MEASURING THE IMPACT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY IN AUSTRALIA
FINDINGS FROM STAGE 1 OF A TWO-STAGE RESEARCH PROJECT
Professor Roberta Ryan , SallyAnn Hunting and Myles Egan
INTRODUCTION In September 2023 , Economic Development Australia ( EDA ) engaged the University of Newcastle , Institute for Regional Futures , to understand the scope and scale of the work being undertaken by economic development professionals in Australia , as well as the economic impact of their activities . This work aims to support EDA in its sector development and advocacy work and to gain policymaker recognition of the value of place-based economic development approaches .
This research will be finalised in the next couple of months and this paper summarises findings from Stage 1 which involved a desktop contextual analysis and a survey of economic development professionals ( completed online by 138 respondents in November 2023 ). The survey sought to understand the scope and scale of the work of economic development professionals , as well as their self-reported outcomes and impacts of their activities .
This article reflects on the implications of Stage 1 for the project ’ s overall aim which is to measure the impact of the work undertaken by economic development professionals in Australia .
THE EVOLUTION OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT The concept of economic development has evolved markedly since its origins in the mid- to late-18th century . Characterised by a major shift away from a singular focus on pure wealth creation towards greater equality , resilience and sustainability , to contemporary definitions such as :
Local economic development is achieved when a community ’ s standard of living can be preserved and increased through a process of human and physical development that is based on principles of equity and sustainability .
In the definition above , economic development is seen as having three essential elements :
• Establishing a minimum standard of living and increases this standard over time .
• Reducing inequality .
• Promoting and encouraging sustainable resource use and production .
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