Report on the Cessation of Operations for the Summit Economic Partnership and its Impact on Sustainable Development Goals

Executive Summary

The Summit Economic Partnership (SEP), a nonprofit organization established to promote economic diversification in Summit County, ceased operations at the end of July after a three-year period. The closure, attributed to significant funding challenges, creates a considerable void in the local economic landscape. This report analyzes the role of the SEP in advancing key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and examines the implications of its dissolution for the community’s long-term economic resilience and sustainability.

Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The core mission of the Summit Economic Partnership was directly aligned with several critical SDGs. The organization’s primary objective was to stabilize and diversify the local economy, reducing its over-reliance on tourism and thereby fostering a more resilient and sustainable economic model for the community.

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

SEP’s initiatives were central to promoting sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth in Summit County. Its efforts focused on:

• Economic Diversification: Actively working to move the local economy away from its dependence on tourism, which was identified as a key vulnerability following the 2008 recession. This addresses SDG Target 8.2, which calls for economic diversification and a focus on high-value-added sectors.
• Support for Local Enterprise: Assisting both new and existing businesses to grow revenue, identify new markets, and increase local median wages.
• Entrepreneurship: Creating an environment that supported new business creation, contributing to full and productive employment and decent work for all.

SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

The partnership played a vital role in fostering innovation and supporting the development of resilient local infrastructure, in line with SDG 9.

• Fostering Innovation: Programs like the “coopetitions” provided startups with grant funding, directly encouraging innovation and local enterprise development.
• Access to Expertise: The “economic gardening” program offered businesses strategic management consulting and research services, enhancing their capacity for sustainable growth.
• Building Networks: SEP facilitated invaluable networking opportunities, connecting entrepreneurs with experienced mentors, investors, and peers, thereby strengthening the local innovation ecosystem (SDG Target 9.3).

SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

By working to build a more balanced and robust economy, the SEP contributed to making Summit County a more resilient and sustainable community.

• Economic Resilience: A diversified economy is less susceptible to shocks affecting a single industry, such as tourism. This enhances the overall economic and social resilience of the community, a key aspect of SDG 11.
• Support for Rural Startups: As noted by local entrepreneurs, organizations like SEP serve as a critical lifeline for startups in rural and resource-light regions, preventing brain drain and promoting local development.

Impact of Dissolution on Local Enterprise

The closure of the Summit Economic Partnership eliminates a crucial support system for local entrepreneurs and small businesses, jeopardizing progress toward the aforementioned SDGs. The loss is felt across several key areas:

1. Access to Capital: Entrepreneurs have lost a key facilitator in connecting with angel investors and securing early-stage funding.
2. Expert Mentorship and Education: The direct access to experienced business leaders and structured educational programs provided by SEP is no longer available.
3. Strategic Support: Initiatives like the economic gardening program, which provided customized, high-level strategic research, have been discontinued.
4. Networking and Collaboration: The platform for entrepreneurs to connect, learn from one another, and build a stronger business community has been dismantled.

Factors Leading to Cessation and Future Outlook

Funding and Partnerships (SDG 17)

The primary reason for the SEP’s closure was the loss of significant funding from Summit County government. This highlights the fragility of public-private partnerships (SDG 17), which are essential for achieving sustainable development. A reported “change in focus” within the county government led to the discontinuation of financial support, demonstrating the challenges in maintaining long-term commitments to economic diversification goals.

Future of Economic Diversification

While the formal entity of the Summit Economic Partnership is now dormant, its former leadership believes the need for its mission persists. The challenge for Summit County will be to foster a new, potentially more grassroots environment for entrepreneurship and innovation. Without a central coordinating body, the effort to build a resilient, diversified economy aligned with the principles of the Sustainable Development Goals now falls to individual business leaders and community advocates.

SDGs Addressed in the Article

• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth: The article’s central theme is the effort to foster local economic growth, create stability, and support businesses in Summit County. The nonprofit’s mission to “boost the local median wage” and diversify the economy away from its over-reliance on tourism directly aligns with promoting sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth.
• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure: The article highlights the nonprofit’s role in supporting “rural startups” and fostering an “entrepreneurial environment.” Initiatives like providing access to angel investors, offering grants through “coopetitions,” and helping businesses innovate are central to building resilient infrastructure and fostering innovation.
• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities: The focus is on making the Summit County community more economically resilient and sustainable. The Summit Economic Partnership was an organization created to “support the entire community’s economy,” which is a form of local and regional development planning aimed at strengthening the economic links within the community.
• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals: The article is a case study of a partnership between civil society (the nonprofit), the public sector (the county government), and the private sector (entrepreneurs on the board). It explicitly details the breakdown of this partnership due to funding cuts, highlighting the challenges in sustaining such collaborations.

Specific SDG Targets Identified

1. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

   • Target 8.2: Achieve higher levels of economic productivity through diversification, technological upgrading and innovation. The article directly addresses this by stating the need for “economic diversification here in Summit County” because the community was “overly reliant on tourism.” The nonprofit’s work to help businesses “identify new markets” supports this goal.
   • Target 8.3: Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation. The nonprofit’s entire mission reflects this target. It supported “entrepreneurship” by assisting startups like Buttnski and SkyGOAT, fostered “innovation” through programs like “economic gardening,” and encouraged “creativity” with its “coopetitions” that awarded grants.
   • Target 8.5: Achieve full and productive employment and decent work… and equal pay for work of equal value. A “key focus of the nonprofit” was to “boost the local median wage,” which is a direct effort to ensure decent work and fair pay for the community’s residents.

2. SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

   • Target 9.3: Increase the access of small-scale industrial and other enterprises… to financial services… and their integration into value chains and markets. The article provides clear examples of this, noting that a local business owner “acquired her first angel investor through a similar organization” and that the nonprofit’s “coopetitions” gave startups the chance to “compete for grants to fund their operations.” This demonstrates facilitating access to financial services for small enterprises.

3. SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

   • Target 11.a: Support positive economic, social and environmental links between urban, peri-urban and rural areas by strengthening national and regional development planning. The Summit Economic Partnership itself represents a form of “regional development planning.” Its work to be a “lifeline to rural startups” and support the “entire community’s economy” is a direct attempt to strengthen the local economic fabric and create positive economic links within the region.

4. SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

   • Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships. The article describes a “public-private and civil society partnership” in action. The nonprofit (civil society) was funded by the “county’s general fund” (public) and had a board with experienced entrepreneurs (private). The article’s main point is the failure of this partnership, as the nonprofit “could no longer operate” after losing its government funding.

Indicators for Measuring Progress

1. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

   • Indicator 8.2.1 (Annual growth rate of real GDP per employed person): This is implied by the goal to “boost the local median wage” and help existing businesses “grow revenue bases,” which are efforts to increase economic productivity.
   • Indicator 8.3.2 (Proportion of small-scale industries in total industry value added): This is implied by the stated goal of “economic diversification” to reduce the economy’s reliance on the single industry of tourism and support various other local businesses and startups.

2. SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

   • Indicator 9.3.2 (Proportion of small-scale industries with a loan or line of credit): The article directly implies this by mentioning the importance of access to an “angel investor” and the opportunity for startups to “compete for grants,” which are forms of financial capital for small businesses.

3. SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

   • Indicator 17.17.1 (Amount of United States dollars committed to public-private and civil society partnerships): The article provides specific data for this indicator. It states that the nonprofit “got around $150,000 from the county’s general fund last year” but was notified it “would not be receiving anything from the general fund this year.” This is a direct, quantifiable measure of the financial commitment to the partnership.

Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: summitdaily.com