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Economic Gardening Gathering

June 21, 2008 /

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The MDT Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program encourages and supports the participation of companies owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals in transportation contracts.

This past weekend I was at my second out of the six Annual National Economic Gardening Gatherings that have been held. This year’s event was hosted by the Steamboat Springs, CO ED cooperative with participants from 20 states, Japan and Australia. The event has grown from 18 participants at the first event to almost 100 this year.

The concept of Economic Gardening (EG) originated with Chris Gibbons in Littleton, CO who 20 years ago decided that it make more sense to work with existing, fledgling and new businesses in the town rather than trying to compete with the 35,000 other ED organizations in the country to recruit in businesses. It is a strategy that has worked well in Littleton and the dozens of other communities that have embraced the idea.

Jack Schultz

Full Story: http://boomtownusa.blogspot.com/2008/06/economic-gardening-gathering.html