List of Linked Resources: Iowas Creative Corridor boasts a great farming heritage, yet features no appreciable agritourism opportunities.

. Host a conference/workshop to explore the opportunities within agritourism. Read below about the Nespresso AAA Summer Campus where tourists APPLY to attend a two-week course offering an opportunity to experience firsthand the world of highest quality sustainable coffee agriculture. o http://www.nespresso.com/aaa-program/en/campus/ Pop-up retail is another form of brand interaction. It is all about the surprise, the spontaneity and the temporary availability of a brand experience. Retailers use it to create a buzz and provide a unique, one-time experience for their consumers. For instance, J. Crew (following) has a pop-up Holiday Haberdasher that patrols the streets of major cities during the Christmas season, selling directly out of a converted Jeep. In London, the London Fashion Bus, a converted double-decker, stocks the wares of 40 young designers and travels the countryside to sell trendy clothing to customers who dont have access to the hip shops of the City. Pop-up extends to dining and entertainment, as well. In several major cities, restaurants and night clubs have created great buzz with temporary installations in shipping containers outfitted for temporary duty. One enterprising developer has outfitted restaurant space in NYC, but allows only a temporary three-month lease. Every three months, he turns over the operator and brings in a new concept. The crowds keep flocking back to see the latest incarnation. Another New York restaurant changes its dcor and menu every season, thus creating a fresh dining experience for their customers. The name of the restaurant changes as well: Park Avenue Autumn has recently transitioned (in 48 hours) to Park Avenue Winter. o http://www.parkavenyc.com/ Community building/resident involvement via the web More and more, commercial and community brands are turning to the web to involve their citizens in local government via feedback, discussion, fresh ideas and viewpoints, suggestions and connections among neighbors and interest groups and yes, even disappointments and criticism. Those communities who continue to ignore the potential of electronic interaction with their residents miss out on a vital connection. Consider the following statistics from Trend Watch: o Facebook now has more than 500 million active users; 50% of those log on in any given day. Each of those users has an average of 130 Facebook friends and is connected to 80 community pages, groups and events. o Twitter now boasts 105 million users and adds 300,000 every day o LinkedIn counts over 75 million members. o Overall, the share of adult US internet users who have a profile on a social networking site has more than quadrupled in the past four yearsfrom 8% in 2005 to 35% now. For adults aged 18-24, its 75%, and for tweens, its close to 100%. (Source: Pew Internet, January 2009.)

North Star client, Lima-Allen County, Ohio, chose to implement their new regional brand through economic development channels first. They produced a compelling DVD targeting CEOs and other economic development leaders. This presentation explained the branding process, goals, and suggested how business leaders could participate and benefit. A professionally scripted and filmed video, using local stakeholders or industry leaders, may be more compelling for more sophisticated viewers or for large audience presentations. The downside to videos is that they are not easily customizable for different audiences and are more expensive to produce. Please follow the link below to the Lima-Allen County DVD presentation. o http://northstarideas.blogspot.com/2010/03/lima-allen-county-branding-video.html In addition to the thumb drives, you may choose to make your toolkit available on-line. (In fact, if money is tight, you may choose to offer the toolkit ONLY on-line) A good example of an online brand toolkit can be found at the brand website of North Star client Dayton, Ohio. Check it out at: o http://www.daytonoriginals.org/on_the_mark.asp An excellent national brand toolkit is the Big Brand Book, an online resource for the partners of the Nova Scotia brand. The book, which contains guidelines, suggestions and examples, is available to brand partners in a password protected portion of the brand website: o http://www.novascotialife.com/. The regions various custom DNA strands can be inter-changed on the brand portal , with stories about the organization, the development of the strand and the information that creates the organizations helix. This is similar to the approach taken by North Star client Providence, RI, which uses many versions of the letter P in their marketing materials. Last year, the Providence brand was recognized with an award from Rebrand. Click the link below to see the case study from Rebrand, the brand portal site (creative capital) and the Providence government and tourism websites. o http://www.rebrand.com/2010-merit-providence-the-creative-capital o http://www.goprovidence.com/ o http://www.providenceri.com/ o http://www.providencethecreativecapital.com/ Become known as a center of thought, leadership and education regarding the impact of the arts on science and innovation by becoming involved with the National Science Foundations efforts to introduce art into science education. The Art of Science Learning: Shaping the 21st Century Workforce responds to the increasing number of business leaders that have identified a significant innovation gap around workforce preparedness in the areas of creativity, collaboration and communication; areas considered critical to their own companies competitiveness. Conferences have been held across the country and initiatives are underway. Kirkwood Community College should take the lead with local corporations and businesses to explore and expand the idea of art affecting science learning, as well as creativity, collaboration and communication in the workforce. Some ideas to consider:

o Conferences and workshops that bring artists and scientists face-to-face for discussion and collaborative activities o Art camp for science professors or scientists/science camp for artists o Requiring an art portfolio of some sort for college applications not just standardized test scores o Team teaching with an artist and a business person o Coalition of artists and scientists working together on increasing innovation. The following links will tell you more about the national initiative: o o o o

http://artofsciencelearning.org/ http://scienceblogs.com/art_of_science_learning/ http://artofsciencelearning.org/the-arts-can-help-bridge-the-innovation-gap.html http://www.artstem.org/

Consider hosting a region-wide science and art fair that serves as a platform for creativity and innovation. Too Cool for School in Toronto, Canada is an example of an art and science fair. The event, which features 40 exhibitors, is just like a regular science fair except that each project must contain an artistic component. Entries are judged and the top eight are allowed to pursue a bigger art/science project to appear in an exhibition. Toronto also hosts an adult science fair. If there is an existing science fair within the region, add an interesting award category for artistic expression or communication. o http://artandsciencefair.ca/about/ The Innovation Index (presented via the Economic Development Administration http://www.eda.gov/ and http://www.statsamerica.org/innovation/) provides leaders and practitioners with the first tool for comparing a region's innovation performance with that of the United States, another state, or other regions. Innovation is a multifaceted concept, so this tool allows the exploration of the different dimensions of innovation. The Innovation Index comprises two broad categories: inputs to innovation, which measure innovation capacity, and outputs of innovation, which measure the results. Variables in the Innovation Index are derived from both official government statistical agencies and several private, proprietary sources, including Moodys economy.com, Innovation Economy 360, and Economic Modeling Specialists, Inc. The Innovation Index compares regional performance to the United States and is calculated from 4 component indexes. The weight for each variable is listed below. This index can be recalculated annually using the following website: o http://www.statsamerica.org/innovation/data.html Travelling is a transformative experience ask regional artists to interpret the power of travel through their art. Establish a permanent collection at the Eastern Iowa Airport. Follow the link on the following page to learn more about the art at Indianapolis International Airport. Note that the permanent collection features the words of six poets imposed over semi-transparent free-form stained glass designs that are installed in the large

windows of the airport. This would work well at the Eastern Iowa Airport in the Corridor where international flags now hang. If you prefer, use passages from some of the Pulitzer Prize winning IWW books, particularly if they interpret or reference creativity, innovation or transformation. In Indiana, the Airpoets (as they were called) travelled together giving readings of their work and a book was produced highlighting the work of the poets and that of the visual artist. o http://www.indianapolisairport.com/files/contribute/05.07.09GuideToAirportArt_00 1.pdf o http://www.bannergraphic.com/story/1481863.html

Partner together to hold a regional conference on Innovation in Government. For ideas and excellent reading on local government innovation, subscribe to Innovators Insights, a publication of the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School. See APPENDIX I for some sample newsletters and visit their website: o http://www.ash.harvard.edu/Home/Programs/Innovations-in-Government Look for new and innovative ways to engage your residents on a regional basis and to involve them in region-wide conversations on how to improve their home. One of the newest methods of engagement and crowdsourcing is gathering ideas via the internet. Change By Us, an initiative in Philadelphia, asks residents how to make their neighborhoods smarter, safer and greener. Residents provide input and stay informed via the website and Twitter. The effort is supported by the Mayor and funded in part by grants from the Rockefeller Foundation and the Knight Foundation. Residents may propose a project and start a discussion group around that topic, or join groups for projects they are interested in. The website also displays the photos and titles of Philadelphia politicians and staff members in charge of collecting information from Change By Us and considering implementation of projects. o http://philly.changeby.us/#start The West Michigan Strategic Alliance (www.wm-alliance.org) is a region that has experienced success with this approach. Formed in 2000 as a catalyst for collaboration and cooperation, the group started with a 40-person Leadership forum that included public, private, education and non-profit leaders. For more on the WMSA and other regional case studies, consult the following links (a copy of the following PDFs are included on the Final BrandAMP CD): o http://www.wm-alliance.org/documents/publications/The_Common_Framework.pdf o http://www.wmalliance.org/documents/publications/2010_Vital_Signs_V12_FINAL.pdf o http://www.compete.org/images/uploads/File/PDF%20Files/Final_Collaborate.pdf Check how your venue is performing over time using Foursquare analytics. o www.foursquare.com

For an example of a regional blog based in the Research Triangle Park of North Carolina, click the following link: http://thertpblog.org/about/. Note the variety of viewpoints, occupations and hometowns represented in the blog. Also of note is the age of the contributors. With the many awards, recognition and rankings achieved by various communities within the Creative Corridor, you may also find it helpful to create a brag mag that highlights these areas of recognition. In addition to rankings, be sure to include various Innovation Inventories developed during the DNA Project. For instance, you might include films and television shows based on IWW pieces; medical innovations developed at UI (and estimated number of patients who have benefited), US Presidents and vice-presidents who have spoken or appeared in the Creative Corridor, famous alumni of local colleges and universities, patents held by Rockwell Collins (or other major manufacturers) and so on. Title the publication: Innovation Impact. Produce hard copies for inclusion in prospect and recruitment folders, as well as distribution as a newspaper insert. Link the publication to the regional web portal for long-term on-line reference. See the link below to a Des Moines publication for one version of a regional brag mag: o http://www.businessrecord.com/main.asp?SectionID=41&SubSectionID=121&ArticleI D=15236 The infographs above offer a powerful way to look at the impact and popularity of an everyday product the internet. This approach would be an excellent way to visually demonstrate the impact of the Creative Corridor region on everyday life for people around the world. Choose a time span (50 years, 25 years, 10 years, 1 year?) and consider information like the following: o Number of people who have read an IWW novel, poem or seen a movie or show produced from an IWW winner o Number of bowls of cereal consumed around the world that were manufactured in the Corridor o and so on o http://www.linkedin.com/news?actionBar=&articleID=1008945444&ids=dPkUejgPej0 MciMVdP4UdzwTc30Nb3AVej4PcPAMc34IcjkPej0Pcz0MciMQd3gRd3AUc30N&aag= true&freq=weekly&trk=eml-tod2-b-ttl-0&ut=1TjZ8E28aw_501 Note the difference in look and feel of the three sites below as compared to those above. While the website of the JPEC may be largely dictated by UI, the new regional brand, development of a regional economic development focused website and the rebranding at UI all present an opportunity for change. ICC should also meet with the EDC to discuss a potential freshening up of their website. These sites are the most important link between ICC and current/potential investors and entrepreneurs. Make sure they are interactive, energetic, and innovative. ICC may need to offer some grant funding in order to facilitate these positive changes. o For a live look at the New Orleans site, click on: http://ideavillage.org/ o JUMPSTART website non-profit in Cleveland, OH http://www.jumpstartinc.org/

o Center of Rural Entrepreneurship http://www.swmncore.com/

An event like this, if well done, can have a far-ranging impact in increasing awareness of ICC as an entrepreneurial region. It can also serve to help attract top talent from around the country. To read about Entrepreneur Week programs in other locations, check the following links: o http://www.kauffman.org/entrepreneurship/global-entrepreneurship-week-2011.aspx o http://ideavillage.org/programs/noew/ o http://www.dcew.org/ o http://www.entrepreneurweek.net/ A simple way to connect your entrepreneurs in real time and allow them to share information is to form Google or LinkedIn groups. Create ICC Entrepreneur Groups, then promote them via newsletter, web, public relations and social media. Some examples of Google Groups can be found below. o http://groups.google.com/group/wilco-entrepreneurs-group o http://groups.google.com/group/econ-dev?lnk=srg&hl=en Pre-loaded apps on the phone are all related to the Dallas area weather, maps, photos, contacts, news, clock, event calendar, entertainment, restaurants, and the custom Bold Moves website as the home page. A Dallas concierge is available 24/7 to answer questions (about the phone or the city!) or to troubleshoot. The program is a partnership between the City of Dallas, the Dallas Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Dallas Economic Development Office and Downtown Dallas. o http://www.dallasecodev.org/SiteContent/66/documents/Resources/D_Economy/2009/October-2009D-Economy.pdf During their all-expense paid visit, the participants will meet with top leaders in respected industries, explore the city, network with entrepreneurs, and be immersed in the local flavor of New Orleans people and culture. Winners of the contest come from across the country and a variety of backgrounds. Their task is to assess the status of New Orleans as a model of new business progress and thinking. But the most innovative part of the event is that the 25 participants, selected in part for their active participation and large networks on social media, will share their experiences and opinions with the world, unfiltered and in real-time via their personal social networks and the contests NOLAbound website. o http://www.benolabound.com/ In addition, to the video profiles, develop written Q and A interviews that can be placed on the website, featured in relocation packets, and highlighted in ads. See an example of an executive interview and an executive spouse interview at the Ohio State of Balance website: o http://www.ohiomeansbusiness.com/life-in-ohio/success-stories/executiveinterviews/index.php o http://www.ohiomeansbusiness.com/life-in-ohio/success-stories/executive-spouseinterviews/cathy-mantilla-falkenberg.php

As we mentioned in our Trends update, pop-up retail continues to surge in popularity. Pop-ups seem intimate and local at a time when consumers are craving more connection. The surprise of an unexpected brand experience creates good will and enhanced reputation. For more on the psychology of pop-up follow the link below (or see APPENDIX T). o http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-why-behind-the-buy/201006/pop-retailwhy-it-works On your Creative Corridor portal homepage, include the pop-up appearance calendar. Or provide clues regarding the location of an upcoming appearance. To see an on-line ad for promoting pop-up appearances, follow the link below: o http://www.superfuture.com/supernews/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/parra-pop-uplax.gif In Omaha, Nebraska an art project called Stored Potential provided an opportunity for local artists to submit agriculturally related designs to be produced on giant removable banners which hung on the silos. More than 500 entries were received by Emerging Terrain, a nonprofit which marshals corporate, government, artistic and educational resources to combat blight and decay. o http://theourworld.com/make-the-world-more-beautifulthe-art-of-omahas-grainelevators/ Take the brand one step further by applying the logo to uniforms of local recreational sports leagues. Either supply a patch to teams at the beginning of each season, or supply the logo and design guidelines for the logo to be screen printed on the t-shirt. Read about a community who took this approach at the link below: o http://www.whitecourtstar.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3146076 Note that the grand format posters can fill the side of an otherwise blank wall, cover the side of a multi-story parking garage or jazz up a currently unused building. In Louisville, each Hometown Hero poster is sponsored by a local business that pays printing and installation costs. See all of Louisvilles Hometown Heroes and read about the program at the link below: o http://www.louheroes.org/index.html In addition to the Young Creatives Summit, another activity of updayton is their Annual Report which features the results of their yearly survey of college students and a summary of the years activities. Using the survey, they track perceptions, attitudes and decisionmaking factors for the regions college students regarding Daytons appeal as a place to live, work and play. o updayton.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/The_Updayton_Year_Three_Report__The_Dayton_Regions_Talent_on_the_Rise.pdf Learn more about the Dayton programs by clicking on the link below: o http://updayton.com

The site was established in an effort to connect with the 30,000 southwest Virginia high school alumni who had moved out of the region over the last 20 years. The effort was launched with a direct mail postcard campaign and is a non-profit organization funded by a state tobacco grant and company sponsorships. A flyer describing the Return to Roots program can be found in APPENDIX V. Click on the link below to see the website: o http://www.rtrswva.org/RTR_background.php Work with communities throughout the region to catalog and map the regions WiFi access. Then add an Iowas Creative Corridor Wi-Finder map to your brand portal. o http://www.downtownla.com/4_03_wiFinder.asp You can host the same kind of event using barcodes. At special events and festivals, give away an inexpensive premium item with a Stickybits bar code. When participants scan the code, they will see a message, photograph or video that provides information about the scavenger hunt. Players can add their own comments or photos to the event thread at each location. Stickybits is a mobile application that uses barcodes printed on stickers to make everyday objects scannable by smartphone. Stickybits have been used at the San Diego Zoo where guests scan in photos and comments at each exhibit, throughout the remodeled Gatwick Airport to point out new features/improvements and in London to host a scavenger hunt. You can also link your Stickybits campaign to other location-based social networks such as Foursquare, Gowalla and Facebook Places. Celebrities host Stickybits events too Reggie Bush used a Stickybits/Foursquare/Facebook giveaway at the start of last years NFL season. Reggie gave away autographed footballs to fans that checked in via Foursquare or found his Stickybits clues around New Orleans. Note: Stickybits arent just for scavenger hunts. You can add a Stickybits barcode to your business cards, too. When a contact scans the code with their phone, they can receive a custom message from the business or from the brand. Order bar codes directly from Stickybits and add your own message or video content. o http://scandayton.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=76&Itemid= 257 o http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Add-Content-to-Any-Barcode-with-StickybitsApp-315232105 o http://www.stickybits.com/ o http://www.stickybits.com/c/1301594256184 o http://mashable.com/2010/09/08/reggie-bush-redzones/ o http://agentgenius.com/real-estate-coaching-tutorials/tech/host-a-tech-savvyscavenger-hunt-in-your-local-community/ Initiate an internship program featuring a centralized database of regional opportunities. Using local media, non-profit organizations, the Creative Collaborative and personal contacts, put out a call for all area employers to consider developing internship

opportunities within their organization. Compile these positions into an Iowas Creative Corridor Intern database. For examples of quality databases, check out the following links: o Indiana: o www.indianaintern.net/home.asp o Upstate New York: o http://www.mybeanstalk.com/ o Philadelphia: o http://www.careerphilly.com/ In addition, encourage area employers to post entry level jobs and internships at aftercollege.com, a database that students can search by geographic location or by job type. This resource is used also by journalists to rank a communitys attractiveness to college grads. While many of the Creative Corridors major employers like Rockwell Collins and the City of Cedar Rapids are using the site, smaller businesses may not be familiar with the resource. o http://www.aftercollege.com/ Ramp up your internship program another notch with a formal regional summer internship program called Innovate, Learn, Earn. Model the program after Greater Louisvilles Intern to Earn program, a comprehensive summer intern program designed to attract college graduates to Louisville. The program not only connects employers and interns, it offers a summer full of activities including welcome lunch, career workshops, and social events with the other summer interns and opportunities to sample a variety of summer activities around Louisville. The program recruits quality students by attending Career Fairs at colleges throughout Kentucky and surrounding states and through the draw of paid work experience and a built-in social network. In Louisville, the program is managed through the Greater Louisville Chamber of Commerce. Learn more about the Intern to Earn program through the following links (note that the tone of the site is young and fresh): o http://www.greaterlouisville.com/InternToEarn/ o http://www.greaterlouisville.com/interntoearn/ House all of your summer interns in one location in an urban area. The optimal scenario would be apartments. If not, the interns could be housed at UI in dorms. When choosing a location, remember that YCs like walkable, authentic neighborhoods with a variety of accessible activities and public transit. You would not want an intern to have to turn down a position because they did not have a car. Dayton operates a similar summer intern program called Summer in the City. o http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/oh/story/news/local/2007/06/04/ ddn060407internsinside.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=16 o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hv_Cwi-a3xw Connect regional high school students with the innovation of the region through a summer camp where area CEOs and entrepreneurial leaders teach how to build and grow companies. Throughout the week of camp, high schoolers would enjoy the unique opportunity to visit a different company each day and interact personally with the business leaders. Startup High in the Research Triangle of North Carolina, uses a faculty of 50

business leaders in its summer camp programs, which are designed to help students discover their passion and uncover an entrepreneurial spirit. Camps are organized by industry focus, so that students can choose the weeks of greatest interest to them. Learn more at: o http://www.startuphigh.com/ In addition to walking paths, stencil the Career Paths on high school and middle school sidewalks as a way to connect with their aspirations. See below for a similar idea executed in Finland. On all installations, include the brand logo for identity purposes. For more information on Candy Change and her projects, click the link: o http://candychang.com/category/notebook Highlight stories of successful graduates who have located in the region and become successful. There are many local success stories to choose from in your targeted clusters. Here is an example of promoting hometown success in Nashville, TN within the animation arena. o http://www.tennessean.com/article/20110703/COLUMNIST03/307030034/RandyMcClain-Animation-scores-big-video-company?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Business o http://rabbitholerecording.com/ Sponsor a regional Job Crawl for area students or recent graduates. StartUp Foundation Des Moines recently held a Start Up Job Crawl through their tech corridor, then toured the tenants of a local incubator, then visited another area of the city for more start-up tours and a look at a freshly opened cowork space. Sponsor a similar event within the Creative Corridor. Schedule a quarterly or semi-annual job crawl so that participants can spend adequate time meeting and learning about each potential employer or location. In Des Moines, there was no charge for the event, which was open to all current students and any recent college graduate (defined as out of college for 12 months or less). o http://www.siliconprairienews.com/2011/10/attention-students-des-moines-firststartup-job-crawl-is-nov-16 In addition to co-work office space, assess the need for creative shared meeting spaces. See photos below of a rehabbed meeting/conference shared space near Cincinnati, Ohio. Note the toys and props for stimulating discussion and brainstorming. Access to third spaces like these makes communities more attractive to creative businesses and young professionals. o http://www.boostmeeting.com/ The Thinkubator in Chicago is another creative meeting space. Big rooms, high ceilings, expansive views and fun toys all contribute to a sense of freedom and creativity: o http://thinkubators.com/ Tourism organizations should also consider the development of a joint Iowas Creative Corridor YouTube Discovery Channel. Consider a collaborative tourism and art/culture initiative pooling marketing dollars to produce dynamic, interesting videos to post to YouTube and Vimeo (and embed in organization websites). Highlight creative art, culture

and outdoor activities that show visitors in action learning, doing, discovering and creating. ICC is a very dynamic, active destination with multitudes of events and locations to see and explore. Capture that spirit in a personality-filled video about the region. A 2011 Grand Rapids MI video, produced in reaction to a Newsweek article describing Grand Rapids as a dying city has now produced more than four million hits in less than a year. The video, which involved 4,000 volunteers takes the viewer on a tour of the major assets of the community. o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPjjZCO67WI North Star client Abilene, TX had great success with their Top 10 promotion, which was recognized with an award from the state. In addition to promoting the region to potential visitors, the list helps provide fun ideas for residents other than the same old stuff. To read more on Abilene, follow this link: o http://www.abilenevisitors.com/documents/Web-10thingsyagottado.pdf Update your lists annually through a fun social media contest with local press support. Ask visitors and residents to submit their Top 10 lists. While the primary list might only be produced annually (and included in Visitor Guides), specialty lists can be created and promoted throughout the year using regional celebrities. Ask local, regional and national celebrities to develop their own Top 10 Must Do lists just as celebrities do for iTunes. Publish their lists for residents and visitors to scroll through for interesting and offbeat activities. Be sure that a variety of regional activities are included. Promote the celebrity lists through the internet, newspapers, television and radio, bloggers and so on. Allow visitors and residents to post their Top 10 lists on social media sites and to upload videos of Top 10 activities of locations to Facebook and YouTube. Make sure all Top 10 locations are participating on FourSquare so that participants can check in when they stop by to visit! o http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewCelebritiesSeeAll?s=1434 41 o http://itunes.apple.com/us/playlist/elijah-wood/id79998776 Some hotels have started carrying locally produced food items in their guestroom mini-bars. ICC has many locally produced foods and beverages that could be included: wine, craft beers, local bakeries and restaurants, local chocolate, General Mills all might be able to supply baked goods or snack items. Hold a meeting with your hoteliers to discuss this opportunity. Place a card on or in the mini-bar touting the creativity and quality of your local products and produce. See the link below for background on this emerging trend. o http://travel.usatoday.com/hotels/post/2011/05/goodbye-pringles-chips-hotel-minibars-go-local/169278/1?loc=interstitialskip Special interest trails stimulate visitor (and resident) interest and provide an effective marketing tool to draw new people into the region. North Star client Mississippi has effectively used trails to promote its music, food and history. Learn about Mississippi Music Trails at o http://www.visitmississippi.org/

Washington DC offers a number of cultural heritage trails through its walkable neighborhoods, as well as temporary special interest trails like the 150th Anniversary of the Civil War Trail (street markers and map shown below). o http://www.culturaltourismdc.org/things-do-see/trails-tours Note: The Project for Public Spaces is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating dynamic spaces within American cities and towns. They offer consulting services, educational workshops and a library of on-line resources. o http://www.pps.org o http://www.indyculturaltrail.info/ o http://www.mylegacytrail.com/ Agriculture still plays a significant role in the ICC regional economy, with more than 75% of available land still related to agricultural endeavors. Yet agritourism has not yet achieved much traction. Move now to coordinate marketing efforts, expand product offerings and include experiential and overnight options in your agritourism repertoire. In todays economy, the tourism market is hungry for affordable experiences that bring visitors back to simpler times or provide an educational component. Click the link below for a New York Times article about this phenomenon and about the new demand for haycations. o http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/23/travel/escapes/23agritourism.html?pagewanted= 1&_r=1&ei=5087&em&en=d10255b2c42e82ad&ex=1196139600 o http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/26/dining/26farms.html?ref=dining o http://travel.usatoday.com/destinations/10great/story/2011/05/10-great-places-for-arural-haycation/47139082/1 Iowa, like many areas, is losing the family-owned farm. Farm-stays and agritourism have long been a part of the European tourism product, but are only recently catching on in the United States. Hold an Agritourism Workshop for regional farmers to explore how they might take advantage of this growing trend. Partner with the Iowa State University Extension Office and encourage your local farmers to register with Extension web data base call Visit Iowa Farms: o http://www.visitiowafarms.org/ Fair Oaks Farms, located in northwestern Indiana, started out as a family dairy. Here you can watch cows being milked, calves being born, visit the cheese and ice cream factory, watch a 4D movie, take a behind-the-scenes barn tour, and visit the Dairy Fun Room with interactive games and activities for the kids. Products are available for tasting and for purchase. o http://www.fofarms.com/place/place.html In addition to product sales, the Creamery has branched out into agritourism with a weekly organic farmers market, a dairy bar where customers can buy ice cream cones, yogurt parfaits and milkshakes. A loft restaurant in the old barn serves gourmet lunches and dinners featuring the Creamery products. The farm also offers tours for groups large and small, including school and church groups and private parties. The facility may be rented for

private parties or weddings. In addition, they offer a variety of seasonal events including summer camp, Oktoberfest and summer concerts in the fields. o http://www.tpforganics.com/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/ Adams Farm in Wilmington, Vermont is a sixth-generation working farm. Several years ago, the owners sold the cattle from the dairy farm to concentrate on agritourism. Since then, they have been featured in USA Today as one of the countrys 10 best sleigh rides and in the Boston Globe as the ultimate agricultural experience. Depending on the season, visitors can milk the goats, gather eggs from the chicken coop, watch yarn being spun, learn how to make maple syrup, watch sheep herding, attend a winter bonfire party, take a guided snowshoe tour, hear ghost stories around the fire, take a leaf peepers hike, participate in an Easter egg hunt, and much, much more. o http://www.adamsfamilyfarm.com/index.html At Maverick Farm in Valle Cruces, North Carolina, guests pay $120/night for a room in the historic 125-year-old farmhouse. Daytime activities include hoeing, seeding, picking and harvesting. For each hour of labor, guests can deduct $7 from their room charge (up to 25%). In the evening, the farmers gather and cook dinner from the food they grow. Guests and laborers are invited to dinner, for which there is no charge (although a donation jar is discreetly available). Maverick Farm is a working farm started in 2004 by four farm novices, one of whom toured Ireland and fell in love with the countrys business model of agritourism. See: o http://maverickfarms.org/about.html Dickinson Cattle Co. in southeastern Ohio is a working family ranch dedicated to breeding and raising Texas Longhorn, African Watusi, and BlueLingo Cattle. After 40 years of ranching, they branched out and added Longhorn Cattle Tours to their business model. They offer small bus tours out onto the ranch to see, feed and photograph the cattle. Also available: fishing, feeding the fish in the stocked lakes, campfires, picnic area, petting and feeding the calves, educational sessions on topics such as the Secret Language of Cowboys, branding demonstrations and chuck wagon rides. The tours are very popular for families, reunions, and school and scout groups. The ranch also runs a Tips to Tails souvenir shop filled with everything cattle. Read more about the tours at the following link: o http://www.longhorntours.com/ Farmers can list their farm stays with the website Rural Bounty, which provides a database of farm experiences across the country which can be sorted geographically or by activity. o http://www.ruralbounty.com/ Grand Rapids, MN, another North Star client, fills their Amateur Grand Slam every year in spite of a location far from the beaten path. The event awarded $30,000 in prizes last year. For more information, check the event website: o http://www.grandslamam.com/