A global pandemic impacts everything we do as economic developers – but it could be argued that downtowns have been impacted the most. In this episode of Insight, we'll take a look at the purpose and practice of downtown revitalization from both sides of COVID-19, featuring interviews with professionals from both before and after the onset of the pandemic.

From major development projects to tactical urbanism, downtown revitalization seeks to improve the vitality and vibrancy of the central business district of a given city, town or region with the goal of supporting, sustaining and accentuating its unique character and culture. In practice, approaches vary as different communities come up with different solutions. But COVID-19 is a challenge that has affected all downtowns. When downtowns are empty and businesses are forced to close, what is the impact? And now that businesses are reopening, what has changed? We ask these questions, discuss the value of downtowns, and learn about some of the initiatives designed to help main street businesses adapt to a post-pandemic world.

Insight: Canada's Economic Development Podcast is presented by MDB Insight and produced by Derek Harrison. Our guests for Episode 5 are Chris Rickett, Director of COVID-19 Business Mitigation and Recovery at City of Toronto, Andrew Malcolm, Urban Revitalization Manager at the City of Lethbridge, and Gary Klassen, Senior Advisor with Canadian Strategy. Each episode explores the economic development field in Canada, celebrates the work of professionals across the country, features news and thought leadership from across Canada and digs into some of the most interesting (and important) topics in economic development.

Right now, the first priority is to keep the ship from sinking. Economic developers across the country have been scrambling to decipher what exactly we can do to help our businesses survive this crisis.

But this pandemic won't last forever. To make sure our business communities come out strong on the other side, we need to do more than stay afloat. We need to steer the ship.

In the name of staying on course, this episode of Insight is all about BR+E – Business Retention and Expansion. Originally planned as episode 3, before we did some last minute rescheduling, we've taken the opportunity to explore how economic developers' perspectives on BR+E have changed in response to COVID-19, with one common theme: it's now more important than ever.

Collecting good information about what your businesses need is timeless. A good relationship with your business community is a direct result of your communication and your ability to act on the issues that matter most to them. So, active listening is key, pandemic or no pandemic.

We also take this opportunity to check in with our Executive Vice President Chris Bandak, who explains the value of good data. Learn more about our Triage BR+E™ product, newly enhanced to address the specific challenges posed by COVID-19.

Insight: Canada's Economic Development Podcast is presented by MDB Insight and produced by Derek Harrison. Our guests for episode 4 included Michelle Samson, Economic Development Officer for the City of Vaughan, Rob Nolan, Director of Economic Development for the City of Brockville, and Jennifer Penney, Economic Development Officer for Town of Paradise. Each episode explores the economic development field in Canada, celebrates the work of professionals across the country, features news and thought leadership from across Canada and digs into some of the most interesting (and important) topics in economic development.

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“For the first time in history, every economic developer is facing the same challenge.”

The world has been collectively dealing with a crisis that none of us were truly prepared for. We've deliberately shut down major segments of our economy in order to encourage people to stay home and practice physical distancing. So as economic developers, what should we be doing?

We've all felt the call to action. When our business communities are forced to close their doors, we need to find ways to keep supporting them now, and to give our local economies the best chance of bouncing back when this is all over. And there are reasons to be optimistic; in response to this crisis, we've seen government efficiencies, businesses finding creative ways to pivot, innovate and modernize, and Economic Development offices really proving their worth.

We don't claim to have all the answers. At a time like this, we need to take a deep breath, think strategically about the short, medium and long-term, and consider all the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode, we're simply offering some thoughtful consideration about economic development in Canada as we move through this crisis, and what we might expect when the dust settles.

This episode features Lauren Millier and Paul Blais, two of MDB Insight’s co-founders and Executive Vice-Presidents.

Insight: Canada's Economic Development Podcast is presented by MDB Insight and produced by Derek Harrison. Each episode explores the economic development field in Canada, celebrates the work of professionals across the country, features news and thought leadership from across Canada and digs into some of the most interesting (and important) topics in economic development.

If the local economy is a game of hockey, economic developers aren’t the players. We are not offence, defence, nor goalies, and we certainly aren’t the team manager, coach or referee. We’re the Zamboni.

In our second episode, the MDB Insight team traveled to Toronto for EDCO, the Economic Developers Council of Ontario conference, to ask our colleagues: "How do you prove the value of economic development?"

One of the biggest challenges in the economic development field is convincing council and the community to invest. For most people, it's easy to justify long-term investments into infrastructure or essential services, but people have a harder time wrapping their heads around the less tangible – and harder to measure – benefits of economic development projects. This means that when money is tight, ours is often the first department to be cut.

So how do we change that? Economic development helps keep jobs in the community, which keeps people in the community, who pay taxes used to fund everything from bridges to broadband to business retention. When you cut EcDev, everything suffers.

This time on Insight, we hear from experts all over Ontario about how communicating the value of economic development is a crucial part of building strong and prosperous communities. You'll hear advice from Robert Lamb (CAO, Township of Brock), Michelle Samson (EDO, City of Vaughan), Richard Allen (Manager of Economic Development, Frontenac County), Ann Weir (Economic Development Manager, United Counties of Leeds & Grenville), Rob Nolan (Director of Economic Development, City of Brockville), Jason Felix (Economic Development Manager, Township of Ignace), Belinda Wick-Graham, (Manager of Economic Development, Town of Minto) and Mayor George Bridge (Town of Minto).

Insight: Canada's Economic Development Podcast is presented by MDB Insight and produced by Derek Harrison. Each episode explores the economic development field in Canada. We will celebrate the work of professionals across the country, feature news and thought leadership from across Canada and dig into some of the most interesting (and important) topics in economic development today.

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How do people get into economic development? 

In our first episode, the MDB Insight team and host Natasha Gaudio Harrison travel to Edmonton, Alberta for the Economic Developers Association of Canada Conference, taking the opportunity to ask their colleagues: "How did you get into the economic development field?"

Unlike many other specialized fields, there is no single clear trajectory into the field. The EcDev profession is full of people with a wide variety of professional backgrounds, from business and entrepreneurship to engineering and IT. In this episode of Insight, you'll discover that anybody can become an economic developer if they work hard, have a knack for problem solving, and are driven to make a different in their community.

Insight: Canada's Economic Development Podcast is presented by MDB Insight and produced by Derek Harrison. Each episode explores the economic development field in Canada. We will celebrate the work of professionals across the country, feature news and thought leadership from across Canada and dig into some of the most interesting (and important) topics in economic development today.

Our guests for this episode included Tanis Chalmers, Carley Graham, Eve O'Leary, Alex Ripley, Jennifer Schnier, Jordan Tidey, and Chris Watson.