The forum, "Governance in Erie County: A Foundation for Understanding and Action," will focus on the results of the first study conducted by the UB Governance Project, a multidisciplinary effort to study issues of governance in Western New York.

Local government officials, corporate leaders, civic representatives and academics have been invited to the forum. It will provide an opportunity for those in attendance to reflect on how systems of government in Erie County are organized and managed, and to consider questions about the future of the region. Attendance will be by invitation only.

UB President William R. Greiner initiated the Governance Project in early 1994.

The immediate charge of the Governance Project was to marshal data, monitor trends and analyze information on structures and issues of governance in the region as a basis for future inquiry, discussion and action.

Greiner will present introductory remarks, as well as discuss "next steps" once the findings of the study have been presented by members of the Governance Project. Findings will be discussed in five areas: places and people of Erie County, framework for governance, patterns of service delivery, state and national comparisons and assessing governance within Erie County.

Members of the Governance Project include: Kathryn A. Foster, project director and assistant professor in the Department of Planning, School of Architecture and Planning; David C. Perry, professor in the Department of Planning, School of Architecture and Planning; Alfred D. Price, associate professor in the Department of Planning, School of Architecture and Planning; John B. Sheffer II, UB interim vice president for public service and urban affairs and a senior fellow with dual appointments in the UB School of Law and UB School of Architecture and Planning; Henry Louis Taylor Jr., director of the UB Center for Urban Studies and associate professor in the Department of Planning and Department of American Studies