IEDC 2015 Annual Conference: Call for Session Proposals
Submission Deadline: December 5, 2014
IEDC 2015 Annual Conference:
Call for Session Proposals
Background:
The International Economic Development Council (IEDC) is presenting its 2015 Annual Conference in Anchorage, AK, from October 4 - 7, 2015. This is an opportunity to highlight success stories and lessons learned, share cutting-edge ideas and engage with your colleagues and contemporaries at the premier educational and networking event for members of the economic development community. IEDC is seeking compelling session proposals to ensure a comprehensive slate of program offerings at the 2015 Annual Conference. The conference theme is “Foundational Transformations: Creating Future Growth & Prosperity”.
Session proposals should address a range of trends and topics to reflect the wide-ranging needs and interests of IEDC’s diverse membership. Concurrent sessions will be organized into four content tracts, descriptions for which are found on page 3 of this document:
- Government and Economic Resiliency
- Frameworks for a Robust Private Sector
- Value Proposition of NGOs and Nonprofits
- Role of Institutes of Higher Learning in Economic Development
Conference Audience:
IEDC is the world's largest membership organization serving the economic development profession. From public to private, rural to urban and local to international, our members represent the entire range of economic development experience.
Submission Deadline: December 5, 2014
Guidelines:
Please read the following guidelines carefully before submitting your session proposal.
●All organizations proposing sessions must be current members of IEDC for the proposal to be considered.
●IEDC reserves the right to accept only the topic, title, one or more speakers and moderator or any combination of the above list.
●IEDC reserves the right to add, edit or make changes to the session title, description, and mode of presentation, panel and moderator.
●All proposals become property of IEDC upon receipt. Session topics or speaker recommendations not accepted for the 2015 Annual Conference may be used in future IEDC conferences, newsletters and resources.
●Panels that include communities of multiple sizes and states and countries are strongly encouraged. IEDC does not recommend sessions composed of all consultants or representatives from just one community, company or state unless it is a case study.
●In order to keep membership dues and registration feeds to a minimum for our members, IEDC is unable to pay speaker’s travel expenses, honorarium or speaker’s bureau fees.
●For some topics, IEDC receives multiple session proposals. IEDC reserves the right to combine session proposals on similar topics into one session.
●All speakers and moderators interested in attending the conference will be expected to register and pay for the conference. Speakers are invited to attend the session before or after their session excluding meals and receptions without paying the registration fee. Special exceptions will need to be approved by IEDC.
●Speakers may only speak or moderate in one session during the conference program. Speakers who are proposed for several sessions will be confirmed for only one session.
●Members proposing sessions are responsible for confirming proposed speakers and moderators upon acceptance of session proposal.
●IEDC strives for speaker and moderator diversity, especially gender, racial, geographic, and type and size of community.
Submission Deadline: December 5, 2014
Please send complete session proposal forms and 200 word biographies for all prospective speakers and moderators to by no later than December 5, 2014.
A web-based version of this form will be available on IEDC’s website following the 2014 Annual Conference. If you prefer to complete a paper form, please mail to:
IEDC (attn. Marie Plishka)
734 15th St NW Suite 900
Washington, DC, 20005
Proposed speakers and moderators without biographies will not be considered.
Please contact IEDC at via email with any questions regarding conference proposals. For more details about IEDC, visit our website at You will be notified via e-mail regarding a decision on your proposal by April 2015. All proposals will be kept on file for one year for consideration for future conferences.
If the session proposal is accepted, the person that submitted the proposals will be responsible for confirming the moderator and speakers before the end of April.
Important Deadlines
October 19 – December 5, 2014IEDC accepting session proposals
By April 2015IEDC notifies submissions of the outcome of their proposals
By May 2015Successful submissions should confirm their moderators and speakers no later than April 30, 2014
2015 Annual Conference Track Descriptions
Economic development is the interplay between a number of dynamic processes that are, on their own, quite disparate. The concept of the “Quad Helix” helps portray the interdependence of these four sectors that are necessary for successful economic development: Public Sector, Private Sector, NGOs and Nonprofits, and Institutions of Higher Learning.
Track 1 - Government and Economic Resiliency
Economic development is driven by the need to innovate, create, and develop while traditional governmental institutions are typically slow and bureaucratic. However, government plays a vital role in creating the environment in which economies remain strong and the job market competitive. In this track, conference attendees will be exposed to the new role of government and new models for restoring a strong economy and job market, including the topics of creating a competitive tax and regulatory regime, public-private partnerships and/or new hybrid organizations, public financing, and targeted policies to facilitate private sector growth.
Track 2 - Frameworks for a Robust Private Sector
The private sector is the driving force behind economic growth and job creation, providing government with revenues to support essential public services in addition to the goods and services that improve everyone’s standard of living and quality of life. Innovation and entrepreneur ecosystems, a bright spot for future economic growth, need to be nurtured and advanced to produce new products and services, successfully commercialize ideas, and exploit trade and export opportunities. The private sector is also increasingly solving public sector challenges and often times generating revenues through social entrepreneurship. In this track, conference attendees will be exposed to clear and compelling frameworks to encourage a more robust private sector.
Track 3 - Value Proposition of NGOs and Nonprofits
Today’s successful NGOs and Nonprofits, including EDOs and Chambers, not only focus on traditional business issues, but also become active in the overall financial health and well-being of the communities they serve. NGOs and nonprofits serve as important relationship spanners, and their role in the future of economic development needs to be considered, including expected future staffing needs and new measures of economic development success. This track will explore how NGOs and Nonprofits are not only reinventing themselves, but more importantly, communicating in clearer terms to their members and stakeholders their value proposition.
Track 4 - Roles of Institutes of Higher Learning in Economic Development
Institutesof higher learning play crucial roles in economic development from generating new ideas, transmitting knowledge to educating and preparing a workforce for the future. In today’s information society, knowledge drives economic growth and prosperity, yet institutions of higher learning are often times in peripheral roles to development. Today’s professionals require lifetime learning and will likely have multiple professions. The research led by institutes of higher learning will aid economic developers to better understand what strategies are most effective in creating growth and prosperity. This track will explore the many roles and ways institutes of higher learning are actively engaged in as well as collaborative contributors to the transformation of economic development.
Proposal Form
Contact Information for Proposal:
Name:
Designation:
Title:
Company:
Mailing Address:
Phone:
Email:
Is your organization a member of IEDC?:
Have you read the Guidelines on page 2?
Suggested Mode of Presentation:
1. Panel (3 presentations of 15-20 minutes each with 30 minutes for questions)
2. Town Hall (3-5 panelists for an open discussion, no presentations)
3. Economic Development Seminar (1-2 speakers providing case study or in-depth presentation)
4. Interactive Workshop (2-3 facilitators with activities at the table and in larger group)
IEDC appreciates new and innovative session formats. If you would like to propose a session format that is different from what is listed above, please describe below. Include details such as stage set up, floor set up and anticipated AV needs.
Suggested Session Title (8 words or less):
Session Track (Please select all appropriate tracks):
1. Government and Economic Resiliency
2. Frameworks for a Robust Private Sector
3. Value Proposition of NGOs and Nonprofits
4. Role of Institutes of Higher Learning in Economic Development
Target Audience:
Session Audience Appeal (Please select all that apply):
Urban Suburban Rural International
What will participants attending this session take away?
How does this session proposal offer a new or innovative understanding of this particular topic?
Session Description (Please provide a 1-2 paragraph description of the session you are proposing. Please address why this topic is important, to whom is it important, and how your session will help the conference participants solve the problem/challenge that you have identified):
Marketing Description (Please provide 50-75 word description of the session you are proposing):
Suggested Session Moderator:
Name:
Title:
Affiliation:
Mailing Address:
Phone:
E-mail Address:
Why did you select this person as a moderator? Please include specific examples of how s/he has demonstrated a significant understanding or contribution to the topic covered in this session.
Suggested Session Presenter(s):
Presenter 1:
Name:
Title:
Affiliation:
Mailing Address:
Phone:
Email:
Why did you select this person as a speaker? Please include specific examples of how s/he has demonstrated a significant understanding or contribution to the topic covered in this session.
Presenter 2:
Name:
Title:
Affiliation:
Mailing Address:
Phone:
Email:
Why did you select this person as a speaker? Please include specific examples of how s/he has demonstrated a significant understanding or contribution to the topic covered in this session.
Presenter 3:
Name:
Title:
Affiliation:
Mailing Address:
Phone:
Email:
Why did you select this person as a speaker? Please include specific examples of how s/he has demonstrated a significant understanding or contribution to the topic covered in this session.
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