Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, DuPage County Chairman Dan Cronin and the Chief Executives of Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will Counties joined together with JPMorgan Chase, the Brookings Institution, founders of the Global Cities Initiative, and World Business Chicago this week to launch Metro Chicago Exports. Metro Chicago Exports is an unprecedented regional collaboration that will help small and medium enterprises throughout the region capture export opportunities and strengthen the Chicagoland area’s network of regional service providers.

According to data from a forthcoming Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program report, in 2013, the Chicago region was the nation’s fourth largest exporter at $65 billion, but ranked only 28th in the share of its economy that comes from exports. Despite high exporting volume, only six percent of the region’s small and mid-size firms currently export and, on average less than half of those firms export to more than one market.

Metro Chicago Exports builds on the Global Cities Initiative, a joint project of the Brookings Institution and JPMorgan Chase, that aims to catalyze a shift in economic development priorities and practices resulting in more globally connected metropolitan areas and more sustainable economic growth. JPMorgan Chase has pledged an additional $500,000 to launch Metro Chicago Exports.

Over the next six months, Metro Chicago Exports will focus its efforts on building organizational infrastructure, including hiring a managing director and forming an advisory council, as well as identifying firms to participate in the pilot program. Offices will be located in the City of Chicago and DuPage County. For more information on Metro Chicago Exports, visit metrochicagoexports.com.