Grand Rapids In Review

This post is a bit (okay, a lot) late, so let me start off by saying this: You’ll likely see me posting less about my observations during each trip until the entire project is completed. Throughout the trips I’ve made so far, I’ve come to realize that some of my thoughts, opinions, and perspectives are beginning to shift a bit on earlier visits. So to make sure I’m giving a clear message, I’ve decided to back off on individual observations a bit until the remaining five trips are complete.

That said, I thought I’d back-track a bit and share a short list of things that I found in Grand Rapids, Michigan, during my trip there earlier this winter. To keep it short and sweet, here’s my top three takeaways from the trip:

1.) Grand Rapids is a giving city.

Grand Rapids is well-known for the level of philanthropy demonstrated by its residents. From major donors to grass-roots level support, giving is engrained in the city’s culture. On several occasions during my visit, locals brought up projects that had been substantially supported by grass-roots giving, citing figures in the millions from hundreds of $10, $15, and $25 donations made by residents who believed in the project at hand. During each conversation, I told them that’s something unique. That doesn’t happen in every city.


2.) They dream big.

..and they do big, too. In its first year, ArtPrize drew over 200,000 attendees to downtown Grand Rapids, which was roughly 180,000 more people than they had expected. Three years later (today), it’s been named one of the top 5 events in the world that you don’t want to miss – the only event from the United States that made the list, I might add.


3.) They love their entrepreneurs.

The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Grand Rapids. In fact, it’s getting stronger by the day. Initiatives and support systems like Start Garden are helping to foster an entrepreneurial ecosystem that emphasizes social connectivity as a critical component to a startup community. There’s also a growing community of social entrepreneurs, too, with a HUB location coming to Grand Rapids soon.

Grand Rapids is a city on the rise and a city to watch. They embrace the weird, they dream (and do) big, and they like to make things happen. While these might sound like simple things, they’re not. Creating the cultural shift in a city from being conservative and close-minded to being open to change, new ideas, and a diversity of people is a difficult thing to do. Grand Rapids seems to be doing all the right things to move in this direction.

Grand Rapids: Day One

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A few years ago, I remember coming across an article in Newsweek pointing to Grand Rapids, Michigan, as one of America’s “fastest dying cities”. The piece cited a few statistics that shed light on the city’s recent decline in population and - as if no further consideration was given - wrote the city off as a dying urban center.

Apparently I’m visiting a different Grand Rapids.

After a few hours of plowing (I almost mean that literally) through whiteout conditions this morning, I arrived in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to spend a week here examining how the furniture capital of the world catalyzes economic growth. Though I’ve only just begun my visit here and have barely touched the tip of the iceberg in regards to understanding Grand Rapids’ story in its entirety, my first (half) day here has already convinced me that this is a city on the rise – opposite of the dying city written off in a flimsy article.

A well-diversified economy, highly collaborative population (both at the leadership and grassroots level), and a reinvestment of wealth (unmatched for a city its size) into infrastructure to support the growth and development of a new generation of job / wealth producers has turned Western Michigan into a powerhouse of innovation and economic growth. I can’t wait to uncover the Grand Rapids story and share it with you in the coming days.

Engineering a Storm

I’ve long made the argument that cities are the engines of innovation that push humanity forward and have a duty to enable humanity to tackle its grand challenges. To describe it, I typically relate it to a weather system.

You wake up one morning to find out that a Severe Thunderstorm Watch has been issued for your area. If you’re a weather nerd like me, you get a little excited - this means that conditions are right for something big to happen. Everything seems to be coming together for a fantastic light show later that afternoon. You have your eyes glued to the weather app on your phone all day, only to be disappointed when the promise of thunder fizzles out into a few showers before clearing out entirely that evening.

What happened? Or more appropriately, what didn’t happen?

Though conditions were favorable for thunderstorms to develop, they didn’t. The right things were in place - the moisture, the heat, the pressure levels - but they didn’t interact and mix the right way. Sometimes I think cities fall into the same trap. We focus so much on making sure we have the right assets in place that we forgot about the equally important task of encouraging interact between those assets.

Collaboration shouldn’t be a linear process. Encouraging interaction between leadership of various assets is important, but so is the construction of connective tissue between the communities that wrap around these assets and use them. If you view communities as collections of knowledge rather than groups of people, you see why this is important - assets such as business incubators, incentive programs, and entrepreneurial support organizations play an important role in enabling people to execute on ideas. But for new, innovative ideas to be formed, new knowledge must enter the equation and old ideas must intersect. Social connectivity and community development aren’t only a critical part of an entrepreneurial ecosystem, but also serve as the belts that make a city’s “engine of innovation” run.

I’ve been digging into the importance of connectors and visionaries in relation to a city’s innovative capacity. While data for these individuals is hard to track because of how subjective both categories are, I remain convinced that they place a critical role in a EIE (education, innovation, entrepreneurship) cycle and will elaborate more in a future post.

For now.. get out and enjoy your Saturday before this snow hits! Unless, of course, the “favorable conditions” don’t produce what’s forecasted. ;)

Be Bold, Be Visionary.

After a few recent conversations, I feel compelled to write about a topic that’s surfaced in many conversations lately: The importance of visionaries.

Every city has them. They’re the thinkers, the re-thinkers, the innovators and the dreamers. They have an enormous capacity to see “what could have been” and burn the midnight oil dreaming of “what could be.” They have a passion for inspiring, they love to encourage others, and they have a special talent for capturing the vision of many and putting it into a comprehensive format. They have a burning desire to see their communities flourish and often work behind the scenes. They’re connectors. They love to build relationships with others, hear their stories, and find ways to help them pursue their dreams and aspirations.

Visionaries are a critical component to any placemaking process and, more importantly, an enormous asset to any city.

We have an immense wealth of visionary leadership here in Northeast Indiana that often doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. People like Holli Seabury, whose vision for a healthier Northeast Indiana has inspired many to work towards an active, healthy lifestyle. People like Heather Schoegler who understand the wealth of potential that can be unleashed through social connectivity. People like Gerald Coleman who have a passion for leading our city’s young people and improve the quality of life they experience. People like Olivia Fabian who understand the importance of encouraging entrepreneurial thinking among our region’s young people and are working feverishly to increase opportunity here by launching ventures of their own. People like Noel Knox who are constantly encouraging and cheering on the efforts of others, and people like Jim Cook who dare to ask the question “what if?”

There’s dozens of others that could (and should) be added to that list, but the primary purpose of this post is to point out something I think is all too often missed. All throughout grade school and even into adulthood, “challenging the status quo” and “daring to be different” are popular slogans that stand the test of time and have a certain appeal to them. Everyone has a little bit of a rebellious side to them - we all like to think and act differently from time to time. But there’s a keen difference between saying and doing - the number of people who like to say they’re thinking outside of the box as opposed to the number of people who actually dare to question how important the box really is in the first place is a significant gap. Hats off to those who ask the big questions, who dream the big dreams, and who charge fearlessly into the unknown.

In relation to my earlier blog post, take note of these visionaries as I assure you a new crop of them is emerging all around the world today. Technological advances in communication have enabled them to connect much quicker than before. They have a greater capacity to inspire and are constantly being inspired by the work and stories of other visionaries around the world. They’re weird people. They do weird things and tackle hard problems. They live life upstream and do things that don’t make sense to many. They’re driven by things that most of us don’t understand and put in long hours with little or no compensation simply because they’re passionate about the cause they’re working towards. They’re able to cast a vision of what something might look like or become and can’t stand the thought of throwing that vision on the back-burner without attempting to execute on it first.

Some of them will make statements that confuse you. Some of them will work on projects that you don’t understand. Some of them will reject conventional thinking and traditional paths in life. Some of them will choose not to pursue a degree and instead further their learning through alternative means (like me). Some of them will challenge your ideas and question your strategies. All of that is okay. Do not discourage them. It’s okay to guide them and it’s okay to offer insight, but give them the benefit of the doubt and have a little faith. Above all, hold on to them - they’re an incredible asset to whichever community they choose to locate in. Do not lose them.

Over the past year I’ve had the humbling opportunity to meet so many visionary people around the world through the Twelve Cities Project, Thiel Foundation activities, and chance encounters where I happened to be in the right place at the right time. Of every visionary individual I’ve met, one commonality binds them all together: An undying passion for improving the lives of people around the world and creating opportunity for future generations. These are people who put in 16 hour days to selflessly help others around them - sometimes people they don’t even know. They create value, but not for the purpose of personal wealth. They have a broader vision than that. They realize that the more value they’re able to add to the marketplace, the more value and wealth others will be able to enjoy. This is why I so enjoy what I’m doing through the Twelve Cities Project, and what we’re prepping for with the Twelve Cities Fellowship. In bringing these young visionaries to Fort Wayne and engaging them in the process of creating something, the opportunity at hand is enormous.

So to those of you who are daring to be weird, daring to be visionary - thank you. Things will get tough, the waters will get rough, and at some times it may feel as though you’re climbing a never-ending hill, but remember that there are many of us out there who deeply appreciate what you’re doing and will be there to support you along the way. Don’t let yourself become jaded and don’t let yourself burnout. It takes a community to build a vision, but it takes a visionary to push a community forward.

Millennials Are Participatory

A few weeks ago, I spoke at a workshop that was part of the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Planning Conference on the importance of engaging millennials in placemaking activities when attempting to harness and tell the story of the place. I wanted to take of the key points I addressed in my presentation and elaborate on them here for you all to read.

The presentations throughout the workshop largely centered around the concept of placemaking and the different strategies cities are employing to enhance their quality of place. The examples and data shared told compelling stories of how critical quality of place is in the global competition for talent. I had the pleasure of speaking about millennial storytelling through placemaking during the last breakout session, followed by Mary Stagaman who gave a phenomenal presentation on the harnessing the story of a place through her work with The Story Project in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Which is absolutely fascinating and hugely inspiring. Check out their website!)

First and foremost, remember that placemaking is participatory. Millennials are highly entrepreneurial and often express their attachment to a place through entrepreneurial expression. Include them in the conversation. If a young person expresses interest in a committee, project, or community happening - hold meetings at a place where they’re able to attend. Include them on email threads. Grab coffee with them and see if they have an idea of how things might be done differently or more effectively. Allow them to be fully engaged in the process and continually remind them that their insight is valuable. 

One of my favorite examples of this recently was the My City project put together by A Better Fort. A few local millennials realized that there was a gap in community engagement among our city’s young people - they didn’t have something to cling on to, something to call their own. To fill that void, they brought over a dozen hip hop artists from around the region together to produce a music video and song that not only ignited community pride but also encouraged community engagement among our millennials. As a by-product, we saw an increase in community attachment from this population as well - they were suddenly part of the discussion. They were included in the process of making their home a better place.

Today, the music video has over 200,000 views on YouTube. While a lot of us thought it would be a vehicle for showcasing what Fort Wayne has to offer to young people around the globe, I think the most significant impacts of it were more internal. Yes, it has become a marketing tool for us to show the rest of the world what we’ve got - but more importantly, it shows us what we have to offer ourselves. The response to the music video in the days following its release was huge. I’ve never seen so many posts on Facebook from people my age saying they were “so proud to live here” and “glad to call this home." 

While there’s several lessons to be derived from this project, what’s most critical to understand about it? That it was participatoryand it used a communication medium that millennials are familiar / comfortable with. If you intend to use placemaking as a tool to harness and tell the story of place through millennials, you must allow them to construct it themselves. Certainly offer them resources and support, but they need to be steering the ship. When attempting to communicate with millennials, remember that they’re the experts. No matter how you craft the message, allowing millennials to communicate your message to other millennials directly using mediums that they all understand will likely be more effective than another generation attempting to convey that message to them. One degree of separation versus no separation.

In the next couple of blog posts, I’ll dive into the importance of entrepreneurial thinking to millennials and talk a bit about the importance of opportunity in attracting / retaining millennial talent. But for now, I’ll leave you with a challenge: Ask a millennial today what their vision is for making their home a better place and commit to helping them execute on that vision.

Make Your Story Here

What does the story of a place have to do with its future?

Quite a bit, actually.

A few weeks ago, I spoke at the OKI Regional Planning Conference in Columbus, Ohio, on how to engage the millennial generation in telling the story of a place through the process of placemaking. The day was filled with wonderful and inspiring examples of what cities around the globe are doing to place emphasis on people-centered approaches to community development. Today, Northeast Indiana put that foot forward and really made our region shine.

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The Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership’s “Made Here” brand has evolved over the past few years. For most of us, our first exposure to it was through the “Talent Made Here” campaign, then later through Vision 2020. This morning, the Partnership unveiled the next evolution of the Made Here brand - this time, taking a people-centered approach that focuses on the stories of people who call this region home through a series of (beautifully produced) videos. They also encourage you to submit your own videos to share your story (made here). 

This is what placemaking is about - taking economic development to the grassroots level and empowering residents to have a significant impact on the future of their place. The “Your Story. Made Here.” campaign is an inspiring display of the people who have made Northeast Indiana what it is today and a vehicle to capture our story through moving forward. After all, you can’t know where you’re heading if you don’t know where you’ve been.

Hats off to Katy Silliman, Courtney Tritch, Laine Mello, Erica Schweyer, and the rest of the staff at the Regional Partnership for their hard work on this campaign. Shout out to One Lucky Guitar, too, for the beautiful job they did on this project!

Now, what are you waiting for? Head on over to YourStoryMadeHere.com and share your story!

Let’s Connect

Throughout the Twelve Cities Project, I’ve been emphasizing the importance of connectivity. I’m a connector at heart - I love to connect with people, and I love to connect people to each other when opportunities arise. I’ve met a fascinating, diverse range of people throughout my Twelve Cities trips so far and would love to connect with you, too.

So, let’s connect.

In today’s world of ever-advancing social technology, it’s easier than ever to have a face-to-face conversation at a moment’s notice, even when thousands of miles apart. Let’s connect through Skype (or Facebook / Google+, if preferred) and get to know each other.

Here’s the deal:

1.) Click here to view my availability and select a time / date that works for you.
2.) Fill out this form and click submit.
3.) Try to think of at least one way I might be able to help you and let me know what it is when we connect. (No pressure. If you can’t think of anything, that’s alright!)

Plan for a 15 to 20 minute conversation for us to get to know each other. 

That’s it. I look forward to meeting you!

You’re Awesome

You all are rockstars.

Last night, I posted this video on YouTube in an effort to raise funds for the remaining trips of the Twelve Cities Project. I’m about halfway through the project’s visits, and at the time of posting the video another $5,000 still needed to be raised to cover remaining expenses.

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In the video, I only asked for $1 from each viewer - less than most of us spend on a cup of coffee or breakfast in the morning. Within 16 hours of posting the video, viewers and supporters had donated over $400. The generosity of the people I’ve met through the Twelve Cities Project - both here in Fort Wayne and elsewhere - never ceases to amaze me, and continually inspires me to keep moving forward.

At this rate, the remaining funds needed to cover the Twelve Cities Project expenses could be covered within a week. So, here’s your challenge: watch the video posted last night and share it with your friends, family, and coworkers. Encourage them to donate $1 towards the project. Like the project’s Facebook and Twitter pages to keep in touch, too! The further this message is able to spread, the greater impact each dollar will have.

huge thank you to the individuals listed below who have donated within the past day, in addition to the dozens of others who have donated in the weeks prior (which you can view here):

Kim & Kevin Anema
Brian Thornton
Jennifer Fox
Fred Cannon
Mark Hagar
Alec Johnson
Tim Spencer
Becky Rapp
Amber Recker
Holli Seabury
Son Huynh
Scott Hermance
Dave Sanders
Linda Butler
Colton Strawser
Chyanne Kaiser-Westlake
Jeremy Diller 

From myself and the Twelve Cities board of directors, thank you so much for your support and generosity! It’s greatly appreciated.

Fundraising for.. college?

This is cool.

Earlier today, John Paff sent me a note with a link to a site titled “Dollar by Dollar: Raising funds for one year of college, one dollar at a time.” John knows I always get excited about creative millennials doing interesting things, so this instantly caught my attention. You’re doing what? Taking donations to cover tuition? This is something worth reading.

As I clicked through the site, I learned bits and pieces of the story of a girl named Katie Dwyer and her tough situation: she can’t afford to finish her final year of school. About to enter her senior year of pursuing a degree at Huntington University, she’s found out that she no longer has the financial capacity to afford it. According to her site, she acknowledges that the tuition of small, private colleges isn’t cheap and she has managed to rack up some “lofty student loans” but believes (and rightfully so) that it will be easier to pay off that debt by obtaining her degree than forfeiting it.

In a time when student debt has exceeded a record high of over $1 trillion, her story isn’t unusual; however, the way she’s dealing with it is. She’s tapping into the growing concept of crowd-sourced fundraising and applying it in an innovative way. No, there aren’t any rewards for donating to this campaign like you find on Indiegogo or Kickstarter - but she’s only asking for $1.00, and the reward comes from knowing that you’ve helped someone out there overcome an obstacle that no one would want to face.

It relates to a question I’ve been throwing around in my mind for a while now - how far are people willing to go (financially) to support something based on emotional appeal, and at what point do they want to see a tangible return on their donation or investment? A prime example of this is the story of Karen Klein, the 68 year-old school bus monitor that was bullied to tears by middle school students. When video of the event surfaced on the web, a man by the name of Max Sidorov created an Indiegogo campaign to send Karen on a vacation. His target was about $15,000. Within a few days, he had raised over $500,000. Some people gave $10, some people gave $1,000 - it just depended on how deeply impacted they were by the story and at what level they felt connected to it. There were no rewards offered for the campaign, but it is arguably one of the most successful crowdsourcing campaigns in history.

So whatever your desire or motivation, I encourage you to check out Katie’s website and pitch in $1. Just $1. That isn’t even a cup of coffee from Starbucks, folks. Once you’ve donated, share the link with your friends and ask them to do the same. $1 and a few seconds from you could make the difference of a lifetime for Katie Dwyer.

(In full disclosure: I didn’t know Katie until today, nor had I had any previous communication with her. I just thought this was creative, interesting, and inspiring - and I hope you’ll see it the same.)