Seeking an opportunity to spark dialogue regarding economic leadership in 12 Northwest North Carolina Counties, the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce announces the creation of Vision Northwest North Carolina, a one-day summit that will highlight local trends in economic, workforce, and talent development. The event takes place Wednesday, May 22nd, at Leon Levine Hall at Appalachian State University.
Vision Northwest North Carolina will feature a keynote address on rural economic development trends from Chris Chung, President of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. Additional keynote speakers and event sponsors will be announced later this spring. Each participant will attend breakout sessions on topics that include:
- Beyond Borders: Leaders from towns in and around the Northwest Prosperity Zone discuss best practices and trends involving economic development.
- May the Force Stay with You: Discussion related to workforce development trends, employee retention, and benefit strategies in the Northwest Prosperity Zone.
- Build Your Future: Focus on talent development and trends in training/education of the workforce of tomorrow.
Keynote sessions will include discussion of subjects that focus on embracing the next generation of leadership, succession planning, and other State led initiatives and projects. The target audience for this event includes economic development professionals, local government officials/staff, and business owners from within the Northwest Prosperity Zone. Attendance will be limited to the first 200 registrants.
The Northwest Prosperity Zone, as defined by EDPNC, includes Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, McDowell, Mitchell, Watauga, Wilkes, Yancy counties.
“During the summer of 2018, a group from Watauga County attended Energizing Rural North Carolina, which was hosted by EDPNC. We were tasked with the challenge of taking the information learned during that event back to our own areas and examine how those discussion topics landed in our unique business communities,” said David Jackson, President/CEO of the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce. “After discussion with the Watauga County Economic Development Commission and the Career Development Center at Appalachian State, we decided to approach EDPNC about hosting our own discussion where we could talk about trends, opportunities, and successes specific to our area of the State. We hope that through the dialogue created at this gathering, business owners and economic development professionals can find some common threads that exist throughout our area that can lead to growth opportunities for the entire region.”
A full event agenda, registration information and a list of confirmed speakers and panelists are available athttps://www.boonechamber.com/events/vision-northwest-north-carolina. Registration cost is $95 per person and includes meeting materials, lunch, and snacks throughout the event.
If you have questions, please contact the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce at 828-264-2225 or email david@boonechamber.com.