Fund For Our Economic Future

In a letter to the editor published this week in Crain's Cleveland Business, Fund Senior Director of Applied Research Jeffrey Weston Sleasman encourages Northeast Ohio municipalities to take a closer look at how outdated parking mandates could be stifling development, costing residents and businesses, and worsening traffic, among other negative effects. The City Club of Cleveland recently passed new legislation to address these issues. Read the full piece at

Personal View: Communities should follow Cleveland's lead and ease parking mandates The city of Cleveland recently passed legislation that will update parking mandates and include mobility alternatives for projects that are near high-frequency transit routes. These regulatory changes are important.

The Fund is always proud to partner with innovative organizations advancing inclusive and sustainable economies. Current is Chicago’s water innovation hub — and as one of Current's Great Lakes ReNew partners through the Cleveland Innovation Project we are pleased to share that the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced Current is among 16 national finalists in the NSF Regional Innovation Engines program — looking to yield up to $160 million over 10 years to boost Great Lakes leadership on sustainable ecosystems.

The ReNEW initiative is a six-state, cross-sector collaborative aiming to meet the increasingly urgent global need for safe, secure, and affordable water. It aims to transform the Great Lakes region by accelerating resource recovery from wastewater — to drive a decarbonized circular blue economy and create inclusive, innovative ecosystems in this region and beyond.

See more info about the program on the NSF Regional Innovation Engine website:

NSF Regional Innovation Engines program selects 16 teams for the final round of competition Secure .gov websites use HTTPS. A lock () or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

This week, The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland hosted "The Benefits Cliff: How It’s Impacting Workers, Employers, and the Economy."

Our 2022 survey explored this topic, revealing that among the top barriers to work Northeast Ohio residents reported was ‘pay too low to support a family’ -- a critical reality along with other factors that make up the benefits cliff. Head to our Strengthening Workplaces dashboard at https://buff.ly/3GS0vYG to learn more about what’s drawing Northeast Ohio workers in—and keeping them out—of work.

Strengthening Workplaces: Attracting, developing and retaining talent for a stronger, more resilient Northeast Ohio Interactive dashboards to explore