Overview provided courtesy of the Edward Lowe Foundation.

Philosophy

Economic gardening, a philosophy that embraces strategies to grow existing businesses in a community, region or state, is the basis for the entrepreneurship programs at the Edward Lowe Foundation.

By supporting second-stage companies and the entrepreneurial organizations that assist them, the foundation is planting the seeds for a stronger economy. Communities are the economic gardens that cultivate these companies and organizations and create supportive environments where they can thrive.

Innovative Entrepreneur-Centered Growth

Economic gardening is an innovative entrepreneur-centered economic growth strategy that offers balance to the traditional economic practice of business recruitment, often referred to as "economic hunting." It was pioneered by Chris Gibbons in 1989 in the City of Littleton, Colorado, in conjunction with the Center for the New West. While it was introduced as a demonstration program to deal with the sudden erosion of economic conditions following the relocation of the largest employer in the city at that time, it has emerged as a prototype for a rapidly expanding movement of like-minded economic developers looking for additional methods to generate truly sustainable economic growth for their communities, regions or states.

The three basic elements of gardening are:

1. Providing critical information needed by businesses to survive and thrive.

2. Developing and cultivating an infrastructure that goes beyond basic physical infrastructure and includes quality of life, a culture that embraces growth and change, and access to intellectual resources, including qualified and talented employees.

3. Developing connections between businesses and the people and organizations that can help take them to the next level — business associations, universities, roundtable groups, service providers and more.