Benchmarking Evidence Based Approaches to New Functional Regions

This research project will build a case and a new definition for contemporary functional economic regions based on fiscal and economic impact analysis and return on investment benchmarking. The project will expand the scope of ‘functional’ from the traditional commuter shed and labour market context of the past, to include contemporary collaborative and economic drivers for regional development and inter-community cooperation. The research initiative will encompass the City of Meadow Lake trading area to include municipalities and First Nations within a 120 km radius. We anticipate engagement of seven First Nations, six rural municipalities and an estimated twenty towns/villages/hamlets.This project will result in a potential integrated and enabling framework for rural municipalities and Indigenous communities to accelerate partnerships and thereby build incremental employment, business development/attraction and social development. This project has the potential to be transformational by engaging communities and First Nations in a self-directed, evidence based regional economic cluster enabling all communities and their residents to benefit more fully in the Canadian and global economy. In addition, it provides recommendations on potential new regionalism (connecting regional to local) frameworks for collaboration

Faculty Supervisor:

Ken Coates

Student:

Privilege Haang’andu

Partner:

Saskatchewan Economic Development Association

Discipline:

Public administration

Sector:

Management of companies and enterprises

University:

University of Saskatchewan