Economic development is constantly evolving and changing, forcing economic developers to think outside the box to continue growing local economies. This is exactly what the 61^st annual Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO) conference will be focusing on. This year’s theme is Mission Possible: Agents of Change, and is all about challenging norms and using creativity and innovation to take action.

There are a great selection of sessions to choose from but we are especially excited about two, being held on Tuesday February 6^th:

Beyond Streetscapes, Best Practices for Recruiting Investment into Your Downtown – 11:00am

Downtown areas are the heart and soul of communities and vital to their survival.
Each features its own unique architecture, culture, traditions, heritage, and workforce. This workshop will highlight the key trends affecting downtown revitalization, and discuss tools and best practices to bring new business and investment into the downtown core.

Attendees of this workshop will hear about real-life success stories from communities who were able to revitalize their downtown through investor recruitment efforts.

Decoding the Art and Science of supporting your existing Businesses – 3:30pm

This session provides a great opportunity to learn about emerging trends for business retention and expansion (BR+E), as well as hear about new research on a Data Driven Approach to Identifying Vulnerable Businesses. BR+E is a vital component of economic development and aids communities in understanding the needs of local businesses to allow them to succeed, grow, and increase their competitiveness. BR+E is constantly evolving, and this workshop session will provide valuable insight into this core economic development activity.

For registration and more information visit http://edcoconference.com/