regional cultural assets
3. Build the state infrastructure for cultural & creative partnerships
with other policy areas
4. Develop local talent & human capital with creative skills
5. Create an environment friendly to investment & innovation
Building a Systems Change Framework for Governors
Framework includes ~30 potential ingredients for action
to strengthen rural areas

13. Watch for the
NGA report in
December …
Thank you!
Sally Rood
srood@nga.org
Facebook: NationalGovernorsAssociationTwitter: @NatlGovsAssoc