Interested in learning more about using business development as a tool for the revitalization of your downtown? The following organizations and resources provide a host of innovative solutions and inspiring ideas:

Click on one of the following topics:

o Regional Business Development Resources
o National Business Development Resources
o Resources for Local and Independent Businesses

Regional Business Development Resources:

Allegheny County Economic Development
http://economic.alleghenycounty.us/economic_dev/economic_dev.aspx

Allegheny County
Department of Minority, Women and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises
http://www.alleghenycounty.us/mwdbe/

Entrepreneurial Lifelines
Pittsburgh based Entrepreneur Mentoring Program
http://www.elifelines.org/mentee-info.php

PA SourceNet Business Directory
Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development
http://www.newpa.com/default.aspx?id=15

Pittsburgh Regional Alliance
Business Resource Center
http://www.alleghenyconference.org/PRA/

Pittsburgh Technology Council
Helps the regions technology companies grow and thrive
http://www.pghtech.org/

Score Pittsburgh
Counselors to Small Businesses
http://www.scorepittsburgh.org/

Small Business Development Center
Duquesne University, Pittsburgh
http://www.sbdc.duq.edu/

Small Business Development Center
University of Pittsburgh: Katz Graduate School
http://64.226.232.47/sbdc/index.php

Women’s Business Network Inc. of Southwest Pennsylvania
http://www.wbninc.com/

National Business Development Resources:

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Links Page to Online Articles about Entrepreneurship
http://web.mit.edu/e-club/hadzima/

Minority Business Development Agency
Planning and Startup Information for Minority Business Enterprises
http://www.mbda.gov/?section_id=5

National Association of Women Business Owners
http://www.nawbo.org/

National Business Association
http://www.nationalbusiness.org/

National Minority Business Council
http://www.nmbc.org/

Online Women’s Business Center
http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/index.html

Resources for Local and Independent Businesses

American Bookseller’s Association
www.bookweb.org

American Independent Business Alliance
www.amiba.net

Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE)
www.livingeconomies.org

New Rules - The Hometown Advantage, Reviving Locally-Owned Businesses
http://www.newrules.org/retail/index.php

BOOK: Going Local: Creating Self-Reliant Communities in a Global Age
By Mark Shuman, Institute for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship

BOOK: Home Town Advantage: How to Protect Your Main Street from Chain Stores and Why It Matters
By Stacy Mitchell, Institute for Local Self-Reliance