After listening to Kevin Stolarick (Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto) speak for an hour on the Creative Class recently, I was left to ponder what a Personalized Bohemian Index might look like. Of course, the Bohemian Index, devised by Richard Florida and his cohorts, deviates somewhat from the dictionary definition of bohemian:
- Main Entry: Bo·he·mi·an
- Pronunciation: \-mē-ən\
- Function: noun
- Date: 1555
- b: a person (as a writer or an artist) living an unconventional life usually in a colony with others (Merriam-Webster)
Florida's indexes (which also include a Gay Index and a Diversity Index) measure the prevalence of writers, artists, and performers in a location, usually a city and its relationship with urban regeneration. If you want to know more, you should check out The Rise of the Creative Class.* His theory suggests that the dense concentrations of high-tech workers, artists, musicians, and gay men correspond with a higher level of economic development and prosperity.
I am left to ponder my Bohemian Index. Since I am neither gay nor diverse, I will avoid the other two indexes. I might hold a few unorthodox or antiestablishment political or social viewpoints, although I am not interested in voluntary poverty. So, I have no answers yet, but when I figure it out, you will be the first to know.
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* Florida, Richard. The Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life. Basic Books, 2002, ISBN-10: 0465024769, ISBN-12: 978-0465024766.
