In recent years, it has become increasingly apparent that workforce development is vital to building and maintaining strong, competitive regional economies. The WDSG staff studies effective ways to link workforce and economic development, and applies lessons learned in our work with states and regions around the country as well as with international partners. NCEE is working with four regions (in Arizona, Minnesota, Texas, and Washington) as part of a U.S. Department of Labor-funded project to address workforce development issues within the context of regional economic development planning. The technical assistance teams are providing a wide range of services including advising, training, facilitation, and strategy development across these sites. NCEE has authored some of the most relevant research on this issue in the U.S. and abroad. Recent publications in this area can be found in the "White Papers" section of our website. NCEE was the lead developer of the courses "Aligning Workforce and Economic Development for Community Leaders," and "Making Your WIB a Catalyst for Change" for the National Association of Workforce Boards. These courses have been offered to workforce and economic development professionals across the nation. We also have provided training on workforce resources and competitiveness issues to economic developers at the regional and national levels through the International Economic Development Council's certification program and have delivered workshops on competitiveness such as "Clusters 101: Targeting Workforce Competitiveness" for workforce developers. In addition, NCEE has frequently provided labor market information training to states, regions, community colleges, and economic research associations aiming to align workforce and economic development around hard market data. This labor market information training has been converted to web-based curriculum in both English and Spanish. NCEE has also been actively engaged in related work with other countries. We coordinate a research project for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), examining the alignment of workforce, economic development, and education systems at the national and regional level. We conducted research and recommended strategies to help Northern Ireland update its labor market information systems based on best international practices. NCEE supports the U.S. Commerce Department's Manufacturing Extension Partnership centers in their workforce-related activities. We have conducted research on current workforce activities among MEP centers, organized workshops and webinars for professional development among MEP center staff, and presented at MEP conferences on emerging issues of importance. For the U.S. Department of Labor, NCEE also has catalogued and analyzed existing skill standards, curriculum, and competency models for five industries in the President's 'High Growth Industries' initiative as the foundation for creating shared models among business and education institutions.