Heartland Civic Collaborative Puts Forth Federal Advocacy Agenda
GREATER DES MOINES, IA – While civic leaders from four Midwestern metros — Des Moines, Kansas City, Omaha and St. Louis — announced the official launch of the Heartland Civic Collaborative (HCC) in 2016, today, they put forth their Federal Advocacy Agenda that highlights issues shared within the Mega-Region Initiative. The mission of the Heartland Civic Collaborative is to take advantage of mutually advantageous opportunities and capitalize on the collective assets of the region in order to strengthen the entire region’s competitiveness and opportunities for economic development.
The HCC has concentrated its efforts in the following four strategic areas to positively impact the economic competitiveness of the region: federal advocacy, transportation, entrepreneurship and life sciences.
“The topics within the advocacy agenda have been collectively determined to be vital to our strengthening regional economy,” says William S. Berkley, Chair of the Heartland Civic Collaborative. “The agenda has been approved by the Chamber of Commerce or similar organization in all four cities. Our shared values and desire for regional cooperation and economic growth are what bring us together.”
The HCC has created a shared federal advocacy agenda, which is designed to leverage the influence of eight U.S. senators and 19 U.S. representatives. This elevates and unifies the voice of the region providing a strong presence in national policy debates to assure legislative and regulatory actions do not negatively impact the region. The HCC will also collectively and strategically pursue federal funding opportunities for economic development. The federal advocacy agenda emphasizes four priorities that make our country strong and that will support a robust and growing economy for the 21st Century: 1) Transportation and Logistics; 2) Life Sciences; 3) Entrepreneurship; and, 4) Education and Workforce Development. For the full federal advocacy agenda, please visit the website of HCC.
“The Heartland Civic Collaborative is a pro-growth model that gives our communities an opportunity to leverage assets, accelerate economic growth and secure a competitive edge in the global economy,” says Jay Byers, CEO of the Greater Des Moines Partnership. “It is particularly important that regional organizations work together on common interests to amplify our message and reach a broader coalition of policymakers.”
Sitting in the center of the country, the HCC offers strategic advantages for transportation due to its geographic location. The HCC is developing a multi-modal integrated transportation vision that supports and enhances the competitive advantage of the Heartland. One upcoming event, hosted by the Federal Highway Administration, the HCC and the Mid-America Regional Council, will be a Mega-Region Symposium to be held in November 2017 in Kansas City. The symposium will focus on opportunities within the four partnered metro’s shared economy.
Previously, each HCC metro participated in a transportation futures symposium that was held in Kansas City February 2016. The event explored the future of transportation, the convergence of technology and transportation infrastructure and the planning and funding opportunities faced by the region. William Clay Ford Jr., executive chairman of Ford Motor Company, served as the keynote speaker. Another common strength is the entrepreneurial spirit and activity level in each community. The HCC enhances the movement of ideas in entrepreneurship and human capital. Based on the input and desires of successful entrepreneurs throughout the region, the HCC is creating metrics to help quantify progress and identify additional opportunities in creating a rich entrepreneurial ecosystem in the region.
Each metro also boasts a strong life sciences economy. The HCC provides the opportunity for further collaboration in human, animal and plant health. The area’s life sciences asset-mapping project identified 791 life sciences companies at 976 locations in the four-state region.
All four communities have bonded together to achieve long-term growth and economic success. The organization’s leadership is confident and optimistic because of the shared common and core values of the people throughout the region. In addition, regional strengths include natural resources, infrastructure and economic assets.
Each community and region has strong, ongoing and successful economic development initiatives. The HCC transcends and complements those activities already underway.
About the Heartland Civic Collaborative
The Heartland Civic Collaborative is a multi-state, multi-metro initiative to address the economic crossroads at which the Great Plains and Midwest regions of the United States stand. Civic leaders from four Midwestern metros, Des Moines, Kansas City, Omaha and St. Louis, partner to develop strategic, coordinated actions that strengthen the Heartland’s competitiveness in the global economy. The mission of the Heartland Civic Collaborative is to take advantage of mutually advantageous opportunities and capitalize on the collective assets of the region in order to strengthen the entire region’s competitiveness and opportunities for economic development. For more information, please visit HeartlandCivicCollaborative.org.