Collaboration is Key...

Collaboration is the key to success for communities both large and small. Projects such as the I-29 corridor help regional areas to maximize their resources and thus their potential for success. Communities that cut themselves off and do not collaborate must rely on themselves for resources, which is often difficult for them to do on their own. As with the theory of free trade, the idea is that different regions of the world specialize in what they are best at, then trade with other regions that specialize in other things. The process of trading freely results in more net product for all at lower costs.

The same applies to communities. Collaborating to decide which communities should specialize in what field, and then sharing these public resources allows local governments to minimize costs and avoid unnecessary overlapping of resources that could be shared.

For example, it would be senseless to have every university in the state to have a full medical school. It makes more sense to have one university specialize in medical school, another in engineering, and perhaps another in pharmacy to save resources within the state. Collaboration can save money in the field of research, too. Having everyone on the same page across the state ensures that resources are not wasted studying the same thing at two different universities.
Collaboration between the different regions of the state can help us maximize our resources and potential for success and help move our state forward in the most competitive way possible.