The I-Open Backstory: A Tale of Industrial Economy Disruption and Spin-Out

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Image: REI Cluster Map by Ed Morrison & Laszlo Kosmon

From the Report: REI. Business Plan V.1.5 at I-Open on Scribd.

The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open) is a 501c(3) not for profit educational economic development organization spun out (2005) of the Center for Regional Economic Issues (REI), a regional economic policy and report center based in Cleveland, Ohio from 1980 to 2005.

The Center was originally funded by the Cleveland US Federal Reserve Bank at the recommendation of a RAND Corporation report to advise the then many Fortune 500 corporate leaders based in the 23 counties of North East Ohio, a regional industrial economic success.

In 2003, Ed Morrison, lawyer, economic development practitioner, and policy strategist was hired as the Executive Director of REI, housed at the Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University. The resident team led by Mr. Morrison, quickly incorporated legacy knowledge assets, updated and developed Center mission, generated a set of operational Principles, and aligned organizational investments with strategic programs in support of tech-based economic development in global networked economies.

(Note: Within 60 days of the time of the announced 2003 REI re-alignment, 60% of the Center's regional foundation funding provided by The Cleveland Foundation and George Gund Foundation was withdrawn; the remaining 30% funding provided by the Ameritech SBC Global corporation was re-dedicated by the corporate program office for the continued support of REI activities. Some 15 months later at the closing of the Center by CWRU in 2005, Ameritech SBC Global funds were confiscated by CWRU's Weatherhead School of Management, REI's host organization, during a time of organization and leadership disruption and financial downturn.)

In support of the REI 2003 mission update, and to catalyze and strengthen regional civic networks integral to tech-based economic transformation, team member Betsey Merkel developed the Civic Forum process, a pragmatic approach to civic engagement to accelerate the generation of transformational initiatives, ultimately engaging during the 17 month period over 3000 people "on a campus with no parking" - and before the advent of social media! (Costs averaged $.60 cents/person compared to a large failed regional engagement program averaging costs of $60.00/person, proving regional transformation for prosperity building does not need to be costly or complex in open economic networks.)

Simultaneously, Ed Morrison designed Strategic Doing, a rapid project development process to support, evaluate, and invest in the resulting Civic Forum entrepreneurial innovations for education, economic, and workforce development.

The Civic Forum process and Strategic Doing develop transformational civic entrepreneurial initiatives in Open Source Economic Development to accelerate prosperity for competitive regional advantage. 

 

Click Through For The Center for Regional Economic Issues (REI) Slide Show at I-Open On Flickr. [16 Slides]

The Center was closed by CWRU in June 2005. Ed Morrison was hired by Purdue University in Indiana USA to assist in the development of the Purdue Center for Regional Development, now a national and global hub for education, economic and workforce development and policy.

Also in June 2005, Ed Morrison, Betsey Merkel and two others co-founded The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open) to continue the education and development of new practices and tools in Open Source Economic Development begun at REI.

(Note: Open Source Economic Development and Strategic Doing developed by REI Exec. Dir. Ed Morrison were later spun out in June 2005 and widely adopted by U.S. Workforce Investment Boards, the U.S. Economic Development Administration at the U.S. Dept of Commerce, and U.S. Dept of Energy to accelerate workforce innovation for regional economic development.

In Northeast Ohio, Betsey Merkel, REI Strategic Networks and Communications, and developer of the Civic Forum Process, continued to lead Civic Forums with I-Open colleagues and community to construct regional civic entrepreneurial networks and support resulting transformational enterprise initiatives.)

Ed retired from I-Open a few years ago to dedicate his work to the advancement of open models in workforce development. Betsey Merkel continues to invent and develop new practices and tools in Open Source Economic Development for the acceleration of transformative enterprise in emerging network economies.

Links of interest:

All Your Databases Belong To You

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Brick Ceiling

Image © Alice Merkel on Flickr

Matthew Theobald (1970-2010), Founder, Internet Search Environment Number (ISEN) and CEO, Internous, tells us why databases are the next important application of the Internet. Matt talks about the Database of Databases, and what it will mean to each of us to access the deep web and design our own personal databases of information. 

All Your Databases Belong to You from I-Open on Vimeo.

Learn from the wisdom of civic leaders across these I-Open communities:
    •    Facebook I-Open http://tiny.cc/odlg2
    •    Flickr  http://www.flickr.com/people/iopen/
    •    Friendfeed http://friendfeed.com/iopen
    •    Livestream http://www.livestream.com/iopen/
    •    Posterous http://i-open.posterous.com/
    •    Scribd http://www.scribd.com/I-Open
    •    Slideshare http://www.slideshare.net/IOpen2
    •    Twitter http://twitter.com/iopen2
    •    Vimeo http://tiny.cc/106p0
    •    You Tube http://tiny.cc/j5rse

 Images by Alice Merkel on Flickr

Copyright 2011 Betsey Merkel and I-Open. Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open) 2563 Kingston Road Cleveland OH 44118 Phone: 216-220-0172 Web: http://i-open.posterous.com/

Tech Tribes For A Pioneering Culture

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Ins and Outs

Image © Alice Merkel on Flickr 

Matthew Theobald (1970-2010) Founder, Internet Search Environment Number (ISEN) and CEO, Internous, talks about how he got started as a student with the idea of creating the "Database of all Databases" or ISEN - Internet Search Environment Number - and building his company, Internous.

The Internous project represents enormous opportunities for every individual and organization to not only search the deep Web, but to create personalized databases to strengthen individual connectivity and enterprise opportunity.

You can watch the educational video Internous ISEN Animated Video (2009) here, a system for intelligence gathering and organization of data in the Deep Web. "The database of all databases, what it is and how it works. The Internet Search Environment Number is a unique ID with robust metadata for describing and authenticating the location of millions of databases across the Internet," said Matt Theobald of the introductory film.

Read more about the history of Matt's education and lifework to advance the development and application of standards for content management for the semantic Web on his Google Profile page here. 

But best of all, learn from Matt himself in the video below as he talks about his journey designing standards for efficiencies in data management. He shares experiences about the people who shaped his life - his "tribe"- and who ultimately guided the path of his creative development.

Tech Tribes for a Pioneering Culture from I-Open on Vimeo. 

Learn the wisdom of civic leaders across these I-Open communities:

Copyright 2011 Betsey Merkel and I-Open. Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open) 2563 Kingston Road Cleveland OH 44118 Phone: 216-220-0172 Web: http://i-open.posterous.com/

 

Integral Futuring: A Process Approach To Knowledge Advance

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The Big Bang

Image © Alice Merkel on Flickr

Bruce LaDuke, Question Scientist, Integral Futurist, and Managing Director of Instant Innovation, LLC in Indianapolis, Indiana talks about Integral Futuring and the three dynamics that contribute to the current state of any society or social division: 

  • Knowledge Advance - The Center is Knowledge Creation,
  • Social Context - The Center is the Balance of Interests and Economy (Includes education, industry, and economic development) and,
  • The Center is Supply and Demand. It is the combination of these three dynamics that creates the national or international social state.

Integral Futuring is a human-based process driven approach to future society. It offers an important alternate paradigm to traditional machine-based artificial intelligence philosophy.

Watch live streaming video from iopen at livestream.com

Follow along with Bruce in the transcription below to deepen your understanding and learning. View, comment or download civic wisdom in Open Source Economic Development at I-Open's Library on Scribd.

Bruce LaDuke 12-31-08 Interview

Connect to Bruce LaDuke's life work, "The Answer is in the Question" at Social Text.

Learn the wisdom of civic leaders across these I-Open communities:

Copyright 2011 Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License Betsey Merkel and The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open), 2563 Kingston Road Cleveland OH 44118 Phone: 216-220-0172 Web: http://i-open.posterous.com/

A Summary Guide to Convening Open Conversations

Conversations bring new value to strengthen local economies. Guided, open conversations build trust and offer starting points for entrepreneurs and large organizations to identify local creativity for collaboration and capacity building.

How conversations bring value to local economies are summarized in the document below from an interview George Nemeth, Founder and Chief Blogging Officer, Brewed Fresh Daily contributed to The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open) January 2008, in Collinwood, Ohio.

George is known for his natural talent to engage people in public discussion and dialogue.  

Summary Guide to Convening Open Conversations

Open Conversations in Regional Economic Development

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Soil

Image © Alice Merkel on Flickr 

Since 2003, I-Open has partnered with technology businesses and college and universities to build neutral civic spaces convening open, guided conversations for regional economic development. I-Open incorporates this process in it's collaborations.

We've learned in networked economies people move in the direction of their conversations. For this reason and because of the need to strengthen and accelerate innovation and entrepreneurship, the communities and regions that move ahead quickly and are not left behind will be those who invest in open conversations.   

The questions we ask determine the direction of our conversations and where we place our attention. In regional economic development attention can translate into millions of dollars of funding. The strategic attention of a small or medium business will determine the difference of a company's success or failure.

Open conversations are important because they build social networks for business development and act as a tool for entrepreneurs to spot new opportunities quickly they might not ordinarily know about. 

Open conversations build transparency and trust. Transparency  by informing everyone present and enabling  anyone with initiative to participate. And trust by observing standards of civility respectful of commentary and accepting of constructive criticism. 

Northeast Ohio Solar and Wind Entrepreneur, Bill MacDermott offers this description from his experience:

"We all have our own unique perspectives. We need to be willing to respect another person's perspective if we want our perspective to be respected in turn. That to me, is an open conversation."

 Ohio's extensive network of colleges and universities are home to a large community of positive change research leaders and consultants. Appreciative Inquiry, developed at Case Western Reserve University  in Cleveland, Ohio is a practice adopted by some civic leaders to guide open conversations and accelerate positive change. Open conversations cultivate deep reflection, rich insights and fresh perspectives on entrepreneurial innovations. 

 Gloria Ferris, Partner, Meet The Bloggers, is one such civic leader. In the video below she teaches us about the value open conversations bring to regional prosperity. Gloria has led many Northeast Ohio I-Open Open Conversations and is considered a valued guide in the civic community.

Where are open conversations happening in your community?

I-Open Civic Wisdom Library Index 2010

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Color Span.

The I-Open Civic Wisdom Library is an archive of video interviews contributed by entrepreneurial leaders in research and industry. Stories share individual perspectives and accounts of insight - civic intelligence - through the lens of the Innovation Framework, a heuristic model of investment in Open Source Economic Development.

Interviews are available at I-Open's channel on Livestream. Scroll down the broadcast channel page to access the Archive Folders. Share your favorite links on Twitter and Facebook and embed the player on your blog and website! Share Civic Wisdom Widely! 

I-Open Civic Wisdom Library Index 2010

Learn from the wisdom of civic leaders across I-Open communities:

Copyright 2010 Betsey Merkel and I-Open. Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open) 4415 Euclid Ave Suite 301 Cleveland, Ohio 44103 USA

Citizens Academy - a set on Flickr

Images © Alice Merkel on Flickr

Images describe Citizens Academy, a leading charter school in Cleveland, Ohio. I-Open visited Perry White, Founder and Executive Director, Citizens Academy in June 2010 to learn more about his life long work connecting children, learning and justice.

Since 1999, Perry has led a transformative model of charter school education, now a top-performing urban school in the state of Ohio with a national reputation for successful students.

You can learn more in the introductory interview, Connecting Children, Learning and Justice with Perry White at I-Open on Vimeo www.vimeo.com/18102918 

Reference Links
Learn from the wisdom of civic leaders across I-Open communities:
Copyright 2010 Betsey Merkel and I-Open. Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open) 4415 Euclid Ave Suite 301 Cleveland, Ohio 44103 USA

 

Innovation and Entrepreneurial Networks: REI.Tuesdays, a Platform for Civic Engagement

REI.Tuesdays

(download)

2003 - 2005 REI.Tuesdays.-- weekly civic forums convened by the Center for Regional Economic Issues (REI) at the Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio engaged over 3,000 civic, business, government, and academic leaders from across 23 Northeast Ohio counties.

REI.Tuesdays civic forum conversations (Slide #2 above) address enterprise opportunity through the lens of the Innovation Framework - a heuristic model of investment in Open Source Economic Development (Slide #3).

The conversation matrix (Slide #4) provides an information infrastructure to underpin strategic scheduling and project presentation in the entrepreneurial community. Civic forums also introduce Strategic Doing - a simple, yet disciplined process to quickly move ideas to action (Slide #5) - and offer feedback loops for project work continuing outside of the regular forum schedule.

REI.Tuesdays is an example of how the civic forum process builds open economic networks for innovation to flourish and generates transformative enterprise for regional business development, human and organizational capacity building (Slide #6).

In terms of a model, REI.Tuesdays

  • Was funded by the telecommunications industry, SBC Global Ameritech
  • Supported by the Center for Regional Economic Issues, Case Western Reserve University, and 3000 Northeast Ohio business, government, academic, and civic entrepreneurs
  • Delivered social capital, web 2.0 platforms, local and global industry networks, generations of learning communties, and transformative industry clusters, and
  • Serves as a model for other forums, such as Fridays@The Corridor, Charleston Technology Corridor, Charleston, South Carolina and Thursdays at the House, Indiana Humanities Council, in Indianaoplois, Indiana.

The I-Open Civic Forum process is a successful approach to connect regional research and industry innovation for enterprise development in Open Source Economic Development.

Betsey Merkel, Co-Founder & Director of I-Open, is designer of the I-Open Civic Forum process.

References:

 

Branding: How to Share Your I-Open Interview

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Street Branding

Photo: Alice Merkel

Business, government, academic, and civic leaders have contributed over 10,000 minutes of knowledge, insights and innovations to I-Open interview and conversation research.

Each interview yields unique ideas, perspectives and discoveries to inform and guide leaders in education, economic, and workforce development.

Sharing information promotes higher levels of creativity and opens doors to unforeseen business collaborations. In the socially connected world of an innovation economy, sharing what you know increases your value to those you attract.

Interview information is published as video, document, image, and creative digital media and shared across I-Open social media platforms and their communities. You'll find a wealth of civic knowledge listed under "Libraries" on this blog's right side bar.

If you're a leader interested to know how to share your knowledge further, or just need a nice nudge to remember to share widely, we've assembled a how-to of simple steps for you to take below.

How to Share Your Interview Information