Regionalism, one of the Restoring to Prosperity's major pillars, is receiving more attention as the economy shrinks and companies are researching new ways to streamline production and identify a work force for developing industries in the area. Not only are manufacturers across the nation interested in regionalism as a way to move their production closer to the customers which will dramatically cut costs (see Reuter's' article, "Manufacturing execs see more regional approach", Ohio and Pennsylvania counties are trying to reap its benefits as well. Counties in the two states realize that they are interconnected and have formed the Interstate Region Collaborative in order to study workforce patterns and match worker skills to the industries already there. "the Interstate Region group has received a $250,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. Those funds have been used for study and development of a plan that includes such areas as trends in the five counties, industry analysis, an understanding of the local labor market and educational infrastructure." (Read the full article)
The changing economy demands that we looks at new ways to do business in Ohio and the Interstate Region Group is the first step in doing so.