Inside
Washington in the Making
The AWB Institute launched Washington in the Making in July.
Washington in the Making is a framework for driving innovation that
will accelerate our state’s economic recovery in every community.
The goal of the initiative is to build a thriving, resilient and
connected economy that includes all of Washington. It’s built on
five key “pillars” that outline the areas of focus that will drive the
economy forward: talent, business environment, infrastructure
and connectivity, entrepreneurship and innovation, and place and
community.
The initiative includes a new dashboard that features continually
updated numbers on more than 30 vital signs for each county in
the state and the state overall.
It’s the first time that all these types of measurements have been
pulled together in one easy-to-use place, creating an exciting
opportunity for more informed planning and dynamic conversations
about growth and economic recovery.
Local community leaders can drill down into the data for their
counties and compare themselves to other areas or to the state as
a whole. Armed with that detailed and targeted information, they
can better respond to the situation on the ground as they make
plans and advocate for their needs in the Legislature.
The planning for the site began three years ago, aimed at helping
Washington state guide its growth in the decades ahead. The
impact of the novel coronavirus has changed the state’s fiscal
situation, but not the need for a dynamic, comprehensive set of
economic indicators.
As Institute Board Chair Mike Schwenk says, Washington in the
Making is about “how to build back better”.
AWB Recognized for Communications,
COVID Response
The AWB communications team received a 2020 Totem Award for its social media
promotion of last year’s Federal Affairs Summit. The award was presented by the
Puget Sound Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.
AWB also received two platinum awards from the Hermes Creative Awards
14th-annual Creative Competition. One award recognized the PR campaign put
together for last fall’s Manufacturing Week bus tour and the other recognized AWB’s
crisis communications work during the early days of the pandemic. This award
reflects on all departments: membership, operations, events, government affairs
and communications.
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