‘Alleyway Economist’ Mo Jong-ryn Calls for Local Ecosystems Built Around Regional Resources

Small businesses and local companies should become the main actors in regional development, Yonsei University professor Mo Jong-ryn said at a discussion in Seoul.

Mo, known as the “alleyway economist,” argued that communities need to turn their own regional resources into content. He presented local ecosystems as a way to respond to the loss of population from smaller areas.

“Small business owners and local companies should be fostered as key actors in regional development to respond to regional extinction,” Mo said. He added that support for small businesses should not stop at protection measures or help with sales.

Instead, he called for small-business policy to expand into urban policy aimed at creating cities where people can work, live and enjoy themselves locally. His remarks came at a meeting in Seoul’s Yeouido, titled “The Second Seongsu-dong: A New Model for Responding to Regional Extinction.”

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Small business owners and local companies should be fostered as key actors in regional development to respond to regional extinction. Small business policy should also expand beyond simple protection and sales support into urban policy that creates cities where people can work, live and enjoy themselves locally.