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| MATR Newsletter - Tue Oct 17, 2006 |
The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible -- and achieve it, generation after generation. -- Pearl S. Buck (1892-1973) American Writer
Hope you can attend this event: The symposium will bring together practitioners and experts from many parts of the world to expose participants to a vast array of approaches and methods all aimed at boosting creative thinking. "Beyond Skills: Developing Creative Minds -TA3, 10/23, Whitefish, MT" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html
Developing a more Entrepreneurial Montana
Developing Tech Jobs in Rural Communities
- Online Program for Entrepreneurs
“These students have ideas. They have creativity, initiative and drive. We can give them the skills they need to be their own bosses and embrace their entrepreneurial spirit.”
Montana Education Excellence
- Technology outsourcing comes home
The trend toward ''backsourcing," when companies pull outsourced information technology functions back in-house from a contractor in the United States or abroad, is more widespread than is generally understood, Kaplan argues in a new Cutter report. There are little data on the outcome of outsourcing or backsourcing moves. But Kaplan says the main reason parties retreat from outsourcing deals is that they had agreed to unrealistic objectives.
- More are Commuting and the Trips are Getting Longer
The portion of workers who reach their jobs in less than 20 minutes dropped to 47% in 2000 after hovering around 50% for decades.
Education
- Singer teaches art of songwriting to Bozeman High School students. MAPS - Media Arts in the Public Schools
"We've got some kids who are phenomenal (musicians)," she said. "It's a great outlet for the best and brightest to take it one step higher."
- University of Montana Offers Saturday Science Enrichment Programs for Ninth-Graders
The free class will offer students six hours of hands-on instruction, but only 20 students will be accepted into the program.
Montana Business
- The Education and Economic Development Act
Its goals include making education more relevant to students by sparking interest in careers at an earlier age, decreasing dropout rates and providing a seamless transition from elementary to middle to high school to college and/or the work force.
- MSU employees say low pay takes a toll on them and on university
"There's something wrong," Miller said, when pay is so low for clerks, administrative assistants, accountants, custodians and other MSU employees. "We have too many people in professional positions who are eligible for assistance.
- More Mayors are proactively involved in education to improve the quality of life and as a long-term investment to turn cities around,"
"The incrementalists and status-quo-ists are not going to get us where we need to go," Klein said. "The way it worked under the old structure, everybody's for change, everybody wants to improve the school system, but a lot of people don't like this change or that change because their ox is gored."
- Modern Education - "Making History"
"What I found most impressive was the essay question and the depth of understanding the kids who played the game had versus kids who learned solely from the textbook," McDivitt said. "I found that the game group was more thorough, and you might say thoughtful in their follow-up writing assignments."
- Companies, kids "get" innovation, but K-12 doesn't nurture it. Creative expert calls on the West to rethink education
"I think the larger problem for America now, as it is for many countries, is to reframe education because, in a way, organizations are trying to promote creative thinking among people who are coming through an education system that, actually, almost actively discourages it," he said. "So it's an issue for companies, but it's also an issue for local government and for state government."
- Montana's Agenda - "Indian Education for All"
Montana Meth Project
- No snob factor at Montana wineries
The Montana wine industry, though in its infancy, is producing award-winning wines made with locally grown and imported vinefera grapes as well as a rainbow of other Big Sky fruits.
- What is brewing at Great Falls malt plant?
Will the Illinois-based company find a means to transform malt-plant byproducts into some form of bio-fuel? Could ADM, the nation's largest ethanol producer, develop such a plant in Great Falls?
- Stillwater Mining Co.'s answer to hard rock miner shortage is to hire local and train well
"This is one of the few jobs you can stay in Montana and make a good living," he said. "I plan on making this my career."
Montana Economic Development
- White House cites Montana meth project as model for nation
It has been repeatedly cited as a powerful private sector response to a devastating social problem.
Funding and Building your Business
- Montana Zoning Vs. Cappuccino Cowboys. Keeping the Wild in the West
Once unthinkable, zoning is now being considered by Montana counties to prevent subdividing open space and ranch land.
- Montana Association of Counties October 2006 Newsletter
- Montana Disabled Students Workforce Mentoring Day, 10/18, Helena
Gov. Brian Schweitzer is committed to having a state workforce that reflects the overall population of Montana, of which 17 percent are people with disabilities.
- The Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education has chosen four post secondary institutions to receive funding under Montana's New Homestead Act: Workforce Innovation and Regional Economic Development (WIRED).
The purpose of Montana's New Homestead Act: Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) initiative is to establish a globally competitive bioenergy and bioproducts cluster in central and eastern Montana.
- Montana Special Events Grant Program Funds Available January 12, 2007 Application Deadline
“This grant program is an excellent resource to create and sustain economic development through event development which not only benefits our communities but also provides an enhanced experience for our visitors.”
- The Great Falls-based Montana Cooperative Development Center gets $225,000 grant
The cooperative development center's main mission to provide new or existing cooperative businesses with guidance, marketing strategies, business plan creation, feasibility studies and financial management.
Regional Business
- Ex-GE chief dishes out advice
"If you've got 16 employees, at least two are turkeys."
- On the Job: The overlooked minority: Disabled Americans want to work
''All we're really trying to do is get employers to give these people a chance,'' says Wayne McMillan. ''Employers in this country are overlooking a valuable work force component.''
- North West style of YouTube success
"The focus down in the Bay Area is get things out very quickly, then measure extremely quantitatively your success. The style in the Northwest is focus on your operating metrics up front, a very thorough business plan, then launch your product."
- 25 Terrifying Information Technology Horror Stories
- The Art of (Killing) the Deal
I know many of you are salespeople, and darned good ones. But maybe you could be a bit better. In that case, here are a few tips for making you better -- in reverse-psychological terms of what you should avoid doing. It's my "how to lose the deal" list.
- Fire Yourself -- Then Come Back And Act Like a New Boss Would
Reinvention isn't a short process. At International Business Machines, it has been going on for more than a decade.
Regional Economic Development
- That’s Agri-tainment: Farms Shift Focus to Stay Afloat
As family farms have suffered increasing difficulty trying to stay afloat in a marketplace dominated by agribusiness, some have turned to offering their orchards and fields as escapes for city dwellers seeking respite in the country.
- America's 200 Best Small Companies - South Dakota - 2, Utah - 1, Washington State - 2
Our list of the 200 Best Small Companies ferrets out the most robust, fundamentally disciplined public outfits with sales between $5 million and $750 million.
Government Technology
- Regional Approach Needed to Compete Globally
The county-wide intra-regional commuter culture is stronger than ever, Bruhl said. "Not one of our major municipalities' business centers has the majority of jobs in that city held by residents of that city," he said. "That means that the economies of these cities are inherently regional.
- Building an E-Business Ready Workforce In the Northern Great Plains
The workforce that was targeted as part of the project: Farmers, livestock producers, and people engaged in agribusiness; Healthcare professionals and workers; Main Street businesses; Library workers; Industrial workers; Teachers; Youth; Senior citizens; College students; Part-time workers; Social Services clientele; and Disabled.
- “Regional Economic Development in Florida” Broadcast Available On-Line
The recently broadcast episode of Economic Development Today is entitled “Regional Economic Development in Florida” and spotlights best practice examples of regional economic development in Florida. The program features an interview with Governor Jeb Bush.
- The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable form coalition to strengthen education reforms
"We have to raise our expectations of the K-12 education system in order to create a more competitive American economy," says Jacque Johnson, executive director of education and workforce development at the Chamber.
Idaho Business
- In Case of Emergency ... Can government leaders confidently say their CIOs have a plan to keep the work force connected and serving the public?
"After a bio-terrorism event, you will likely not be able to access health services Web sites for information due to capacity constraints, yet you will be able to check your Lotto numbers instead." -- Anonymous senior IT state official commenting on his state's inability to prioritize IT services effectively
Wyoming Business
- If you 'Pay peanuts," you "get monkeys'
Low-wage jobs don't do a community any good, he said, creating their own problems, and area-wide the per-capita income has not kept pace with the nation and the rest of the state.
- Turbines on rural ridges could signal Idaho's energy future
"Wind is the renewable technology of today," said state Sen. Curt McKenzie, a Nampa Republican and co-chairman of a committee working to revise Idaho's energy plan. "And it's only going to be a more reliable source as we learn how to capture the energy and release it better. Of all the renewable energies, wind is where our largest supply will come from."
Government
- Wyoming is calling future leaders
"When young people come to Washington their leadership talent is already showing," Enzi said. The programs only help that leadership grow, he said. "It's the greatest time you could possibly have in Washington, educationally as well as socially."
Incubators and R&D
- Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer faces National Press Club, The Colbert Report
Schweitzer appeared on Colbert's Comedy Central show, "The Colbert Report," Thursday night, and from the start Colbert started poking fun at Schweitzer.
The Creative and Cultural Economy
- University of Montana Study: Methamphetamine May Lessen Stroke Damage
"Methamphetamine is a drug that has been shown to exacerbate stroke damage or make it worse when administered before a stroke," Dave Poulsen, a UM research assistant professor, said in a news release. "But we have seen roughly 80 to 90 percent protection of neurons when administered after a stroke."
- Mining microbes in Our National Parks. Should NPS commercialize the commons?
“I think that the very basic mission and the actual idea of the park system is under threat,” says Mike Bader, a Missoula environmental consultant and former Yellowstone National Park seasonal ranger. “The whole idea of the park system is that we would protect these areas from the exploitation of resources. This [DEIS] opens the door to commercial exploitation.”
- Ecosystem of vanishing lake yields valuable bacterium. MSU Professor Brent Peyton's discovery could be used to clean industrial wastewater.
Peyton hoped the salty ecosystem of Soap Lake might be home to a bacterium that could live in such high-salt waters and also find nitrates appetizing.
Careers
- Aspiring Helena high school filmmaker getting national attention on Youtube
“I’m trying to get into deeper things, but my technology is holding me back,”
Non-Profit News
- Answering Pay Questions On Job Applications, Revisited
"There is no hard and fast rule about this subject," she says. "You need to find out what the company wants to know and then answer in a way that doesn't paint you into a corner if you really want this job."
Energy
- Former U.S. secretary of commerce and transportation Norman Mineta joins Mansfield Foundation board
“It is an enormous honor to have Norman Mineta on the Mansfield Foundation board,” said L. Gordon Flake, Mansfield Foundation executive director. “Secretary Mineta’s long career of public service is distinguished with many firsts.
- VisionLink's technology aids relief efforts. Software helps line up support, resources for victims
Instead of going to different organizations for shelter, financial aid and long-term support, Katrina victims were able to go to CAN and enter information into a single record available to all of the organizations, Zimmerman said.
- Project WET International Foundation Donates $20,000 to Water Education Program in Argentina
Funds donated to AAP were made available through a donation to Project WET’s Children’s Water Education Fund, which connects donors to water education organizations around the world.
- Want to work for the Gates Foundation?
New hires are flocking to Seattle from around the country and the world, demonstrating the foundation's ability to attract top talent.
Connectivity & Communications
- College Pledges To Offset All Greenhouse Gas Emissions
"Just as all greenhouse gas emissions adversely affect the atmosphere, all emission reductions benefit it,"
- Expert sees gasification as wave of coal's future
"If Wyoming does not learn how to use its coal in industrial facilities that deal with CO2, Wyoming will lose the market for its coal, period. It's not a matter of if, but when,"
- U.S. coal plant boom poses big environmental, economic questions
Should power companies be permitted to build new plants that pollute more but are reliable and less expensive? Or should regulators push utilities toward cleaner-burning coal plants, even if it means they will cost more and are based on newer, yet still unproven, technology?
- Google plans nation's largest corporate solar project
``Google is so committed to advancing green technology throughout the workplace,'' Radcliffe said. ``If we can dispel the myth along the way that you can't be green and profitable at the same time, that's another benefit.''
Community
- Take control of spam with "disposable" e-mail addresses
A solution has emerged in the form of Anonymizer's new Nyms service.
- Opting Out of Linked In. Everything that's wrong with the Linked In service.
Linked In is the digital equivalent of a chain letter.
- Sounds Spooky, but Just Might Save Your Data
If a stolen laptop has the failsafe program the thief will walk away with a working laptop but will have "no idea there was anything of value on it."
- Is Sustainability Coming To A Neighborhood Near You?
"There is so much effort that goes into designing and building this one small thing, this single green building," he says. "The same amount of effort goes into planning two square miles of regular neighborhood, and that will serve us for the next 200 years. [The focus on individual buildings] just doesn't make any sense."
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