Much has been said about the future of the Great Lakes region by academics and traditional stakeholders in public policy. Yet rarely have we, 18-40 year olds, the target of scores of 'brain drain' research and attraction and retention efforts, been asked as a demographic what they envision, or how their day-to-day experiences in "declining" post-industrial cities inform that vision.

The economic potential of the Great Lakes region will not be fully realized unless water protection is paired with inclusive and innovative reinvestment in cities like Milwaukee, Erie, and Youngstown. The shared potential of our region's environmental and human capital is truly extraordinary, but untapped - partly because our cities are struggling. The region's cities must be the laboratory, the nucleus, and the expression of that possibility.

Across the world, the number of people moving to cities drastically outpaces the ability of infrastructure to support them. Yet cities like ours are fighting tooth and nail to stave off population decline. We can't continue to sideline this region as our nation evolves in the 21st century.

GLUE was developed in the fall of 2007 as a forum for people to exchange stories, ideas, and best practices between otherwise isolated cities ranging from Buffalo to St. Louis to Minneapolis. The GLUE coalition, comprised of post-boomer urbanists located in the "rustbelt," was founded to promote the power, aide in the positive transformation, and address the shared challenges of similarly-storied older industrial cities situated in the Great Lakes watershed.

GLUE IS A COMMUNITY THAT ENGAGES IN THREE ACTIVITIES, ADHERES TO FOUR PRINCIPLES, AND WORKS IN LINE WITH SEVEN VALUES IN 24 CITIES

ACTIVITIES:

1) Issue Advocacy and Education:

Environmental Justice and Sustainability
Responsible Economic Development
Empowerment of Communities and Individuals
Quality of Place
Civic Participation and Government Transparency

2) Citizen Journalism/Story-telling

Blogging
Podcasting
Video Podcasting
Photography

3) Community Building/Organizing

Sticky City Swap Meets
Fireside Chats
GLUEsletter

PRINCIPLES:

1. Urbanism: Cities are our world's economic drivers. Decision makers cannot afford to underestimate their value nor overlook their needs.
2. Regionalism: Great Lakes urban centers need to overcome outlooks of despair and isolation by forging a shared perspective and developing strength in numbers.
3. Storytelling: White papers alone cannot propel an agenda, particularly for the emerging generation of leadership. No need is expressed more powerfully than via human narrative.
4. Building Networks: Connecting people and institutions who share challenges and objectives will foster regional collaboration and transfer examples of success throughout the region.

VALUES:

1. Information sharing
2. Transparency
3. Inter-sector/inter-city cooperation
4. Mainstreaming good ideas, big and small
5. The active solicitation of multiple perspectives
6. Long-term, sustainable thinking and action
7. Tolerance and inclusion across policy fields

GLUE CITIES:
Akron, OH
Buffalo, NY *
Chicago, IL *
Cincinnati, OH
Cleveland, OH *
Columbus, OH *
Dayton, OH
Detroit, MI *
Des Moines, IA
Duluth, MN *
Erie, PA
Flint, MI *
Fort Wayne, IN
Grand Rapids, MI
Indianapolis, IN *
Lansing, MI *
Louisville, KY
Milwaukee, WI *
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN *
Pittsburgh, PA *
Rochester, NY *
St. Louis, MO *
Toledo, OH *
Youngstown, OH

* at least one local GLUE meeting has taken place here

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