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Nurture creativity to create economic growth: Richard Florida

There has been a major shift in what drives economic prosperity and the growth of cities, economist Richard Florida told an audience at the Toledo Museum of Art Nov. 14. No longer are people moving where jobs are located. Now, jobs are moving where the best-educated, most creative workers can be found.

In a talk on “The Rise of the Creative Class in Greater Toledo,” Florida, the Heinz Professor of Economic Development at Carnegie Mellon University, said the way to reverse the “brain drain” experienced by so many cities is to nurture creativity in all its forms to create a vibrant, dynamic community which young people will not want to leave and to which companies will be drawn.

Florida’s presentation was part of the unveiling of Toledo Mayor Jack Ford’s Strategic Plan for the Arts and Culture. The plan was written by members of the Mayor’s Task Force for Arts and Culture, whose members include Katerina Ruedi Ray, director of the BGSU School of Art; Elizabeth Cole, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; William Balzer, associate vice president and dean of Continuing and Extended Education, who served as facilitator for the task force, and Colin Gearing, head of the design division in the School of Art, who served as graphic designer for the plan.

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