Move Slow and Fix Things
August 11, 2025
Silicon Alley, Silicon Hills, Silicon Forest—even Silicon Beach and Silicon Slopes: The dominant vision of regional economic development is modeled on the cluster of high-tech businesses that emerged in the San Francisco Bay area in the 1970s and ’80s. Silicon Valley–style development seeks to attract tech start-ups, venture capital, and high-growth companies. But the hype is often followed by boom-and-bust cycles, income inequality, and limited or precarious employment opportunities.
Mindful of the limitations of the dominant model, Maryann Feldman and Alaina Kayaani-George look instead to emerging entrepreneurs in the Navajo Nation, “people whose goals are rooted in community well-being, cultural preservation, and shared prosperity.” Rather than importing a growth model or exporting talent, the Diné approach to economic development harnesses local expertise to enable meaningful livelihoods for tribal members.
At the Bidii Baby Foods company, Navajo Technical University’s advanced manufacturing program, and other initiatives, Feldman and Kayaani-George find examples of successful Diné entrepreneurship that “cultivates mastery in place, in service of community.”