National Economic Research & Resilience Center (NERRC)

National Economic Research and Resilience Center (NERRC)

Through the Research and National Technical Assistance Program, the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has funded an interdisciplinary economic research center at Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne), The National Economic Research and Resilience Center (NERRC). The NERRC provides innovative and transparent economic data access, research, and analysis to support and strengthen economic development and resilience in communities across the nation.

Learn more about the NERRC (PDF)

Research Briefs

Introduction to the Access, Process, and Outcome Framework for Equity in Economic Development (PDF)
National Economic Research & Resilience Center at Argonne National Laboratory, 2023

This research brief introduces the Access, Process, and Outcome (APO) framework, which provides a common understanding for practitioners across the diverse field of economic development. This framework elucidates the underlying drivers that can influence outcomes, either positively through intentional investment and action, or negatively through neglect, oversight, or exclusion. By employing the APO framework, users can collectively work towards achieving equitable outcomes in economic development, ensuring that all individuals and communities have fair and equal access to opportunities, that the processes are inclusive and just, and that the outcomes are equitable for all stakeholders.

Identifying Measures of Distress for Economic Development (PDF)
National Economic Research & Resilience Center at Argonne National Laboratory, 2023

This paper serves as a roadmap to understand the current landscape of distress measures and the origins of distress metrics in economic development, as well as to guide practitioners toward using distress measures, both traditional and novel, within the local economic development context.

Building Resilience In Economic Development: A Systems Approach for Sustainable Growth (PDF)
National Economic Research & Resilience Center at Argonne National Laboratory, 2023

This research brief is intended to provide guidance for economic development professionals to navigate resilience within their communities, identify their role in the resilience landscape, and gain insight into components of economic development that can build to a more resilient and sustainable economic future.

Economic Development Tools

National Economic Resilience Data Explorer (NERDE)

The NERDE is a comprehensive tool that brings together a range of publicly available data about local and regional economic conditions. NERDE data includes statistics regarding local economic distress, employment and gross domestic product, local industry clusters, climate risk and innovation. The platform provides this information for more than 3,000 counties and for every economic development district (EDD) in the United States.

Audience: Users can employ NERDE to develop regional economic development plans and initiatives. Additionally, the tool can help potential applicants assess eligibility for EDA assistance.

Economic Development Capacity Index (EDCI)

The EDCI uses publicly available data to assess critical elements that contribute to a county’s overall economic development capacity relative to the rest of the nation. The tool allows users to access county-level quantitative and qualitative scores by capacity area using 53 indicators across the following:

  • Financial
  • Human Capital
  • Industry Composition
  • Infrastructure
  • Institutes and Partnerships

EDCI is updated annually.

Audience: The EDCI is meant for a variety of users. For instance, Economic Development Districts (EDDs) and other local or regional stakeholders can access data-driven estimates surrounding capacity, including relative strengths and potential areas for growth or maturation across five capacity areas.

Resources

Contact

Argonne National Labs welcomes users to submit questions, comments, and concerns directly to the NERRC team at [email protected].