The Midwesterner: Blogging the Global Midwest

The Midwestern Battleground in 2014

2014 is an election year and the stakes are high, especially in the Midwest. In this guest posting, Robin A. Johnson outlines the races and what they will do to the political balance in the region. Johnson is an adjunct professor of political science at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois, and a political consultant who has worked on dozens of campaigns at the federal, state and local levels in the Midwest.

Talking About Immigration in Madison

As we've reported earlier, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs sponsored a major report on comprehensive reforms in immigration law, acknowledging the moral component of reform but stressing the economic benefits -- that rational reform would bring a huge economic payoff to the Midwest and its people.

My colleague, Juliana Kerr, organized this project. She went to Madison, Wisconsin, recently to speak to different groups there on immigration law reform. She has turned what she said and heard in Madison into a report on her trip, and she agreed to let me reprint it here. 

Guest Post: What the President Should Say at Argonne

by Steve Brick, Senior Fellow, Energy and Climate, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs

President Obama is coming to Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois, on Friday, March 15, and he is expected to talk about energy policy. For more than four decades, we have heard US Presidents call for national energy policy, make grave declarations about the urgent need for change, and chart bold courses to effect that change. We have also, invariably, seen these bold plans founder on the shoals of political intransigence, economic short-termism, and public apathy.

Here are two suggestions for concrete things the President can do to encourage innovation, improve energy security, and take meaningful steps to reducing greenhouse gases.

Guest Post: A Master Plan for Higher Education in the Midwest

Professor Duderstadt is the author of The Chicago Council’s forthcoming Heartland Paperreport on “A Master Plan for Higher Education in the Midwest: A Roadmap to the Future of the Nation’s Heartland.” The report will be released at an evening public program on Thursday, March 31, in Chicago where a panel featuring Professor Duderstadt; Michael Hogan, president of the University of Illinois; and Jerry Sue Thornton, president of Cuyahoga Community College, will comment on the findings and recommendations. This event is open to the public, and registration information is available online here.

by James J. Duderstadt, President Emeritus, Professor of Science and Engineering, and Director of the Millennium Project at the University of Michigan

Guest Post: Hu Visit Puts Midwest in Chinese Spotlight

The Chicago visit last week by Chinese President Hu Jintao was a game-changing event for both Chicago and the Midwest. To assess the impact, we’re delighted to present this guest posting by The Honorable Bob Holden, former governor of Missouri and chairman of the Midwest U.S.-China Association, which works with Midwestern governors to spur trade and investment between China and the Midwestern states. Bob Holden was Missouri governor from 2001 to 2005 and used his tenure to increase that state’s economic development. He is now chairman of The Holden Group, LLC, consulting on international trade strategies, and leads the Holden Public Policy Forum at Webster University.

by Former Governor Bob Holden, Chair, Midwest U.S.-China Association and Founder and Director, The Holden Policy Forum, Webster University

Chinese President Hu Jintao’s official visit to the U.S. last week was a tremendous step forward for the Obama Administration, U.S. business and commercial interests, and most importantly a major triumph for the Midwest as a region. In President Hu’s first-ever trip to Chicago, the Windy City demonstrated that Chicago is truly an international city and that the Midwest is open for business.

Guest Post: Toward the Vital Center - A New Energy Legacy for the Midwest

by Henry L. Henderson, Director, Midwest Program, Natural Resources Defense Council

It is a genuine honor to be a guest on Richard Longworth’s blog. Dick is an exceptional reporter, analyst and elegant writer. His work on the state of the Midwest in the 21st Century, set forth eloquently in his book, Caught in the Middle: America's Heartland in the Age of Globalism, is indispensable for those of us interested in the fate of our region.

Caught in the Middle examines the present constraints on the Midwest economy and culture, against the backdrop of a past that in many ways constituted the “Silicon Valley of the 19th Century.” Here, new and powerful ways of organizing industry, agriculture, personal mobility and the industrial economy that defined the 20th century were invented and successfully deployed. Thus, a dilemma confronts the Midwest today is that our current economic structures are in significant ways a legacy of a vibrant past that is out of touch with current needs, challenges and opportunities. The legacy structures act as a drag on the future, limiting our ability to create, compete and embrace a vibrant, productive and healthier economy in the new 21st century.

Nowhere is the example of a past vitality and present exhaustion more visible than in our current energy economy.

Guest Post: The Midwest's Creative Winter

by Aaron M. Renn and Carl Wohlt

The Midwest was the Silicon Valley of the industrial revolution. It was home to innovators and entrepreneurs across a range of domains from technology to transportation to business models. The Midwest didn't just invent manufacturing technology, it understood the potential of what that technology could unleash, and positioned itself to reap the commercial harvest of that innovation.

Today it is a different story. The Midwest was in many was a victim of its own success. It built such powerful champion industries, firms, and cities that it no longer had to innovate in order to prosper. So it didn't, and ended up losing its creative edge.

Despite the focus on changing that dynamic, a recent survey shows how far the region still has to go. Fast Company magazine just released its 100 Most Creative People in Business list. Here is the regional breakdown of their honorees:

The full list, color coded by region, is available for download.

The Midwest only manages to place six people on the list, and three of them are in Chicago. (The South doesn't fare much better).