2021.05.11 WS Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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PlanningDuring anUnprecedented Time I As the Economic Competitiveness and Inclusion Plan (ECI) planning process continued to assess the economic strengths and weaknesses within the county,a global pandemic began to take hold throughout the United States,with the health 11111S6I se and economic impacts most acutely felt by people of color.Then on May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man,was killed by Minneapolis police. 41141. This action, recorded for all to bear witness, set off a global racial justice protest that highlighted racial disparities and persistent institutional structural racism, culminating in the global recognition that Black Lives Matter. Our communities and economy are in crisis,facing uncertainty about the future and expected long-term negative economic impacts on our most vulnerable residents and businesses. Ramsey County leaders, residents, and business owners 3' I have been forced to navigate unfamiliar risks and expectations.Yet these same . Nse______,N. t , ' challenges also have created a deeper understanding that the status quo that existed before 2020 is not sustainable, is deeper than most of us understand, and requires actions as dramatic, sustained,and impactful as the actions that led us to �� this point. Many leaders in all sectors have issued pledges to do better. Despite decades of recognition that the current economics of race are not sustainable and unfulfilled pledges by regional leaders to take action since the 2008 recession, little positive impact occurred to improve outcomes for Black, Latinx,Asian,and Indigenous people.As Tawanna Black from the Center for Economic Inclusion wrote in a May The COVID-19 pandemic also meant that the development of this plan evolved 27, 2020 call to action addressed to corporate leaders in Minnesota,"...over the differently than originally planned, and differently from other county planning 10-year period of recovery since the last recession, Minneapolis St. Paul has only efforts. In-person meetings pivoted to virtual engagement,with different formats closed the racial wage gap between White Workers and Workers of Color by$541 (Source: Brookings Metro Monitor)."This plan seeks to define a set of economic utilized to engage a diversity of voices representing the county's many local communities, business and industry types,community-based organizations, priorities and actions that mitigate the impacts of institutional structural racism affordable housing partners, and many others.An important goal of this plan is to and disinvestment in our Black, Latinx,Asian,and Indigenous communities while advance economic inclusion by leveraging and aligning the County's efforts with simultaneously accelerating economic growth and competitiveness in Ramsey those working at the local, regional,and state levels. County, dispelling the myth that the two are mutually exclusive. 6 ii,RAMSEY COUNTY