Jim Russell is a geographer, social theorist, and would-be social entrepreneur who blogs at Burgh Diaspora. In this Interview with Innovators, Jon Udell asks for his analysis of ways to organize Pittsburgh's diaspora - the informal network of ex-Pittsburghers scattered around the world.

Why might that matter? Jim's thesis, which is fascinating, is that the "distance trust" embodied in that kind of network can have important social and economic effects not only for Pittsburgh, but for local and regional populations everywhere in this era of pervasive mobility and telecommunications.