Track 1: Economic Development Strategies & Business Development

Despite the strength of the myth circulating about Indian Country, that cultural traditions and past stereotypical belief that Indian people do not make good entrepreneurs. Yet entrepreneurship is alive and well on many reservations. Recent work by the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) offers powerful data to contest this myth. In addition to the artisans, many Indian people run successful technology-based businesses that manage data, design web sites, and provide a wide range of other electronic information services while others run successful agricultural and construction businesses. Beyond the financial impacts of successful entrepreneurship, one entrepreneur reported that “small business activity has a tremendous psychological and emotional impact on reservation people, particularly reservation youth. When they see businesses sprouting up, they see hope for the future” (Cornell, 2006: p.4). This track will discuss what is is currently going on in Indian Country and how tribes begin the process and preparation of attracting big business to the reservations. The attendees of Track One will leave with a template UCC, Article IX, Secured Transaction Code that is ready to be implemented in their tribe or an evaluation of the tribe’s current code. In addition, a template resolution that would also help identify an Industrial Park area for the tribe.

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