Follow on Google News News By Tag * Economic Development * Sustainable Development * Local Economic Development * Community Economic Development * Sustainable Economic Growth * More Tags... Industry News News By Location Country(s) Industry News
Follow on Google News | Can This New Concept Solve Age-old Economic Development Problems?How communities may tap the internet to create a another layer of opportunities
The digital environment of the internet effectively addresses major issues of traditional local economic development and offers answers to communities that are available to them for the first time. Smaller communities may now plan their economic development in a different way. The Problems “Lack of funding, geographical isolation and time factors, and loss of community control over their own development interests are major issues and traditional barriers to sustainable development” Overcoming these challenges is critical to smaller communities and smaller developing countries because it allows them to compete with larger commercial centers on a more level playing field. Further, with the global reach of the internet, businesses need not be limited to local or regional territories only but may expand globally. The Opportunities So, how would the internet solve age-old economic development problems? “It’s all due to the digital environment of the internet” says Chin, “digitization is changing the way products are being consumed; and, digital product formats allow for easy delivery of products to any customer with access to the internet, a game changer for producers who were once restricted by distance and time factors.” This ability allows producers to tap into the trend of replacing physical products with digital ones, for example, songs do not have to be on CDs or tapes, but rather, they exist as MP3 or iPod downloadables or streaming audio. The Economic Impact To facilitate producers, business models are already available and many require only low start-up costs. This means that many more entrepreneurs can participate in online business ventures, compared to traditional economic models that typically require big investment capital. People are able to monetize their talents, skills, knowledge, and even interests through internet business. And, communities may capitalize on this opportunity and develop programs to leverage local talents and know-how. By creating appropriate levels of micro business activities, a new local economic structure can be created – one that can sustain growth. · Focusing inward to nurture and grow local human capital, a community retains full control over its economic development. · Economic development is initiated BY the people and FOR the people through individual online businesses. · Instead of traditionally competing with other communities for limited funds, a community may cooperate with others to grow and share a bigger pie. He concludes, “All that are required to conduct needed activities for growth can be accommodated in the digital environment, thus supporting the argument that the internet can be a virtual platform that communities may use for long-term sustainable economic growth.” More information on this concept can be found in a new report he wrote entitled “New Approach to Economic Development: About Maurice Chin Maurice Chin researches, writes, and participates in different aspects of internet business. After writing a master’s degree thesis on e-Commerce in the State of Texas (University of Houston, 2000) he realized the internet has the potential to be a stand-alone commercial and economic platform. He documents online business models and uses innovation to create practical solutions in community settings. Maurice invites conversation on how to make this economic platform available to all. His website is https://grassrootsroi.com? Contact: Maurice Chin Website: https://grassrootsroi.com/ eMail: maurice@grassrootsROI.com End
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Account Phone Number