Looking forward

By Steven Froias

EVEN WHILE WE’RE STILL GRAPPLING WITH COVID-19, THE CITY OF NEW BEDFORD IS LAYING THE GROUNDWORK FOR A POST-PANDEMIC FUTURE WITH A PAIR OF NEW INITIATIVES.

This past month, Mayor Jon Mitchell launched the first of these initiatives, NB Resilient, stating, “In the midst of the pandemic, we in New Bedford know that the world goes on. There are other challenges we face, there are other opportunities we must seize – and top among all of them are the threats and opportunities presented by climate change.” NB Resilient is an action plan aimed at climate adaptation and mitigation.

Separately, the New Bedford Economic Development Council launched New Bedford Sourcelink in December. It is a supportive platform that connects maritime, arts and culture, and main street entrepreneurs to a network of local, regional, and national resource partners to foster innovation, growth, and prosperity.

SETTING GOALS

According to press information from the city, NB Resilient sets ambitious but achievable goals to help New Bedford achieve its vision of establishing itself as “a thriving, self-sustaining city that is culturally and historically secure, and ready to implement innovative approaches to prepare for tomorrow’s possibilities.”

That entails being preparing to meet any challenges presented by climate change – especially crucial in a port city.

Led by the Department of Resilience and Environmental Stewardship, arranged under Mayor Mitchell’s guidance, New Bedford created a climate action steering committee to support and develop the plan around six focus areas – climate and energy; economy and jobs; infrastructure, utilities and waste; natural resources; public health and safety; and transportation and land use – designed to cover all aspects of the city.

“We know that our climate adaptation and mitigation efforts have to keep up with the times,” Mitchell said in a press release. “That’s why we went about the work of developing a strategic plan: to reset our efforts, employ the data we track, and stay ahead of the challenges that climate change poses.”

NB Resilient is a roadmap and data dashboard (found at nbresilient.com) for everyone in the city to take action, according to the plan. It includes short- and long-term goals for a safe, thriving city – from reducing greenhouse gas emissions, to ensuring the waterfront and port are protected from the climate change the world is experiencing.

“New Bedford will continue to be a leader when it comes to renewable energy, we will continue to be a leader in energy conservation, and when it comes to climate adaptations and protections, we’ll continue to lead there, too,” Mayor Mitchell states. “Years from now, people will say that this was a moment when we had to step up. Let them say that we made the right choices so that they could lead healthier, more fulfilling lives.”

AN ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM

Meanwhile, another new tool for the city, New Bedford SourceLink, was launched by the New Bedford Economic Development Council (NBEDC), with assistance from the mayor’s office.

NBEDC notes that, “Beginning in the late spring of last year, the NBEDC committed to developing a ‘game plan’ to better understand the ecosystem of entrepreneurs in the city and the assets available to help them.

“Through a successful application to the National League of Cities to help fund this work through their Cities Innovation Ecosystem program, the New Bedford Port Authority, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford Creative Consortium, Co-Creative Center, E for All, and Groundwork joined as founding partners to help fund the initiative and better support the individual communities of entrepreneurs they serve.”

The founding “resource partners” of New Bedford SourceLink have all committed to being part of the collaborative effort to help business owners build, grow, and scale their businesses as part of a larger community of organizations, groups and entrepreneurs. “

Years from now, people will say that this was a moment when we had to step up.

The NBEDC details this plan as follows: New Bedford Source- Link will be a one-stop, collaborative platform to help new and existing New Bedford businesses accelerate their growth by utilizing a network of existing expert service providers: the resource partners. Resource partners, which are vetted through New Bedford SourceLink administrators, are organized in the platform in one central search engine, which can be filtered by the user’s needs.

For example, Sarah Athanas, the co-founder of the coworking facility Groundwork writes, “When my business partner and I started Groundwork, we invested hundreds of hours making phone calls, sending emails, and sitting down for in-person meetings.

“It took a long time to uncover the information we needed to start a business, and what organizations and people were available to help. While this process was incredibly valuable and informative, it would have been great to skip the research and start building relationships sooner. What’s great about the Sourcelink platform is that the research is already done for you. All you have to do is search the database, and start making your connections.”

That database can be found at newbedfordsourcelink.com. In addition to connecting local businesses, New Bedford Source- Link will provide guidance for licensing and management of a start-up enterprise, catalog business-focused events across the city, and host a running blog series featuring entrepreneurs across the city.

The platform is powered by SourceLink, a national leader in entrepreneurial ecosystems. SourceLink is active in more than 100 communities nationwide, from Seattle to San Juan, an infrastructure that sparks, supports, and sustains entrepreneurship and innovation.

Taken together, NB Resilient and New Bedford SourceLink seek to further burnish the city’s reputation as the South Coast’s regional hub in practical ways.

Mayor Mitchell says, “It’s no secret that New Bedford is home to some of the most hard-working and innovative business owners in the nation. It’s a part of our history and identity,”

These initiatives provide new tools and guidance for business owners to build, grow, and scale their businesses, and also for the city to tackle tomorrow’s challenges as a community while it emerges from the pandemic.