This book presents national and international perspectives on the role of further education (FE) in economic development in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. Throughout the papers, special attention is paid to the need to reassess FE and its role as service provider, stakeholder, and strategic partner in view of the following social and economic trends: accelerating technological advancement, increasing movement toward a learning economy and learning society, increasing obsolescence of existing skill sets, growth of knowledge intensity, and need for organizational and institutional innovation. The following papers are included: "Foreword" (Baroness Blackstone); "Introduction" (Simon James); "The Learning Economy: Economic Competitiveness and Colleges" (Kevin Morgan, Gareth Rees);"FE and the Entrepreneurial Society" (Andrea Westall); "Community Colleges and Urban Development" (Henry G. Cisneros); "Competence-Based Approaches to Economic Development and Partnership" (Derrick Johnstone); "Is Networking Always the Answer?" (Joan Fitzgerald); "Measuring a College's Impact on Its Community" (Gordon Aitken); "Structural Funds for Further and Higher Education" (Ed Prosser); and "Towards a World-Class College: Raising Economic Competitiveness" (Chris Hughes). (MN)