Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand Announces Plans for Economic Summit ‘07

Press Release

Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand Announces Plans for Economic Summit ‘07

On Monday, June 25th at 11:30am Congresswoman Gillibrand will be joined by local business, corporate, economic, infrastructure and community leaders to announce plans for an Economic Summit in Saratoga Springs on August 14th.

The summit is the brainchild of Congresswoman Gillibrand, who founded the Congressional high-tech caucus, to help bring together local leaders to create a comprehensive plan to capitalize on economic opportunities and prepare for smart growth.

"In Congress, I am focused on creating good jobs for our area. Currently Upstate New York is poised to take on the challenging task of transitioning the direction of its regional economic growth," said Gillibrand, the summit's Chairwoman. "There is an extraordinary opportunity for growth in the high tech, energy independence and conservation technology sectors in this region due to our unique natural resources and history of manufacturing and agriculture."

"We are honored to participate in The 2007 Economic Summit, and look forward to collaborating with Congresswoman Gillibrand and other area leaders on this important event," said Tom McCoy, executive vice president and Chief Administrative Officer for AMD. "The Albany area is rapidly becoming a global hub for technology innovation because of its talented and globally competitive workforce, world-class academic institutions, and its growing local infrastructure."

Gillibrand added, "A new vision, clearly articulated and executable, will help guide regional economic growth and will require cooperation, education and leadership so that the entire region can reap the benefits. With such exiting job growth on the horizon, we must take this opportunity to consider the challenges that accompany growth and prepare our communities through workforce development and infrastructure investment."

Specifically, the summit will: provide ideas for creating an environment that will empower entrepreneurs and small businesses and create new jobs in the region; consider ways to tap into promising research being conducted in university laboratories; establish ‘smart growth' guidelines for urban planning and affordable housing, promoting ‘green' public transportation and promoting investments to local infrastructure; examine the necessary steps to educate and train local residents to provide the valuable human capital necessary for the successful economic growth, and making priority investments into math, science, engineering and technology education to create a pipeline for high tech and entrepreneurial jobs.

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