Marking two years of making it happen in R.I.

Two years ago, we gathered with 300 business and community leaders at the R.I. Convention Center for Make It Happen RI. Our goal was to generate new ideas and specific action steps for improving Rhode Island’s economy. We are frequently asked, so what happened? The two-year mark seems like a good chance to reflect.
Make It Happen RI started with a pretty simple idea: Let’s get some smart, creative people together for productive problem-solving and see what happens. Our CEO, Neil D. Steinberg, set the stage with three ground rules: look forward, stay positive and take rhetoric to action.
Since that two-day event, Make It Happen RI has come to represent a cluster of activities and initiatives that are seizing the call to action. The foundation invested more than $1 million in 19 projects, and many of these efforts have truly taken root. This is a testament to the leadership, engagement and determination that emerged from the Make It Happen RI community.
It will take more time to truly unfold, but the level of new activity is encouraging and exciting. What’s even more promising is that we have sensed a shift in the conversation. More and more, economic development is understood not simply as a set of government tools. It is about building an ecosystem in which activity, investment and talent come together so that businesses can start, flourish and grow.
There are also more people participating in the discussion, as the circles of influence and ideas have spread to include new perspectives. We don’t always agree with each other, but people continue to engage in substantive dialogue. Rhode is benefiting from this level of leadership and engagement.
This is especially significant, because important planning efforts are underway. While Make It Happen RI was focused on the private sector, the public sector has stepped forward with opportunities for greater scale, investment and coordination. The R.I. Commerce Corporation and the state Division of Planning will deliver a state economic- development plan to the General Assembly in October, and the Governor’s Workforce Board is undertaking its second Biennial Plan this fall. We are hopeful that many suggestions that took shape at Make It Happen RI will be included in these important plans.
Increased levels of activity, individual and collective ownership, new relationships and heightened dialogue have generated real momentum. We at the Rhode Island Foundation learned many valuable lessons from Make It Happen RI. Among the most valuable? When you ask the Rhode Island community for help, it responds.
Getting traction depends on many things – perhaps most especially, leadership. Rhode Island is compact enough that we have real opportunity to connect the dots between industries, regions, programs and resources.
Have we solved Rhode Island’s economic problems? Not even close. Rhode Islanders are still struggling. Unemployment and underemployment remain far too high. Inequities persist. Our business climate continues to be perceived as one of the least friendly in the nation. The stakes are higher than ever.
The Make It Happen RI call to action and urgency remains as true today as it was two years ago. Significant change will require frank conversations about the scope, reach and quality of programs. Progress calls for continued experimentation and iteration. And we need to make sure that the entire community is included in these efforts, that no one is left out.
The Rhode Island Foundation and dozens of partners are committed to doing what we can to advance a strong Rhode Island economy. Join us, so that all Rhode Islanders can prosper. •


Jessica David is vice president of strategy and community investment at the Rhode Island Foundation.

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