The most valued workers today are what the economist Richard Florida calls the Creative Class, skilled individuals ranging from money managers to make–up artists, software programmers to steady–cam operators who are in constant demand around the world. Florida's bestselling The Rise of the Creative Class identified these workers as the source of economic revitalization in American cities. In that book, he shows that investment in technology and a civic culture of tolerance (most–often marked by the presence of a large gay community) are the key ingredients to attracting and maintaining a local creative class. In The Flight of the Creative Class, Florida expands his research to cover the global competition to attract the Creative Class. The United States was, up until 2002, the unparalleled leader in creative capital. But several key events––the Bush administrations emphasis on smokestack industries, heightened security concerns after 9/11 and the growing cultural divide between conservatives and liberals––have put the US at a substantial dis–advantage.

理查德·弗羅裏達

喬治梅森大學（George Mason University）公關政策學院的教授，布魯金斯研究院的非常駐資深研究員，加人喬治梅森大學前，為卡內基梅隆大學海茲公關政策和管理學院（Heinz Sehool of Public Policy and Management）區域經濟發展教授，現居華盛頓。他是暢銷書《創意階層的崛起》的作者，該書曾獲《華盛頓月刊》（Washington Monthty）授予的政治圖書奬（Political Book Award），並為《哈佛商業評論》（Haruard Bus-iness Reuiew）評為最具突破性的10個觀念之一。