DETROIT, Dec. 15 /PRNewswire/ – After meeting today with Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, the organizers of The National Summit unveiled “America’s To-Do List” – ten strategic initiatives for business and government to jointly pursue to revitalize our nation’s economy.
“We’re all looking to get to the same place – an American economy firing on all cylinders again and creating good jobs at good wages,” Locke said. “I don’t care if an idea comes from the right or the left, from business or union leaders. If it can work, and if it can grow sustainable jobs, this administration wants to know about it.”
The National Summit was convened by the Detroit Economic Club (DEC) in June to revitalize America’s economy in an increasingly difficult global market. It brought together some of the country’s top business, government and academic leaders to create consensus recommendations for increasing America’s competitiveness in four critical disciplines – Technology, Energy, Environment and Manufacturing. Bill Ford, Executive Chairman, Ford Motor Company and Andrew Liveris, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The Dow Chemical Company, were co-chairs.
“The common theme we heard at The National Summit is that America needs a new relationship between business and government,” said Ford.”The consensus recommendations that were developed there will help us jointly pursue strategic policy decisions that will drive competitiveness and help rebuild our economy.”
“The National Summit was a tremendous first step. It generated great ideas for revitalizing American competitiveness and strengthening the economy,” said Liveris. “The job ahead for all of us is to turn this critical to-do list into a true national agenda. We must engage aggressively on each of these issues and we must engage now.”
Four professional services firms served as Knowledge Partners to coordinate the discussion at The National Summit – Ernst & Young for Technology; PricewaterhouseCoopers for Energy; McKinsey & Company for Environment; and Deloitte for Manufacturing. Deloitte also oversaw the development of America’s To-Do List, a summary of the consensus recommendations from The National Summit:
America’s To-Do List
- Develop a comprehensive national energy strategy that includes a clear carbon policy.
- Develop a national manufacturing strategy that reestablishes an environment for U.S. businesses to thrive and compete on a global basis.
- Support and encourage R&D and innovation as catalysts for economic growth, job creation and environmental improvement.
- Encourage sustainability in business practices, including conservation and efficiency from producers to consumers.
- Improve and promote science, technology, engineering, math (STEM) education in primary through graduate schools.
- Focus on skill-building and workforce retraining to provide “just-in-time” talent to meet changing business needs.
- Shift perception of national “stars” beyond athletes and entertainers to include engineers, scientists and thinkers.
- Upgrade and integrate infrastructure to support 21st-century business needs, such as airports, sea ports, highway systems, water systems, and waterways.
- Expand and coordinate smart grid activities to balance energy needs and connect new energy sources.
- Create transportation infrastructure to support electric vehicles and alternative fuels.
The Book of Proceedings, a more detailed and comprehensive account of the discussions and consensus recommendations of The National Summit, also has been published.
More than 4,000 participants from 550 organizations attended The National Summit. Approximately 100 leaders, from both the public and private sectors, served as speakers, panelists or moderators, including Secretary Locke; Steven Ballmer, CEO, Microsoft Corp.; Harold McGraw III; Chairman, President & CEO, The McGraw-Hill Cos.; James Mulva; Chairman & CEO, ConocoPhillips Co.; Vikram Pandit; CEO, Citigroup Inc.; and W. Douglas Parker; Chairman & CEO, US Airways Group, Inc.
“At The National Summit there was widespread agreement that we have to look beyond crisis intervention to a more collaboration and cooperation between business and government.” said Beth Chappell, President and CEO of the DEC. “We are excited to keep that process moving forward by sharing America’s To-Do List.”
For more information on The National Summit, please visit NationalSummit.org. For more information on the Detroit Economic Club, please visit EconClub.org.
Source: Detroit Economic Club
CONTACT: Matt Friedman, For the Detroit Economic Club, +1-248-626-0006,
mfriedman@tannerfriedman.com
Web Site: http://www.econclub.org
