Nurturing Economic Sustainability in an Age of Disruption

June 19, 2018 5:30 PM
by Constance Farrell

A Tradition of Planning for the Future

Santa Monica has enjoyed decades of sustained economic success. To ensure Santa Monica’s local economy—and the opportunities, services and infrastructure it supports—remains healthy and prosperous long into the future, we must anticipate and plan for the monumental changes ahead. Planning for a robust economic future isn’t a new practice in Santa Monica. Forward-thinking City leaders built a strategy 30 years ago to support industries like retail, tourism, and professional and creative businesses. Now our community must map a new strategy to prepare our economy for the next several decades. It is our challenge to determine how we preserve Santa Monica’s unique qualities and strengths, while adapting to rapidly changing ways of living, working and traveling.

Meeting Anticipated Disruptions

What will Santa Monica’s economy look like in a future where cars drive themselves, machines take over office tasks, online purchases arrive in real-time, and workers are no longer fixed to a space? We are in the process of collecting research to explore these types of predicted changes, to determine which will be most important to address as we develop an economic sustainability strategy. We believe our community can harness these emerging forces to serve our City’s best interests for generations to come.

Inform our Research

If you have recommendations on topics and resources you feel we should incorporate into our research, or to stay in touch during this process, please visit santamonica.gov/economicfuture.

Authored By

Constance Farrell
Communications & Public Information Manager