EDC Warren County President Jim Siplon was recently interviewed by LookTV’s Jesse Jackson. During their conversation, Siplon said his work at Fiji and Just Water provided him a broader context of economic development and being a steward of our area’s natural resources.
Lake George is a year-round economic driver in our region, Siplon said.”The North Country is going to look a lot different in the next 50 years,” he said. “We need to invest in that ecosystem … so people all over the world who are trying to protect freshwater come here to learn from us. That doesn’t mean we have to give up what makes this place great; it means we protect it and, from that protection, we are able to monetize and build a sustainable future.”
Siplon also discussed the importance of broadband internet access.” The infrastructure that we’ve traditionally focused on from an economic development standpoint has changed,” he said. “Today, that infrastructure includes things like broadband as a fundamental in the same way that roads and water systems and wastewater systems have always been.
“You cannot live a really practical, reasonable modern life without access; it’s no longer an amenity or a luxury, it’s a fundamental need,” Siplon said.“The North Country Broadband Alliance is built on the work of amazing individuals who have been doing this for years.”
Click here to watch the full LookTV interview.
Global climate change has created a new wave of refugees, as people move further north and inland seeking a milder climate.
Warren County is nestled in an ideal region to attract those seeking less extreme weather such as tornadoes, tsunamis and severe drought.
In January, NPR wrote a case study of Judith and Doug Saum, a couple who moved to New Hampshire from Nevada to escape the ever-encroaching wildfires in the region. “It was unbearable because I was so sensitive to the smoke that I started to swell up,” Judith Saum said. “I get sinus infections, and going outside was intolerable.”
Click here to read the full NPR article.
EDC Warren County recognizes the importance of having a structure in place to support the region’s residents and climate refugees and aims to be on the forefront of this movement.
