The impetus for this project has been the collective need of regional stakeholders to work together to ensure a prosperous future for Northwest Minnesota. The geographic area defined by IMPACT 20/20 encompasses all of Minnesota Economic Development regions I and II.
Minnesota Economic Development Regions I and II share many of the same drivers and challenges to competitiveness. It stands to reason that if an industry’s employment is much more concentrated in one area than in the U.S. as a whole, then the area must be particularly competitive in that industry. Location quotients measure the concentration of regional employment in an industry compared to the entire U.S. and help to identify an area’s competitive strengths. Even limiting the focus to agriculture, manufacturing and healthcare, several industries have high location quotients in both Regions I and II. And those that have a high quotient in only one Region are often related to another industry that has a high quotient in the other. Wood products manufacturing has the highest quotient in Region I of any industry, and it has the third highest quotient in Region II. Region II’s second highest is forestry and logging. Region I has a high quotient in agriculture and forestry support activities. Clearly the Regions share common drivers and challenges. It is a similar story in food production: Both Regions have a high quotient in crop production, each has a high quotient in other agricultural industries, and both have high quotients in food manufacturing. Additionally, these and other manufacturing industries share worker skills and support functions, such as transportation, that constitute common competitive drivers and challenges. Healthcare industries are also strong in both Regions, sharing challenges and opportunities for growth.
The high location quotient in healthcare relates to the common challenge of the region’s aging population. Supplying new labor force entrants to replace the growing number of retiring workers is a common challenge for all of the industries in the region, no matter their quotient.
Other important commonalities exist among our manufacturing industries, even if they are not concentrated equally in Regions I and II. This is evidenced by levels of membership in a number of highly active institutions for collaboration that span both Regions to support manufacturing. These include Ingenuity Frontier, 360° Manufacturing and Applied Engineering Center of Excellence, the Hwy 2 West Manufacturers Association, and the Northwest Manufacturers Association.
Active and successful collaboration throughout the region is perhaps the strongest justification for our regional definition. In addition to manufacturing, significant collaboration in education spans the region, including the Northwest Service Cooperative, Pine to Prairie Coop, and the Customized Training Alliance. The Northwest Minnesota Sustainable Development Partnership and the Northwest Clean Energy Resource Team exemplify collaboration in energy efficiency and renewable energy, while the Northwest Minnesota Regional Housing Advisory Group addresses common housing issues. Economic development collaborations include the Northwest Small Business Development Center, the Northwest Economic Development Network, and the Tribal Economic Development Summit.