Projects

The Energy of the Future for the Economy of the Present: Business Opportunities in the Green Economy

January 12, 2017

This presentation (also available in Italian upon request) for a regional business conference in Rovereto, Italy describes the growing market for “green” products, identifies business opportunities and sustainability strategies and…

Read more...

Market-Based Community Economic Development

October 12, 2016

This presentation outlines the theoretical framework for market-based community economic development, including a discussion of how market-based strategies work and when they are most effective. The presentation also provides examples…

Read more...

Positioning Your Neighborhood for Economic Development

March 17, 2016

Delivered by RW Ventures, Chicago TREND and the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority, this pair of training sessions were designed to help communities pursuing retail, industrial land use, small business or…

Read more...

NeighborWorks NBP Training

February 12, 2016

Originally developed as a two-day training for HUD Choice Neighborhood program grantees, this presentation was delivered to grantees from NeighborWorks America’s Catalytic Grant Program. The training presents the rationale and…

Read more...

Market-Based Development to Win the War on Poverty

June 12, 2015

Prepared for the Chicago Federal Executive Board, this presentation assesses the nation’s progress over the last 50 years and suggests a new framework for winning the “War on Poverty.” Finding…

Read more...

Inclusive Regional Economic Growth

November 12, 2014

This slide deck, presented at the 2014 CEOs for Cities National Meeting, highlights the economic imperative, and offers a framework, approach, analysis and examples for better achieving both prosperity and…

Read more...

Economic Place-making: How to Develop a “Neighborhood Business Plan”

May 15, 2014

Developed as part of a two-day training for planning and implementation grantees from HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods program, this presentation walks through the logic and structure of a new approach to…

Read more...

Regions Charting New Directions: Metropolitan Business Planning

June 21, 2012

These three presentations outline the key drivers of economic growth in the next economy, articulate the concept of “metro-economics” and describe the approach of Metropolitan Business Planning. The first two…

Read more...

The Chicago Region’s Green Economic Opportunities

January 30, 2012

This report, written jointly by RW Ventures and Innovation Network for Communities, explores opportunities for Chicago-area firms arising from the increasing market demand for energy- and resource-efficient products and services….

Read more...

Connecting to Markets Series: Neighborhoods and Housing Markets

January 1, 2012

Bob Weissbourd delivered these remarks as part of the “Connecting to Markets” series sponsored by the Institute for Comprehensive Community Development, the Urban Institute, and the Federal Reserve Banks of…

Read more...

City Vitals: How Do We Measure the Success of Cities?

October 11, 2011

This short slide deck was created in response to a presentation by Joe Cortright at CEOs for Cities Fall 2011 Meeting concerning metrics of city vitality. Highlighting the importance of…

Read more...

Driving Regional Economic Growth: Opportunities for Cook County

August 31, 2011

This presentation, delivered by Bob Weissbourd to the Economic Development Foundations Working Group of Cook County, provides an overview of how the different pieces of the economy fit together and…

Read more...

Municipal Financing: Current Challenges and Opportunities

March 22, 2011

Bob Weissbourd delivered this presentation at the London School of Economics’ City Reformers Group Workshop, in a session on public financing. The presentation outlines the troubles facing city governments —…

Read more...

Metropolitan Business Planning

March 11, 2011

The Metropolitan Business Planning initiative, co-developed by The Brookings Institution and RW Ventures, continues to generate great interest at the local, state and federal levels. Bob Weissbourd has been presenting…

Read more...

“Metro-Economics”: Towards a “Unified Field Theory”

January 12, 2011

This speech and accompanying PowerPoint were delivered by Bob Weissbourd as part of the Portland Plan — Inspiring Community Series. The speech begins to tie together the various pieces of…

Read more...

Foreclosure Effects on Neighborhood Property Assessments

September 12, 2009

RW Ventures’ analysis of the impact of foreclosures on neighborhood property values has garnered attention from civic sector stakeholders. Bob Weissbourd and Michael He presented the findings of the firm’s…

Read more...

Dynamic Neighborhoods: New Tools for Community and Economic Development

June 2, 2008

The Dynamic Neighborhood Taxonomy (DNT) project provides new analysis on how urban neighborhoods operate, how they change over time, what factors determine their success and how these dynamics vary across…

Read more...

Analyzing Local Economies

January 15, 2008

This presentation, prepared for the Aspen Institute Roundtable and Funders’ Exchange on Community Change, Poverty Reduction and Prosperity Promotion, presents a new framework for thinking about neighborhood change, as well…

Read more...

Dynamic Neighborhood Taxonomy: New Tools for the Field

October 2, 2007

The Dynamic Neighborhood Taxonomy (DNT) project provides new analysis on how urban neighborhoods operate, how they change over time, what factors determine their success and how these dynamics vary across…

Read more...

Innovation Remarks, Urban Markets Initiative

October 1, 2007

This speech was delivered by Robert Weissbourd as part of a plenary session on Innovation at the 2007 UMI Forum.  The speech addresses the barriers and opportunities for innovation in…

Read more...

Seeing the Forest and the Trees

May 6, 2005

This presentation, prepared for CEOs for Cities’ annual meeting, explores some of the key findings that have emerged from the literature on the role of cities in the national economy…

Read more...