IEDC's Tech-Led Economic Development Conference

International Economic Development Council's (IEDC) Conference on Tech-Led Economic Development was recently held in San Jose--the heart of Silicon Valley--from May 21-23, 2006. It was attended by around 200 delegates from across the United States and the World. The conference was a fine mix of professional development seminars, informative sessions, and exciting tours for the delegates. With "Silicon Valley" becoming a metaphor for a technology hub around the world, the location provided a great setting for a conference on Technology-led economic development. The delegates were able to visit the Tech Museum in San Jose and listen to the "Rise of Silicon Valley" story. They could also visit eBay's operations Center the San Jose's Bio Center, and Hitachi Global Systems. Confernce sessions included ones on Science Parks, Workforce Development, Rural Entrepreneurship, Site Selection, Measuring Regional Innovation, Technology Clusters, and Venture Capital. While IEDC does not hold a conference on Technology-based Economic Development regularly, it is a welcome addition to its toolkit that otherwise focuses on more traditional issues such as business attraction and retention, real-estate development etc. For Conference website: Click Here.