In September, 2007 the University of Maine received $49,837 from the USDA-Rural Development's Rural Business Opportunity Grant (RBOG) program to undertake a series of research and planning tasks focused on strengthening opportunities for creative economic development in the St. John Valley. The central goal of this project is to develop a Creative Economy plan for the St. John Valley by summer, 2009.

There are numerous efforts that have contributed to building new foundations for economic prosperity in the St. John Valley. As successful as these efforts have been, however, there is a need for more strategic, innovative, and sustained approaches to development. This was the topic at the St. John Valley Forum on the Creative Economy in 2005, where almost 80 people convened to talk about working together as a region - to pursue alternative approaches to building regional prosperity. At the Forum, regional leaders proposed that the Valley capitalize on its strongest, renewable, and inherent resources - its cultural heritage and landscape. The St. John Valley Creative Economy Project is a direct outgrowth of the Forum.

We use the term "creative economy" to refer to two economic factors - (1) the importance of creativity and creative workers in helping to create an entrepreneurial and innovative rural economy; and, (2) the recognition of arts and cultural assets as more than contributors to quality of place, but as important new sources of job creation in their own right. "Culture" is a dynamic and organic whole, how people see themselves, interpret and position themselves in the world; the human ability to communicate and navigate the natural and social environment.

The Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center at the University of Maine was identified by regional leaders as a resource for technical assistance and planning as a result of the center's work on Governor Baldacci's Creative Economy initiative. The working team consists of Kathy Hunt and Caroline Noblet from the University of Maine at Orono, and Sheila Jans, cultural development consultant of CultureWorth in the St. John Valley. Additional contributors from the University of Maine system includes Renee Kelly, Director of Economic Development Initiatives at UMaine; Harold Daniels, Director of the Center for Tourism Research and Outreach (CenTRO) at UMaine, and, Richard Cost and Rachel Albert, respectively President and Vice President of Academic Affairs at the University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK). In addition, a regional committee of twelve Valley residents provides insight and guidance.

The central aim of this project is to develop a Creative Economy plan for the St. John Valley that will:

• Identify readiness for arts- and cultural-related business development and technical assistance needs;
• Improve market information about visitors attending annual regional cultural events;
• Develop a Creative Economy Plan for the Valley that focuses on developing and/or expanding arts- and cultural-related businesses and cultural tourism destinations;
• Describe mechanisms for fostering rural innovation and entrepreneurship at UMFK and Valley residents, and
• Put forward concrete steps for the plan.

In addition, the plan will provide recommendations for strengthening the leadership capacity of Valley residents for ongoing planning as well as arts-and cultural-related business and tourism development. Key to this component of the plan will be the inclusion of strategies to foster a positive climate for rural innovation and youth retention, as well as the preservation and revitalization of traditional arts and cultural heritages.