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| MATR Newsletter - Tue Feb 21, 2017 |
Big Sky is the most supportive festival I have ever been to. It isn't just about filmmakers promoting their own films. It's about filmmakers going to other films and everyone supporting each other. It was, hands downs, the best film festival I have ever been to." - Samantha Farinella , Director HUNTING IN WARTIME (Big Sky 2016)
The Big Sky Documentary Film Festival (now through 2/26 in Missoula Video - http://www.bigskyfilmf ... iler/ ) is the premiere venue for non-fiction film in the American West. Big Sky offers an ideal setting for filmmakers to premiere new work and develop lasting relationships with fellow filmmakers and industry. The festival draws an audience of 20,000 and film entries from every corner of the globe to a uniquely intimate mountain town setting with a local Montana flavor. http://www.bigskyfilmf ... .org/
Gov. Steve Bullock
Montana Department of Commerce
- Missoula's mapping tech company onXmaps gets $267K state grant to create 36 new jobs
In total, Bullock announced Tuesday that $512,700 in grants will help businesses in five Montana communities, supporting the creation of 74 new jobs.
- Governor Bullock Supports Steps to Achieve Equal Pay for Equal Work
"Montana does better when Montana families earn more," said Governor Bullock at the roundtable. "I want to be doing everything I can to make sure that all Montanans are paid a fair day's wage for a fair day's work."
- Governor Bullock wants large outdoor show in Montana
The twice-annual show, which has been held in Salt Lake City for the last 20 years, attracts 50,000 visitors and $45 million a year, according to estimates.
- Oregon, Montana want to host Outdoor Retailer show
Patagonia CEO Rose Marcario said the industry is all about defending public lands and cannot stand by Utah's decision.
Montana Politics & Legislature
- Resiliency Planning For Better Communities And Stronger Local Economies, 2/22, Online
In this webinar, we hear from speakers that use a resiliency framework to help plan better communities.
- New Research Allows Montana Tourism Leaders to Focus on Innovation
"Montana tourism leaders are in a position to innovate in ways they haven't in a decade," Montana Department of Commerce Interim Director Doug Mitchell said.
- 16 Made in Montana Films Featured at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival
The Montana Department of Commerce's Montana Film Office has supported a handful of these local filmmakers through the Big Sky Grant Program.
Northwestern Energy
- The Solar Jobs and Energy Freedom Act has been introduced to the Montana State Legislature
The goal of this act is to remove some of the roadblocks that come with solar energy in Montana.
- Cash-strapped Legislature considers 8-cent increase to gas tax
Though Republicans and Democrats, the Legislature, and the governor all say something needs to be done about the state's ailing highway-projects fund, an increase to the gas tax has been seen as a bitter pill most are more comfortable tossing back and forth than swallowing.
- Montana Republicans on House panel kill bill to protect LGBT against discrimination
The House Judiciary Committee vote 11-8 along party lines to kill House Bill 417, with all Republicans on the panel voting it down. All Democrats voted to pass it.
- Montana lawmakers reject doctor residency expansion
Montana has three residency programs and just 686 practicing primary-care doctors. Seventeen Montana counties have zero primary-care physicians.
- Billings Gazette opinion: Montana's disabled students shortchanged again
Montana needs to make the changes proposed in HB274, for the sake of children with disabilities and for the sake of taxpayers who will pay more for their care if they can't complete their education.
- Destroying Montana's drone industry will cost jobs
Instead of bowing to drone hysteria born of ignorance, let's work towards realistic enforceable solutions that will keep Montana on the cutting edge of a high-flying, high-tech industry. If other states have addressed drone related privacy issues without banning drones, surely Montana can too.
- For Hardin, Montana parents and students, public preschool program is important jump-start
Montana is one of six states that dedicate no state funding to public preschool, and a $12 million ask from Gov. Steve Bullock appears stalled in this year's legislature.
- Apprenticeships in Montana: Good for workers, great for business
I have partnered with Gov. Steve Bullock to carry legislation that will grow apprenticeships and provide Montanans with a paycheck, all while building a talented workforce for businesses across the state. - Rep. Casey Schreiner, D-Great Falls
- "Breweries are driving the Montana economy now": Bill would raise barrel production limit
A bill introduced on Monday at the State House of Representatives by a Democrat and a Republican from Missoula would have immense ramifications for the state's craft beer breweries.
- Montana Office of the Commissioner of Political Practices one step closer to elimination
The bill, introduced by a state lawmaker tied to one of the office's most significant investigations, would place oversight and enforcement of campaign laws back into the hands of the Secretary of State and Attorney General, as it was before the office's creation in 1975.
Flathead Valley Community College
- Manufacturing And International Trade Day, 3/1, Helena, Montana
Manufacturing & International Trade Day recognizes the importance of exporting and new dollars to Montana.
- NorthWestern Energy sending crews to California to help with power outages, storm-related issues
The group includes workers from Butte, Bozeman, Billings, Missoula, Helena, Great Falls, Havre, Hamilton and Lewistown.
Great Falls Development Authority
- Public Invited To Manufacturing & Technology Expo And Kalispell Mini Maker Faire, 2/24-25
Approximately 1,000 middle and high school students from across Northwest Montana are anticipated to attend the event as part of an effort to educate the next generation of workers about modern-day manufacturing.
- Free College Prep Classes Offered to Eligible Veterans
Classes are designed to help military veterans refresh their academic skills so they can successfully complete post-secondary education.
Montana Office of Tourism & Economic Development
- GFDA Top 20 2/10 and Top 17 2/12
Here's the GFDA Top 17 for this week, celebrating great things happening to move Great Falls Forward.
Artificial Intelligence and The Internet of Things
- Big Sky Economic Development Trust Fund - Training helps local Bozeman, Montana businesses to grow while staying productive
"We're just grateful that they see an opportunity in Bozeman and want to grow their business here," Britt Fontenot said.
- Montana Small Business Development Centers Help Launch 73 New Companies
"Small businesses are a critical component of Montana's economy," said SBDC State Director Chad Moore. "Our consultants are dedicated to providing tools and guidance for Montana's business success."
Arrow Solutions Group
- Elon Musk: Automation Will Force Governments to Introduce Universal Basic Income
He stated, "deep artificial intelligence, or artificial general intelligence, where you can have artificial intelligence that is much smarter than the smartest human on Earth, this is a dangerous situation."
- Microsoft CEO says artificial intelligence is the 'ultimate breakthrough'
Cortana is an intelligent assistant (agent) that "can take text input, can take speech input, and that knows you deeply."
Energy and Climate Change
- TecNet Billings, 3/30
We invite you to join us and your fellow information technology professionals for some great conversation, connections, IT war stories, and complimentary local food and beverages.
Come Home Montana
- First Wattway solar road pilot in US pops up in rural Georgia
The Ray, an 18-mile living laboratory for clean technologies, including not only the solar roads, but also a solar-powered electric vehicle charging station, and WheelRight, a system people can drive over to test their tire pressure, which could lead to improved fuel inefficiency.
- Microgrids on the March: Utilities Are Building Out New Business Models to Make Islanding Work
The microgrid has already proven itself in the face of adversity.
- Montana energy uncertainty comes as large solar farm planned
Plans for a Billings solar farm are heating up just as renewable energy politics cool at the Montana Legislature
- Canada's Glaciers Are Melting 900 Percent Faster Since 2005
Canadian glaciers account for a huge portion of Arctic ice. As the planet warms, meltwater is eating away at them at an astonishing rate.
- How Kansas became one of the fastest-growing electric-car markets in the country
If one electric utility has its way, more electric cars will soon be plying the roads of America's heartland.
- Ireland votes to be world's first country to fully divest from fossil fuels
Trócaire Executive Director Éamonn Meehan said in a statement, "The Irish political system is now finally acknowledging what the overwhelming majority of people already know: that to have a fighting chance to combat catastrophic climate change we must phase out fossil fuels and stop the growth of the industry that is driving this crisis."
Developing a more Entrepreneurial Montana
- University of Montana president search gets underway
The University is encouraging people to submit their feedback in the search by sending an email to [email protected].
Montana Business
- Montana Governor Steve Bullock Recognizes Teenpreneur Award Winners
All entrants were critiqued by our panel of Montana entrepreneurs serving as volunteer judges.
MSU Leadership Institute & UM Global Leadership Initiative
- The Montana and Idaho Community Development Corporation - Nonprofit plays behind-the-scenes role in Bozeman development
The Montana and Idaho Community Development Corporation https://mtcdc.org/ , is designed to lend to entrepreneurs and startups that don't qualify for traditional borrowing.
- Nonprofit: We have $80M to subsidize Montana development projects
The development group has doled out $431 million in New Market Tax Credits for Montana and Idaho projects since 2008. It typically covers 15 to 20 percent of the total development costs.
- Bifrost - Two Missoula entrepreneurs are reinventing the arcade
Have you ever looked at the stars and wondered what it would be like to fly through space?
- Task force discusses efforts to close pay gap in Montana
"Women are more and more going out and achieving positions in the workplace that are worthy of high levels of pay and it's important that as young women we are looking for those positions and we are positioning ourselves to achieve," said MSU Junior Haley Cox.
- MSNBC Video - Red Ants Pants - Montana business leader Sarah Calhoun makes work wear for women
Sarah Calhoun, founder of the Red Ants Pants company, makes durable work gear specifically designed for women's bodies
- Montana's Submittable - The United States Of Startups: The Most Well-Funded Tech Startup In Every US State
Submittable is used to receive, store, and share editorial, resumes, applications, contest entries and portfolios.
- Montana Banks Welcome Changes to Dodd-Frank Act
With President Trump signing executive order to scale back financial regulations, Montana banks see opportunity
- Bozeman, Montana-based CrossTx Raises $735k Angel Round for its Health Care Coordination Platform
"If you look in the unlikely place you will often times find something special," said Liz Marchi, Frontier Fund Founder. "CrossTx is just that, a high-growth, innovative tech company based in Bozeman, Montana."
Next Generation Broadband in Montana
- University of Montana Launches Leadership Institute for Female Students in Montana
The University of Montana is now accepting applications for a six-day summer program designed to educate, empower and encourage college women to become politically active and assume greater leadership roles.
City Club Missoula
- FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's digital empowerment agenda is good news for rural America
The FCC's new Chairman Ajit Pai has some very big ideas about how to bring broadband access to rural America.
- Government, Business Get Together to Provide Broadband
Partnerships don't have to be all or nothing. They can be some of each.
Government
- City Club Missoula Presents: State Of The Community, 3/13, Missoula
Featuring Mayor John Engen, University of Montana President Sheila Stearns, and Missoula County Commissioner Chair.
Idaho Business
- Behind the Battle Over Public Land
"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children," Conrad Anker said, paraphrasing Duwamish Chief Seattle.
- Senator Daines talks health care, DeVos vote, more in telephone town hall - Daines featured speaker in Havre Feb. 23
Montana residents came out swinging during Sen. Steve Daines' telephone town hall Thursday night, and they didn't let up over the next 90 minutes.
North Dakota Business and Economic Development
- Idaho Drops Climate Change Language From K-12 Science Curriculum
11 Republicans on the panel approved the proposed slate of science standards after five paragraphs* mentioning the topics were removed from the initial draft. The committee's three Democrats voted against removing the climate change language.
- Idaho Software Company, LeanLaw, Closes Round with Gem State Angel Fund
LeanLaw creates cloud-based productivity software for lawyers so that they can lower overhead and be free to practice the kind of law that made them want to be lawyers in the first place.
Oregon Business
- North Dakota Governor Kicked Off Senate Floor for Wearing Jeans
Burgum "knows he shouldn't" wear jeans on the Senate floor "because we've been kind of trying to enforce that rule," Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardnersaid.
Other Economies
- Portland Prepares for the Big One
A new report identifies key actions for the city of Portland to prepare for the certainty of a large earthquake.
Regional Business
- Leading a Small Business Revolution: Red Wing, MN is a Top Five Finalist
"We are pleased Red Wing, MN has gained a spot as a Top 5 finalist in this year's Small Business Revolution - Main Street," said Golden Shovel CEO Aaron Brossoit.
Regional Economic Development
- Without Their Own Software, Can Utilities Survive?
Today's utilities are still not forward thinking in software, argues Jon Guerster.
Utah Business
- Multi-state Conference Call With The Economic Deelopment Association, 2/22, Online
A briefing on EDA programs in the following states: CO, UT, WY, MT, ND, SD, IA, KS, NE, and MO.
Wyoming Business
- Impact of Outdoor Retailer Shows departure from Utah is far-reaching - Come to Montana!
Meanwhile, one local businessman who relies on work from the biannual gathering of the outdoor industry in Salt Lake laments the loss of income for his company, and an apparent lack of civility in the talks between the two sides.
21st Century Education Initiative - "You Should Care..."
- Wyoming Business Council Newsletter - New export training open to Wyoming entrepreneurs
Angel Investor Network ready to boost Wyoming entrepreneurs
Education
- Study: Big data helps struggling college students graduate
"We have a moral obligation to these students and their families many of whom are taking out large loans to give them every chance to graduate."
Montana Education Excellence
- San Francisco will be first in nation to make City College free
People send their children to public schools and don't pay tuition. City Hall is arguing that community college students shouldn't have to either.
Community
- University of Montana Enrollment Drops, MSU Sets New Record
This summer UM hired Tom Crady to serve as vice president for enrollment management and student affairs. On Friday he said he hopes to stabilize enrollment this year and increase it by 3 percent next fall.
- MSU business college launches executive education program
The program is designed to provide professional development opportunities for alumni and industry professionals. The college intends for the program to promote lifelong learning and to help its participants succeed in business.
- Montana university students may face tuition hikes of up to 21 percent to cover budget
"Even where we're at it's already enormous. I can't support doing this to the kids that would be impacted." Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad
Funding and Building your Business
- Video: Communities Built for Children
"Numerous studies show that high-quality early care and education has a unique capacity to prepare low-income children for future academic and lifetime success," Herzog adds. "The key phrase is high-quality."
- Finding Your Hometown's Heartbeat: Community Engagement with Bouncy Castles, Beer Coasters, and Ball Games
"There is something special in every community. The challenge is to find what that is--the heartbeat, why people care,"
- Tiny homes, big dreams: Bozeman group aims to house homeless
"For me, one thing was seeing and knowing that six homeless people died in Bozeman last year."
Connectivity & Communications
- The Legal Issues You Need To Know If You're Launching A Startup In 2017
A legal expert from the J+O Firm talks capital, patents, taxes, crowdfunding, and--oh yeah--remembering to form your company.
- 7 Rules For Maintaining A Creative Business Culture
If you want to build and maintain a creative culture in your organization, you need to make sure your operation is guided by these seven critical rules:
- 5 Lessons From Founders' Retreat
Authenticity is priceless
- Paw-ternity leave?! Brewery offers paid time off for employees who rescue dogs
If you work at BrewDog and you're the new Ma or Pa(w) of a recently-adopted fur baby, you're in luck: You've got paid paw-ternity leave coming your way!
Government Technology
- New 5G Wireless Will Increase Need for Fiber, not Reduce It
"Is 5G coming to rural America anytime soon?"
- How to Find the Cheapest Wireless Plan
Here's how the carriers' plans now rank in terms of price.
Non-Profit News
- Idaho's Wireless Weigh Station Could Generate $2.1 Million in Estimated Savings
Its effects, officials said, are dramatic -- allowing the state to scan loaded semi-trucks on the highway at cruising speed, where previously all trucks had to drive through the scales and slow to around 5 miles per hour.
- Contemplating Change for Coding Competitions, Hackathons
State and municipal agencies take different approaches to hackathons, coding competitions and app challenges, which have altered -- and are an important fixture in -- the tech world.
The Creative and Cultural Economy
- EmpowerMT launches 'inclusive community' training across Montana
EmpowerMT is launching a training series for people who lately have found themselves asking, "What do we do?"
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- Oscar winning filmmaker shares films, knowledge at The 14th annual Big Sky Documentary Film Festival in Missoula, Montana
"There's a real hipness to Missoula, Montana"
- Big Sky Film Festival partners up with Missoula businesses
The film festival continues throughout the week at five different locations.
Transportation
- Swap-in wheel converts any bike into an electric within 60 seconds
The wheel comes in two sizes which should fit 95 percent of all adult bicycles and allows bikes to travel 20 miles per hour for up to 50 miles.
- Woolly Mammoths could be 'de-extinct' in 2 years
This whole nostalgia thing is getting out of control because scientists are about to bring back the woolly mammoth, the Guardian reports.
- Ultrafast camera to improve vision of self-driving cars and drones
The Nanyang Technological University Singapore (NTU Singapore), led by Assistant Professor Chen Shoushun, has developed an ultrafast, high-contrast smart camera that records the changes in light intensity between scenes at nanosecond intervals to detect movement and objects in real time.
- This Technology Could Finally Make Brain Implants Practical
Harvard Medical School is testing a new design of a brain implant meant to restore vision to the blind.
Events
- Global WirelessCharging Ecosystem - The Key to Autonomous Electric Vehicles Takes Another Step Toward Commercialization
This week, wireless charging took another meaningful step toward broad adoption.
- Tesla to cover repair costs after Model S owner sacrifices his car to save a life
Not only are Tesla cars saving the environment, they're also saving lives.
- The world's first flying car is finally available for pre-order
According to the company, the Liberty can travel at speeds up to 100 miles per hour, and the car can switch from driving to flying mode in just 10 to 15 minutes.
- Will the public accept the fatal mistakes of self-driving cars?
"What if we can build a car that's 10 times as safe, which means 3,500 people die on the roads each year. Would we accept that?" asks John Hanson, a spokesman for the Toyota Research Institute, which is developing the automaker's self-driving technology.
- Regulated Export Training And TechEx Live Case Study, 03/02, Bozeman
- The LaunchCats Speaker Series: #IndieTech, 02/22, Bozeman
- I'm Expected To Fundraise - Help!, 04/06, Kalispell
- Networking Reception And Leadership Roundtable By Accelerate Montana, 3/1, Missoula
How Information Technology Innovation is Transforming Industry, Energy, and Education
- Missoula's Brooks Street Corridor Study Discussion, 2/22, Missoula
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