The Obama Administration’s Auto Communities Task Force is working with a group of national foundations to develop a strategy to help auto communities. On March 12, 2010, the Brookings Institution is hosting a day long event in which four regions are presenting ideas to shape this collaboration. The four regions are Central Michigan, Southeast Michigan, Northeast Ohio and Central Indiana. This is the presentation that we prepared for Central Indiana. It outlines how we are building a regional strategy around networks.

1. From Rustbelt Holdover to
Innovation Stronghold:
Continued Transformation of Central Indiana’s
Auto Communities Economy
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2. Central Indiana has started
diversification…but heavy pockets of
dependence remain
Percent of total employment in automobiles and parts
Howard Wial, Brookings Institute, Auto Communities & Workforce Adjustments, October 8, 2009
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3. The Central Indiana Vision stresses the
importance of networks and collaboration
The Central Indiana’s economy will be
transformed by open networks of innovation
anchored by universities, community
colleges, cluster-supporting organizations (like
Conexus) and innovative companies (like
Enerdel).
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4. Our strategies underway are scalable,
replicable and sustainable...
 Building Open Networks to Accelerate
Regional Innovation: Indiana WIRED
 Building Clusters in Advanced
Manufacturing, Logistics, and CleanTech
Development
 Redefining Higher Education’s Role in
Regional Economic Development
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5. IndianaWIRED used open networks and
“link and leverage” strategies to produce
remarkable results
 Four strategic focus areas
 Over 50 initiatives with metrics
 80%+ sustained past WIRED
 Outcomes:
◦ 22,133 unemployed and incumbent workers trained
◦ 1,525 degrees or certificates earned
◦ 3,230 unemployed workers placed in target
occupations
◦ $2.1 million saved in industry cost savings
◦ 19 business plans developed
◦ 8 new products/services launched
◦ 10 new businesses launched 5

6. “Link and leverage” strategies have
strengthened clusters…Examples:
 Indiana Energy Systems Network: A new
cluster in CleanTech
 $416 million federal stimulus investment in
advanced battery and electric vehicle
component industries
 Ivy Tech Advanced Manufacturing &
Logistics curricula
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7. Central Indiana is redefining higher
education’s role in regional economic
development
 Purdue designed one of the nation’s top
university research commercialization
systems.
 Four research parks across the state.
 Purdue is pioneering new approaches to
“link and leverage” university assets to
support regional development.
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8. Central Indiana has developed
replicable, scalable strategies ready for
federal and philanthropic investment
1. Development of re-engagement networks
2. Application of open innovation strategies
3. Strengthening of civic leadership networks
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9. Our re-engagement strategy focuses on
developing pathways and networks
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10. Our open innovation strategies follow a
clear theory of change that is easily
replicable
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11. Strategic doing guides open civic
innovation and develops networks with
the capacity to innovate…
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12. Our civic leadership strategies move
through different horizons on the path to
open civic innovation....
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13. Yet, we face some key barriers to the full
implementation and scaling of strategies
for open civic innovation...
1. Federal policies are not geared to
promoting civic innovation: disconnected
and inflexible
2. Weak platforms to collaborate across
regions to learn “what works”
3. Absence of “seed financing” to launch
promising pilots
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