Understanding the Massachusetts Innovation Economy > Investment Support Studies
Oftentimes the Innovation Institute supports research by partners and clients who are looking to meet short-term objectives to inform organizational and planning efforts in support of initiatives already underway.
Berkshire Strategy Project
The Berkshire County has benefited from two research projects designed to understand and improve conditions for economic growth in the region. The Berkshire Economic Development Corporation (BEDC) spearheaded the Berkshire Strategy Project, focused on developing a strategic vision and formulating an implementation plan for the region to pursue in order to upgrade the local economy and boost prosperity. At the same time the region launched a second effort to define and quantify the make-up of the Berkshire creative economy, a major economic asset in the region. This second effort is focused on identifying ways to leverage the strengths of its cultural, artistic, educational and knowledge creation companies and organizations.
Gateway Cities Initiative
Similarly, working with MassINC, the Innovation Institute helped convene regional leaders to examine ways to jumpstart economic opportunity in “gateway cities” across the state. This research has focused on eleven historic mill cities in Massachusetts—Brockton, Fall River, Fitchburg, Haverhill, Holyoke, Lawrence, Lowell, New Bedford, Pittsfield, Springfield, and Worcester—and their struggles to transition from an industrial economy during the last three decades.
In the fall local leaders joined Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray to sign a compact that better positions these historic cities for growth. The eleven gateway cities formed an association of municipalities to focus on infrastructure investments, building the middle-class workforce of tomorrow, and creating new economic connections for the 21st century. A Gateway Cities Legislative Caucus has also been established in the Massachusetts legislature to promote support for critical development issues relating to these cities.