The information in our study covers the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, N.C.-S.C., Metropolitan Statistical Area.
In each community, the Knight Soul of the Community study identified factors that emotionally attach residents to where they live 
How to read the motion chart?
The chart below examines the drivers for community attachment (Basic Services, Economy, Safety, Leadership, Education, Aesthetics, Social Offerings, Openness, Social Capital, Civic Involvement).
Dr. Katherine LoflinKnight Foundation's Soul of the Community
The top-4 attachment factors (full study):
Social offeringsOpenessAesthetics Education
If you weren't able to attend, here's a little background: The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Gallup recognized that there had long been a connection between employee satisfaction and business productivity, and they wondered if the same could be applied to communities. So they set out to see if there was any connection between people’s general feelings of satisfaction about where they lived and the overall productivity and economic health of a community.
From The Charlotte Observer, Nov. 16, 2010:
One sign that a community's economy is poised to grow: how much its residents love living there, according to the results of a new study.
Emotional attachment to the Charlotte area has held steady for the last three years and remains above the national average, despite the recession, a three-year Gallup poll of residents in Charlotte and 25 other U.S. cities found.
From The Christian Science Monitor:
If you sometimes stop and wonder why you donate to your local school’s annual fundraiser, help plant trees on your town’s main drag or offer free hot cocoa at every street fair, the answer is because you're either very generous or you know what's good for your local economy.
In addition to publishing thoughts from our program directors in the 26 Knight communities, we're also reaching out to other local civic leaders. This is an email interview with Robert Bush, Senior Vice President for Cultural and Community Investment at the Arts & Science Council of Charlotte, N.C.
Great schools, affordable health care and safe streets all help create strong communities. But is there something deeper that draws people to a city – that makes them want to put down roots and build a life?
