The initiative is a coalition of several MSU programs, state departments, local governments and nonprofit organizations.

Mark Wyckoff, senior associate director of the MSU Land Policy Institute, or LPI, said the goal of the initiative is to inform citizens and train them to leverage their regions’ economic assets, such as agriculture and tourism, to benefit the state as a whole.

The initiative also is aimed at making Michigan more attractive to international firms looking for places to invest their companies.

Wyckoff said the initiative officially will be underway in mid-April, when a slew of free-to-the-public training programs across the state are set to be held.

Within those programs are three different yet interconnected programs that explore new economic horizons in Michigan, Wyckoff said.

Researchers will spend time analyzing various data collected at the training sessions to help shape the initiative as time passes, he said.

“We’ll take the information and work with the regions and say, ‘Based on your unique assets in the region, what are things that could make your region a more attractive place for international investment?’” Wyckoff said.

Different regions in the state have different economic specialties, Wyckoff said, such as tourism up north.

“Those assets can be utilized to attract new people and businesses to the regions,” Wyckoff said.

Funding for the program comes from the initiative’s partners, Wyckoff said.

Included in that list of partners are the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor & Economic Growth, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and the Michigan Municipal League.

On MSU’s side, the LPI and MSU Extension are heading up the initiative’s outreach and research components. Faculty and students also will have a hand in developing the initiative.

Pat Carolan, an MSU graduate student studying resource development, assists researchers at the LPI and helps develop the training programs that will be taught across the state.

Carolan said the initiative should benefit the state’s economy, especially considering it is burdened with the nation’s highest unemployment rate.

“(Michigan is) in a transitionary period where it needs to base an economy on the future rather than the past,” Carolan said.

“This affects pretty much everyone in Michigan.”

Soji Adelaja, director of the LPI, said one of the most important aspects of the initiative will be the cross-community ties that are made.

“We are on the precipice of a new economy,” Adelaja said.

“(People) have to work across communities in order to be able to effectively work to leverage those assets for economic opportunities.”