OpportunityTitle: FY 2011 FDI and Exports Best Practices Project
CategoryExplanation: The Economic Development Administration&apos;s (EDA) mission is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting innovation and competitiveness, preparing American regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy.  Through its Research and Evaluation program, EDA works towards fulfilling its mission by funding research and technical assistance projects to promote competitiveness and innovation in distressed rural and urban regions throughout the United States and its territories.  By working in conjunction with its research partners, EDA will help States, local governments, and community-based organizations to achieve their highest economic potential.     All submissions under this competitive solicitation should propose methodologically rigorous, peer-review quality, feasible proposals that meet the requirements outlined in the applicable federal funding opportunity (FFO) announcement.
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: Pursuant to the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, as amended (42 U.S.C. 3121 et seq.) (PWEDA), eligible applicants for and recipients of EDA investment assistance include a District Organization; an Indian Tribe or a consortium of Indian Tribes; a State; a city or other political subdivision of a State, including a special purpose unit of a State or local government engaged in economic or infrastructure development activities, or a consortium of political subdivisions; an institution of higher education or a consortium of institutions of higher education; and a public or private non-profit organization or association acting in cooperation with officials of a political subdivision of a State.
Description: Pursuant to its Research and Evaluation program, EDA seeks applications to investigate, identify, and disseminate best practices regarding how regions attract foreign direct investment (FDI) and spur the export of regional goods and services.In today&apos;s global economy, stronger international economic partnerships are increasingly important to ensure the health and vitality of regional economies. Whether through international exports or FDI, these international links enable American businesses and other actors in regional industry clusters to develop new ideas, identify new markets for goods and services, and take advantage of new resources to grow and expand their regional economies. As such, the development of international trade is an important part of the innovation ecosystem necessary to foster strong economic growth. Currently, the majority of research and knowledge pertaining to the development of export markets and FDI focuses on individual enterprises acting within an international regulatory framework as the main drivers of success in developing international trade. EDA, however, seeks to understand the ways in which local and regional economic development practitioners can harness their collective resources more effectively to assist in the development of export markets; and subsequently, attract FDI. Economic development practitioners play an important role in coordinating economic resources in their area, and for this reason, EDA seeks to understand the best practices for regional economies to maximize their export potential and attract FDI.EDA solicits competitive applications from organizations or consortia that will build on the existing body of research and experience to identify best practices for supporting trade and export opportunities of regional economies in order to fuel job and business creation. EDA solicits applications from qualified researchers to accomplish the project tasks and scope of work set out in the FDI and Exports FFO. Please see the full FFO announcement under &quot;FDI and Exports FFO Announcement Link&quot; below for complete information regarding the competition and to help ensure your application is timely received by EDA.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: HSherman@eda.doc.gov
GrantorContactText: Hillary Sherman-Zelenka