Around the nation, creative ideas and investments for transforming communities are meeting with economic success. Issue Media Group sees an opportunity for some of these successes to be used as models for other communities to adapt and replicate. Starting this month we launch a series that asks: "What's working in cities?" First up: a creative incubator that's winning fans in Chattanooga, TN.
Our food system is broken. Or so says Oran B. Hesterman, PhD, founder and head of the Ann Arbor-based nonprofit Fair Food Network, in his book Fair Food: Growing a Healthy, Sustainable Food System for All. But unlike many we're-doing-it-all-wrong books, Hesterman offers up recommendations for and examples of solutions. The New York Times review finds lots of food for thought. Excerpt: "Agricultural mass production, of course, led to enormous increases in efficiency and productivity. It helped to create an abundant food supply at low cost to consumers. But the same forces that envisioned the farm as a "big factory floor" have also produced unintended but dangerous consequences. These include problems with food quality and safety, animal welfare, soil erosion and depletion, higher energy consumption and greenhouse gas production, and diet-related illnesses like diabetes and obesity, Mr. Hesterman writes. The book’s use of statistics to document these problems is spotty. But those it offers can pack a wallop. For example, citing a University of Michigan fact sheet, it says, “our food system consumes 10.3 calories of fossil fuel energy to produce 1.4 calories of food energy.” The author says this is a sign of a broken system, “not because the policies that created it were necessarily bad policies for the time in which they were created, but because the context has changed." Read the rest of the story here.
At Ann Arbor's Selma Cafe, food is down to earth. That's because the weekly breakfasts plated up by this volunteer-run nonprofit fund hoop-house construction and microloans to seed new farmers. And the nibbles sound so delish. Excerpt: Regulars and newcomers, including some students and staff of the nearby University of Michigan, drop in from 6:30 to 10 a.m. Fridays and slip a recommended $12 to $15 into the jars scattered around communal tables. After deducting food costs, they've chipped in at least $90,000 for a revolving fund for micro loans to fledgling farmers... [Angela Eikenberry, a University of Nebraska-Omaha assistant professor of public policy who studies philanthropy] says she isn't aware of "any other groups that make loans. ... It's very encouraging for me to hear these kinds of things going on." A National Farmers Union official is similarly enthusiastic. "What a great idea! I've not personally heard of any other communities pulling together and doing something like that," says Chandler Goule, vice president and lobbyist. He says it's particularly helpful because, in recent years, "credit was extremely tight" for farmers seeking bank loans. Find the full story here.
At the Two Twelve Arts Center in Saline, mud gets a makeover into the exotic this March with a class offering in Bogolan, the Northwest African art of mud cloth design. The center offers all manner of art classes and programming, children's summer camps, and exhibits, and in January moved to its new location at 216 W. Michigan Avenue in downtown Saline, two doors down from its former home. "[Two Twelve] started five years ago and there were only about four of us, and then it sort of exploded," says Margie Bovee, its founder and director. The configuration of the new space, while not significantly larger than the old, is less cramped and better meets the needs of the 50-75 artists who teach or gather there each month. The center now has a reception area and a pottery studio with a separate entrance; the former location's pottery studio was in the basement. The center, which operates as a nonprofit 501(c)3 charitable foundation, hosts a sizable coffee klatch – or in this case, a pastry klatch – every Friday morning. The Cake Eaters, a group of about 33 artists, meet for networking and to trade ideas for media or techniques they're using, Bovee says. New artists are welcome. "It's a gathering [space] and you need that. So many artists are out there working independently from anything and they just need some time to share," Bovee adds. "Operating in a vacuum is never a good thing." Source: Margie Bovee, founder and director of Two Twelve Arts Center Writer: Tanya Muzumdar
Communities across Michigan are waving the Buy Local flag in support of independent businesses and homegrown entrepreneurs. But it's more than just a nice sentiment, it's an important strategy for building a vibrant and robust local economy.
What goes around, comes around. While much has been made of the locavore movement, the importance of buying local extends beyond food. This month, Concentrate's Speaker Series brings in Ingrid Ault, director of Think Local First, to talk about the implications of supporting and cultivating locally-owned, independent businesses. Sign up now for this February 24th event!
Fifteen years ago the Arbor Research Collaborative for Health was just getting its start with two people and a research grant for kidney dialysis. Today the non-profit employs 70 people in a number of research fields, and is hiring so steadily that it's moving into one of downtown Ann Arbor's premier office spaces.The Arbor Research Collaborative for Health is set to take over the third floor of the University of Michigan Credit Union's new headquarters, the old Ann Arbor News building at Huron and Division streets. That's 20,000 square feet for a non-profit that hired six people last year and expects to keep adding more staff in 2011."We are anticipating growing 5-15 percent a year," says Robert Merion, president of Arbor Research Collaborative for Health. "This move will facilitate five years' worth of growth."The non-profit now focuses on conducting research for all organ failures and transplants. It is also expanding into more medical-centric areas, most recently taking on some studies on health-care quality. "As we identify new opportunities for new research funding that will require us to add research staff," Merion adds.Source: Robert Merion, president of Arbor Research Collaborative for HealthWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
From bees to broccoli, Growing Hope is determined to bring locally grown produce to the masses. Between its urban gardens, hoop house and hives, running the downtown Ypsilanti Farmers' Market, and providing community education, this urban farming advocate has developed a little slice of sustainable heaven on Michigan Ave.
Keith Jefferies, Concentrate's resident video maker, brought home a Silver ADDY Award® for Promotion Media – Non-Profit for his video profile of 826Michigan. The video was recognized both locally and regionally before going on to win at the national level.Originally created for Concentrate as a story, Keith allowed 826Michigan to use "Ann Arbor's Robot Repair Superstore (And Really Cool Non-profit)" for promotional purposes. It was instant hit with the organization."XXXXXXX," says Amanda Uhle, 826Michigan's executive director.Music for the video, "An Introduction to Science" by Solvent, was generously provided by Ann Arbor label, Ghostly International. "This piece about Liberty Street Robot Supply & Repair/826 Michigan was really fun to make. It feels really worthwhile to create something for folks who do such a fantastic job," Jefferies says. Keith Jefferies has produced hundreds of hours of television programming including documentaries, entertainment, and promotional work, as well as professional sports coverage such as UK national league basketball, soccer, rugby, skiing, athletics and more.Jefferies is a full member of the Directors Guild of Great Britain and the Guild of Television Cameramen. He is Resident Filmmaker at the Michigan Theater and owns Ascalon Films, a Michigan-based independent film production company. Source: Keith Jefferies, Ascalon Films and Amanda Uhle, executive director 826MichiganWriter: Jeff Meyers, Managing EditorClick on the YouTube video below to see this award-winning vid...
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