REI E-Update

September, 2017
Register Now. Innovate Michigan! Summit. September 15th, 2017. Register at: reicenter.org Register Today!

Share, Learn, Create Innovative Economic Development Ideas!

A diverse and dynamic network that develops and implements innovative economic development ideas, tools, models, policies, and practices for Michigan.
In This Issue

Hurry to Register!

The Innovate Michigan! Summit 2017 is this Friday! 

Innovate Michigan Summit! Video Thumbnail

Register Today! 

Join us on Friday, September 15th, for our annual Innovate Michigan! Summit, in East Lansing. For just $35, you can learn and share with economic developers, entrepreneurs, business leaders, investors, scholars, students, local and state government officials, and other community leaders at an event featuring presentations from REI's 2017 innovative economic development projects - current and potential tools, models, policies, programs, student projects, and Michigan inventions. Hear what our Co-Learning Plan authors, Innovation Fellows and Student-Led, Faculty-Guided project leaders have researched and discovered. For more information visit our Summit page!

Keynote Speaker

Rishi Moudgil

Founding Executive Director, GreenLight Fund Detroit

Photo of Rishi Moudgil The GreenLight Fund is a venture philanthropy that invests in proven social impact programs for children and families in poverty through a rigorous annual process led by a local cross-sector coalition.

Previously, Rishi was the founder and managing director of the University of Michigan (U-M) Center for Social Impact at the Ross School of Business. There he built multidisciplinary initiatives to effectively deliver social impact through nonprofits, business, public-private partnerships, and social enterprise. He further authored the definition of social impact: a significant, positive change that addresses a pressing social challenge.

Rishi earlier led U-M's Nonprofit and Public Management Center and ran program at the U-M Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies. He has coached, advised, and funded multiple social enterprises and nonprofits, and separately served as a management consultant for multi-billion dollar educational institutions. Rishi also ran the Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest, the first statewide initiative to launch and support start-up businesses. As a social entrepreneur, he founded K-grams Inc., a mentoring program for college and elementary students in southeast Michigan that grew to serve 2,000 children annually.

Rishi has been named an American Express Next Gen fellow with Independent Sector, Chicago Public Education Fund venture philanthropy fellow, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Grand Angel. As a filmmaker, he has led storytelling projects across multiple media that leverage social action and inclusive voices. He earned his BBA, MBA, and MA in education all from U-M.

Summit Presentations

Social Entrepreneurship in Legacy Cities

Co-Learning Plan - Jason Ball and Steve Wolbert, Social Impact Philanthropy and Investment

The Fledge

Co-Learning Plan - Jerry Norris, The Fledge
The Fledge is examining the validity of a private, for-profit business incubator. The revenue- and equity-sharing model being used at the Grand Ledge Fledge, LLC is a sustainable practice and a successful incubator model.

Successful Innovative Ideas in Rural Areas

Co-Learning Plan - Marv Pichla, Inspiring Innovation LLC
Community leaders in and around Briley Township are working to unite residents and organizations to foster collaboration, commerce, and communication, aiming to build the area economically and residentially. Dr. Marvin Pichla, project leader, has been working with Briley Township to design a guidebook to facilitate a "bottom-up" approach to entrepreneurship and knowledge development.

Public Infrastructure and Economic Development

Co-Learning Plan - Dayne Walling, 21Performance
This project is a complete analysis of federal, state, and local policies that have been effective in directing infrastructure investments for economic development purposes. Models will be recommended for Michigan with guidance on projected costs, benefits, and outcomes.

Women Who Weld

Innovation Fellow - Samantha Farr, Women Who Weld
Women Who Weld is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Detroit teaching unemployed and underemployed women how to weld through a 6-week program, and then helps them to find employment in the welding industry.

Triple Bottom Line to Promote Entrepreneurial Innovation

Innovation Fellow - Bill Stough, Sustainable Research Group
Bill Stough is supporting organizations to initiate a Triple Bottom Line (TBL) approach to economic development in the Saginaw Bay region, to drive the growth of companies that are decidedly place-based, pay better wages, and prefer purchasing local goods and services.

Impacts of Big Box Stores

Student-Led, Faculty-Guided Project - Sitou Akibode and Mark Skidmore, Michigan State University
This study helps to understand and assess the impact of "big box store" tax issues on local communities and governments, and explores new forms of partnership/collaboration between communities and big box stores, including community benefits agreements (CBAs).

Redevelopment of Fairlane Town Center

Student-Led, Faculty-Guided Project - Jeff Polkowski, City of Dearborn
This project focuses on Dearborn's central city automobile-oriented Fairlane Planning Area and aims to develop a redevelopment project to integrate the mall site with the rest of the Dearborn community, attracting commercial and residential redevelopment, improving connections between east and west Dearborn, identifying underutilized land, and enhancing pedestrian access.

Ecotourism in the Upper Peninsula

Student-Led, Faculty-Guided Project - Jonathan Lenonien, Michigan Technological University
This ecotourism project was created by a student research team at Michigan Tech, who researched and developed an inventory of the Upper Peninsula's ecotourism resources and gaps. The team compared these with similar successful ecotourism regions and suggested a stronger business model.
Local Accommodations

Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center, 219 S. Harrison Rd., East Lansing, MI

Map showing location of Kellogg Center on northwest corner of MSU campus in East Lansing

Directions 

Michigan Inventors Coalition Expo 2017

The Michigan Inventors Coalition (MIC) will also be hosting their Expo 2017 on Friday, September 15th in the Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center. This event aims to help grow Michigan by supplying the know how on bringing a new invention to market. Attendees will meet Michigan garage and basement inventors, hear about their latest inventions, see their products, and find out how the discovery to market process works. We encourage all Innovate Michigan! Summit attendees to drop-in throughout the day. Find out more here. 
MSU Center for Community and Economic Development, University Center for Regional Economic Innovation, 1615 E. Michigan Ave, Lansing, MI 48912
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