Biography : John Melville

Over the past 18 years, Mr. Melville and his partners have worked with public and private leaders in over 40 communities across the U.S. and abroad, helping them launch concrete, collaborative initiatives to improve their economic vitality and quality of life.

He co-authored the book, Grassroots Leaders for a New Economy: How Civic Entrepreneurs are Building Prosperous Communities, published by Jossey-Bass. Following publication of the book, Collaborative Economics has conducted “Civic Entrepreneur Workshops” in more than 20 communities nationwide, including Gateway Cities, the Inland Empire, Sacramento, Modesto, and Fresno in California, as well as communities in Kentucky, Ohio, Washington, and Canada. Working with The James Irvine Foundation, Collaborative Economics has helped design and supports the California Center for Regional Leadership—a network of regional collaborative initiatives. Working the Morgan, Irvine, and MacArthur Foundations as well as the Heinz Endowments, Collaborative Economics has also recently launched the National Alliance for Regional Stewardship.

Mr. Melville has also worked with the Great Valley Center on research projects focusing n the economic future of the region and helped mobilize a team of regional and local leaders to revitalize the Highway 99 corridor.

Elsewhere in California, he helped design and implement the Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network. With his partners, John guided the strategic planning and visioning process involving more than 1,200 corporate, community, and public-sector leaders. During implementation, John was the principal staff to Joint Venture’s 21st Century Education Initiative, which raised more than $25 million as a partnership to improve Silicon Valley schools. John co-authored The Joint Venture Way: Lessons for Regional Rejuvenation (1995), funded by the Irvine Foundation to share Silicon Valley’s experience with regions worldwide.

John has also been the lead advisor to the Tri-Valley Business Council for a community-wide process leading to an integrated approach to quality of life, economic vitality, and agricultural preservation (the Tri-Valley region includes the cities of Livermore, Pleasanton, San Ramon, Dublin, and Danville). He has also served as strategic advisor to the Santa Barbara Economic Community Project, Sacramento’s Valley Vision, Monterey Business Council, Sonoma County Vision, San Diego Economic Development Corporation, Marin Community Foundation, the California Economic Strategy panel, Arizona, and Pittsburgh.

Prior to co-founding Collaborative Economics in 1993, John was Senior Policy Analyst at SRI International (formerly Stanford Research Institute). During his ten years at SRI, John played management and analytic roles in numerous regional strategy projects in North America, Asia, and Europe. John conducted community analyses and developed strategies for diverse regions, including Arizona, Pennsylvania, Hong Kong, Portland, Nebraska, Iowa, and Madrid. John is author or co-author of more than 20 strategic plans, published articles on education and benchmarking, and a report for the Presidents' Commission on Industrial Competitiveness. John is a graduate of Stanford University.