In this issue: How great cities work, a new model for connecting local urbanists, why millennials can't afford to job hop, and whether living in cities can make people happier. 

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Toronto city sign

How do great cities actually work?

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) tackles this question in the seventh edition of its Cities of Opportunity report, exploring the ways successful cities weave together complex systems (technology, healthcare, transportation etc.) to take advantage of opportunities and mitigate challenges.

The study ranks 30 global cities on 67 variables (based predominantly on 2014 and 2015 data) that are divided into 10 indicator categories. These categories are organized into three families of information: tools for a changing world, quality of life, and economics. Overall, London ranks first, with Singapore, Toronto, Paris, and Amsterdam rounding out the top five.

The findings of the study reveal patterns that have important implications for policy makers, economic developers, and others involved in the growth of cities. Variables like quality of living and senior wellbeing, for instance, are closely correlated with overall performance in the study. Toronto, for example, has consistently performed well in previous Cities of Opportunity editions. While it doesn’t rank in the top 10 when it comes to things like entertainment and attractions, it ranks first for quality of living, the variable that shows the closest relationship with overall success in the report.

Along with the importance of variables like quality of life when it comes to attracting investment and talent, the report highlights the need for cities to balance complex systems, the significance of intellectual work in modern city economies, and the need for a dependable workforce. Cities are facing a number of challenges, but those that understand and play to their unique strengths can outperform their competitors in the global competition for growth and talent.

 
Happy woman looks out at city

Does city living make people happier?

While not all people enjoy city living, living in urban environments helps to reduce per capita land consumption and transportation costs while also increasing economic opportunities, leading to indirect benefits for residents. As more people live in urban environments, it becomes increasingly important to understand how the built environment impacts mental health and happiness.

Todd Litman’s new report, Understanding Urban Mental Health Impacts and How to Create Saner, Happier Cities, explores the connection between city living, mental illness, and loneliness. It found that while city living may increase forms of psychosis, mood disorders, and drug addictions, it also tends to reduce dementia, alcohol abuse, and suicide rates. Interestingly, the report also found that urban living increases happiness for many groups, including the very poor and the alienated. And it tends to increase the mental health of the population by increasing economic, health, and fitness opportunities. 

Litman found that, while there isn't a lot of credible evidence that urban living increases overall unhappiness, there is research that most people are mentally better off by living in compact, mixed, walkable neighbourhoods. This finding suggests that better policies and design strategies can support healthy communities. Complete communities   (which incorporate a full range of transportation, housing, amusement, and economic activities within a single community) are a growing trend across Canada and the United States.  

Key policy areas that impact mental health and happiness include social services, affordability, green space, independent mobility for all, and community safety. By developing open, inclusive, and accessible communities, city-builders and decision makers can help to create happier cities

 
 
People talking around sidewalk tables

Connecting the urban-curious

Economic developers and urban planners are well aware of how important collaboration and strong networks are for growing local economies. While conferences and professional development opportunities can build these connections for urban planners and economic developers, there isn’t much available for urbanists in other sectors or fields who aren’t engaged in formal structures. Which is where Claire Nelson stepped in.

Nelson is the founder of the Urban Innovative Exchange, an initiative to support Detroit's growing innovation movement. With funding from the Knight Cities Challenge, she launched the Urban Consulate to promote “cross-city cultural and civic exchange by setting up a network of new ‘consulates’ initially located in Detroit, Philadelphia and New Orleans that offer events and an entrée into local culture.”

Essentially, these pilot projects aim to be spaces for local or visiting urban-curious people to engage around urban innovation and best practices. This takes place in the form of various events, including lectures and book clubs as well as cocktail parties and game nights. All of these are influenced by the needs of local communities. As well as fostering local conversations, The Urban Consulate aims to encourage more discussion between cities about ideas and solutions to common challenges. To facilitate this knowledge sharing, the Urban Consulate has sponsored exchanges between cities, allowing envoys to learn from other communities. 

For economic developers, planners, and others involved in community building, the Urban Consulate offers an interesting model for building relationships and connecting around shared values and visions for local prosperity.

 
Millennial worker on a laptop

Millennials can’t afford to job hop

Millennials (adults between the ages of 18 and 34 as of 2015) are often seen in the business world as self-involved job hoppers who need constant recognition and raises. They’re also the largest segment of the American workforce, but not all companies are nurturing and leveraging their potential as future leaders.

A new study by the Center for Talent Innovation (CTI), Misunderstood Millennial Talent: The Other 91 Percent, helps to break these stereotypes and shows that millennial workers are actually loyal, hard-working, and looking to make their mark in a company.

When it comes to the image of the job-hopping millennial, for example, the study’s findings differ dramatically from the stereotype. Roughly 40% of millennials with a financial safety net (i.e. those who have families that could support them indefinitely if they were to quit or lose their job) said they plan to leave their jobs within a year. This group represents about 10% of the millennial workers surveyed by CTI. In comparison, just 10% of millennials who don’t have a financial safety net said they plan on leaving their jobs within a year. 

Recognizing that the majority of millennials are ready to invest in their work changes the conversation significantly. CTI’s research suggests three key ways to engage millennial employees.

  • Create a forum for cross-generational communication – Foster an environment where all generations can work side-by-side with senior executives.
  • Show millennials how to create value in the company – Recognition is very important to millennials, but it’s often because they want to understand how they contribute to the business strategy.
  • Help millennials craft their ideal work environment – Money alone isn’t enough of a magnet to draw millennials away from a company that offers opportunities to learn new skills, build rewarding relationships, and progress in their career.
 
 

Resource Review

Healthcare Disrupted: Inside the human health and life sciences revolution

As communities seek “target sectors” to focus on in their attempts to grow their economies, the health and life sciences sector has been a frequent choice. In part, this is because the sector is growing – but the clean, impactful, knowledge sector jobs that characterize the sector are also highly desirable. But Jeff Elton and Anne O’Riordan’s 2016 book Healthcare Disrupted: Next Generation Business Models and Strategies  suggests that the sector is in for a major shakeup.

Essentially, Elton and O’Riordan argue that the very basis of our healthcare system is outdated. For the better part of a century, compensation in the sector has been based on volume, rather than outcomes. For example, doctors get paid for the number of patients they see or the number of immunizations they give. Hospitals get compensated for the number of surgeries they perform. In the future, an outcomes-based approach  will eliminate these models, and compensation will be based (for example) on the number of people who don’t get sick. Instead of being paid to treat people who have diabetes, say, by the “amount of insulin prescribed”, doctors and medical professionals will be compensated for the number of cases of diabetes they prevent.

There are a few factors driving this transition. First, whether in a public setting like Canada or a private setting like the United States, those who ultimately pay the medical bills are seeing costs spiral out of control. By focusing on outcomes-based approaches, the goal is to improve people’s health while simultaneously reducing overall expenditures. In essence, prevention is cheaper than treatment. Second, the rise of Big Data is now allowing us to study health trends and patterns at a population level, which means we can actually study and understand which measures work when it comes to prevention. Third, the rise of personal healthcare apps and tools – think of  Fitbit, for example – allows individuals to take a more proactive role in monitoring their own health and verifying to medical professionals that recommended actions are being followed.

This fundamental reorganization of the healthcare ecosystem will have far-ranging impacts on the entire health and life sciences sector. From education to facilities construction and management, and patient care to ICT infrastructure, the entire system is about to undergo some wide-reaching changes. For communities that understand this transition, there are significant economic development opportunities. To learn more, you can find a copy of this valuable book here.

 
 

Out & About

October

Brock Dickinson will be leading an economic development seminar on “Northern Innovation” for the University of Waterloo and the Government of the Northwest Territories at the Northern Economic Development Practitioners Conference on October 13th in Yellowknife, NT.

Brock Dickinson will be speaking on the Evolution of Economic Development at “Spotlight on Small Business” event hosted by Peterborough Economic Development and the Greater Peterborough Innovation Cluster in Peterborough, ON, on October 18th.

Brock Dickinson will be leading a workshop on “Economic Diversification” at the Economic Developers Association of Canada pre-conference seminar in Saskatoon, SK, on October 20th.

Trudy Parsons and Brock Dickinson will be attending the Economic Developers Association of Canada (EDAC) Annual Conference taking place from Oct 22nd to 25th in Saskatoon, SK. Trudy will be presenting at the conference. 

Brock Dickinson will be the keynote speaker at the Salute to Brant County Business event in Paris, ON, on October 26th.

Trudy Parsons will be a panelist at the Niagara Economic Summit in Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON, on Oct 27th. 

November

Brock Dickinson will be speaking on “Global Ideas and Knowledge Trends” at the University of Waterloo seminar on International Opportunities and Best Practices in Kitchener, ON, on November 3rd. 

Brock Dickinson will be chairing a panel discussion on putting FDI and talent attraction centre-stage at the City Nation Place conference taking place in London, UK, on November 9th and 10th. 

Brock Dickinson will be teaching a course on “Neighbourhood Economic Development Strategies” for the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) in Toronto, ON, on November 18th.

 
 

Survey Invitation

Have you taken the survey on the establishment of a pan-Canadian, grassroots workforce development forum? Share your thoughts on a Canadian Workforce Development Forum.

 
 
MDB Insight Employment Development Map August 2016

Employment Development Index

August 2016

Our Employment Development Index is a visual representation of changes in regional employment figures over time. Visit the Employment Development Index archives for previous editions.

 

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