Daley challenges students to make a difference in American cities

By Mike Porter

Former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley detailed the role of America’s cities in the global economy and called on Virginia Commonwealth University students to make a difference in the future of cities.

About 100 students and faculty attended Daley’s presentation on Wednesday at the W.E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts. A question-and-answer session followed, moderated by Tom Silvestri, publisher and president of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Daley said American cities must compete globally. However, to compete effectively, government leaders must join leaders from business, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions in assessing the strengths and weaknesses of an entire region, rather than the core city.

“I firmly believe right here in this audience and elsewhere at VCU that there are people who are going to do things that make a difference in our cities,” Daley said.  

Daley said education plays a critical role in the future of cities, which have lost middle class residents in search of better schools to suburban areas.

Daley is the chairman of the Global Cities Initiative, a five-year, $10 million project, which seeks to help metropolitan leaders in the United States and around the world strengthen their regional economies by becoming competitive in the global marketplace. The Global Cities Initiative is a joint project of the Brookings Institution, a private nonprofit organization devoted to independent research and innovative policy solutions, and JPMorgan Chase, a global financial services firm.

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