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| MATR Newsletter - Tue Jul 3, 2007 |
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"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -- Mark Twain
Two interesting examples of focused economic development -- "One County's Plan for the Future - New Report Describes Pinal County’s Choices for a Livable, Competitive Future" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- "Hoping to Retain Graduates, Maine Helps With Loan Costs" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html
Come Home Montana
Developing Tech Jobs in Rural Communities
- For some, the best place to live is downtown Livingston, Montana
Lots of people work out of their home, but Pinkie Warner takes the idea to a new level.
Montana Ambassadors
- Older workers offer 'growth sector'
"The aging of the state's population over the next decade suggest(s) the need for employers, elected officials, educators and workforce development specialist(s) to look to older workers as a source of labor supply to meet rising workforce requirements and to consider new ways of connecting those 55 and over to the state's labor market."
Funding and Building your Business
- Montana Ambassadors Summer Newsletter
The “Signature Summer Ambassadors Event” tagged as the Montana Ambassadors’ Business Open Golf Tournament will be held on August 16, 2007 at the award-winning Jack Nicklaus “Old Works” course in Anaconda.
Business Plan Forums
- For CEOs, admitting uncertainty can be the key to success
Facing up to uncertainty is a skill that's in short supply in a business world that rewards conviction. But it's becoming a core competency for companies planning a long and prosperous run.
- Startup 101: Getting Funded
First time entrepreneurs often do not understand the process, or think that they are above it, which leads to a lot of frustration, and in the end, no venture financing.
- Entrepreneurs should network on several levels
The need to network on several levels on a continuing basis is a requirement, not an option.
- Web sites can build sales, expand reach. But many owners unsure how to start
"The more local and independent you are as a business, the less you see the need for a Web site," he said. "Then the light bulb goes off: 'Why didn't I do this before?' "
- Carried Interest Debate Cont.: The Death of Sweat Equity?
I believe that our tax code must favor not only those who invest straight cash, but also those who take real risk and invest their time and other intangibles.
Education
- The Banff Venture Forum, 10/4-5, Banff Alberta
The Banff Venture Forum matches Energy and Technology Entrepreneurs with Investors from around North America.
Connectivity & Communications
- NGA Awards $500,000 Grants to Six States to Improve STEM Education
"Governors recognize the links between a rigorous STEM education program and our leadership in the global economy,"
- Webcam has an eye, ear for cheaters
Device to be used while taking tests for online courses
- Passing on failure. - While state, districts disagree, parents make the call on failing students in Idaho
"Middle school is really where we have a last good foothold on how a child progresses - sometimes for the rest of their life."
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- USDA Announces Availability of $8.9 Million in Broadband Grants
"The Community Connect Grant Program has proved to be effective in reaching those rural communities where broadband service is least likely to be deployed."
Incubators and R&D
- The Medical Tricorder Takes Two Steps Away From Sci Fi
Combining the technologies into one compact box may take decades. But the two latest discoveries offer incremental advances in diagnostic medicine -- pointing toward more portable and less invasive medical technologies.
Montana Business
- McLaughlin Research Institute of Great Falls, Montana announces upgrades with a $6-million price tag
"When we sought a partner to see whether stem cells would work in treating the brain, when we looked for people capable of studying these disorders, there was only one place to go: McLaughlin," said Dr. Irv Weissman, director of the Institute of Stem Cell Biology at Stanford University in California.
- Blasting Biofilms with Viruses
Specially tailored viruses could eradicate chronic bacterial infections.
Montana Economic Development
- Worldwide search for employees
Frustrated with the tight Helena labor market and eager to try something different, the general manager of the Wingate Inn used an international exchange service to locate three sets of hands for the busy summer season — a pair of young men from Ukraine, and a woman from eastern Russia.
Regional Economic Development
- July MEDA Online News
- “Montana World Trade Center offers a certificate program in Global Trade & Strategy”, 9/13-14, Bozeman, Montana
MWTC is taking a proactive approach to educate individuals, service providers and businesses by offering the Global Trade Certificate Program. Our goal is to provide the tools and resources needed to advise and support businesses looking to enter or expand their presence in global trade.
- Industrial service firm plans Billings branch. Timec Co. Inc. will generate 300 jobs
Timec specializes in services such as catalyst handling, training, safety support, construction, specialized welding and supplemental maintenance
Idaho Business
- The Gentrification Of Rural America
"This land belongs to you and me." Somehow, I don't think it was meant to be sung by a chorus of hedge fund operators.
- Impatient to Change the No-growth State of Employment for People With Disabilities:
The issues of employment for people with disabilities and the problems around that issue are deep and severe. I don’t think the current situation can be blamed on the ADA. The ADA has had a profound impact on the quality of our lives over the past seventeen years.
- One County's Plan for the Future - New Report Describes Pinal County’s Choices for a Livable, Competitive Future
“The Future at Pinal sets the stage for the most significant planning process Pinal County has ever done. Morrison Institute’s report describes our challenges and presents significant ideas to deal with them.
- New Development In Scenic West Creates Catastrophic Fire Risk
"Federal agencies at the front lines of defending these new communities from peril are starting to say enough is enough is becoming too expensive to protect with so many people pushing up against the fringes."
Wyoming Business
- Sandpoint's Coldwater Creek becomes Idaho's hottest retailer
If it weren't for the mountains nearby, a visitor might think Coldwater Creek's corporate headquarters was one of New York's top fashion companies.
Other Economies
- Cody, Wyoming 'opts in' for fiber network
"Economic development experts say they like to get clusters of businesses that are related to each other, and this offers the potential for two locations in the county that could have this advanced data infrastructure."
Montana Education/Business Partnerships
- Hoping to Retain Graduates, Maine Helps With Loan Costs
“This is about our generation helping the next one,” Mr. Baldacci, a Democrat, said in a statement. “We’re telling our students, If you live, work and pay taxes in Maine, you’re not going to have this student debt hanging around your neck.”
Small Diameter Timber Utilization
- Flathead Valley's knowledge-based economy a ‘rising power’ because of committment to education
Educators, administrators and business leaders from across the state are meeting at the newly opened Hilton Garden Inn to discuss partnerships between the academic and business worlds.
Making the Most of the American Prairie
- First cellulosic ethanol plant to open
Range Fuels on Monday is expected to announce that it has received a permit to build an ethanol production plant in rural Georgia that uses wood chips as its feedstock. It plans to break ground on the plant this summer.
Transportation
- Serengeti of Montana? Ambitious American Prairie Reserve takes shape south of Malta. “Believe it or not, there is such a place left.”
The American Prairie Reserve http://www.americanprairie.org/ is being assembled from ranch land, but genetically pure buffalo are grazing the landscape rather than cattle.
Leadership Montana
- Why Does The U.S. Lag Behind On High-Speed Rail?
There are good reasons why the U.S. hasn't built a high-speed rail network. But there are just as many, if not more, good reasons why it should.
- Becoming a great leader depends on skill, not talent
While some believe that leaders are "born, not made," research shows that great leaders are, in fact, made.
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