MATR Newsletter – April 18, 2024
The state with the best education wins!

Farewell, Park City? Sundance Film Festival may be coming to your town. – (City Name Here), Montana would be perfect.

The festival, which has taken place in Park City, Utah, since 1981, may be moving

Montana voters have chance to review their local governments in June elections – $400K for Missoula???

This June, for the first time since 2014, voters in every part of Montana will decide whether they want to review the structure of their local governments – and possibly make changes.

Want $50,000 To Improve Your Community? Apply For A Hometown Grant!

T-Mobile is helping support small towns across America by funding community projects like upgraded tech, outdoor spaces and more.

City Club Missoula – State of the City 2024 – Video of the luncheon and Table Talk.

Video of City Club Missoula’s State of the Community Luncheon . Mayor Andrea Davis, County Commissioner Dave Strohmaier, and UM President Seth Bodnar discussed successes, challenges and the future.

Today’s MATR Newsletter is sponsored by:

Come Home Montana

Farewell, Park City? Sundance Film Festival may be coming to your town. – (City Name Here), Montana would be perfect.
The festival, which has taken place in Park City, Utah, since 1981, may be moving
Missoula Chamber of Commerce Connections April 2024
News, Events, Career Opportunities, Networking Gatherings and Much More with the Missoula Chamber of Commerce
Montana Career Opportunities in the Non Profit Sector
Montana’s non-profit economy is a major contributor to our economic and social success. Here are some of the vital opportunities where you can contribute to our mutual success.

MEDA -Montana Economic Developers Association

India consul tours Montana seeking new international relations – Currently, India is Montana’s 29th largest international trading partner.
Although he’s coming from one of the biggest nations in the world to one of the least-populated states in the United States, Prakash Gupta believes Montana has a lot to offer India.
Accenture Life Trends 2024 – The visible and invisible mediators between people and their world are changing.
Five trends explore the decline of customer obsession, the influence of generative AI, the stagnation of creativity, the balance of tech benefits and burden, and people’s new life goals.
This is how we can use AI to empower rural America
The founder of Fusemachines believes that AI can directly impact the productivity of every industry integrated within the rural economy.
Why you should learn to incorporate more humor at work
It’s good not to take everything so seriously.
Blazing Trails in the Mountains
Rural communities throughout the country are developing mountain biking trail systems to immerse people in nature, boost the economy, and create a local culture of health.
Want $50,000 To Improve Your Community? Apply For A Hometown Grant!
T-Mobile is helping support small towns across America by funding community projects like upgraded tech, outdoor spaces and more.
Welcome to the War on Cars, Scientific American – The End of Carcatecture.
Each city has its own unique considerations and challenges. And such an ambitious project will require rethinking many of our assumptions about American car culture. But the benefits could make everyone healthier and safer.
New software helps urban planners digitally test different transport options for carbon reduction
The company is building Digital, Measurement, Reporting and Verification (DMRV) software to track urban transport decarbonisation efforts. The platform will measure and certify carbon credits for organisations working to clean up, strengthen, and improve urban public transport options.
MMEC – April 2024 Manufacturing News
At MMEC, we grow Montana’s economy by helping manufacturers succeed. We are a statewide manufacturing outreach and assistance center that provides solutions to help Montana manufacturers grow, innovate and enhance their businesses.
Tax debate heats up in Missoula under pinch of inflation – Deadline for Montana residents to apply for property tax relief extended to June 1
Leaders from the city and county of Missoula, along with the University of Montana, said they have few tools available to fight today’s high inflation and the pinch it puts on consumers.
Montana ‘worst’ for drunk driving fatalities
Montana is No. 1 in the nation for drunk driving fatalities, according to a new ranking by Forbes.
Red states fight growing efforts to give ‘basic income’ cash to residents
Basic income advocates say the concept is an effective way of reducing poverty.
Montana voters have chance to review their local governments in June elections – $400K for Missoula???
“It’s kind of a Jeffersonian idea – it’s an opportunity for us to refresh and to evaluate,” he said. “We’re not the same state, our counties aren’t the same as they were in 1970, and so I think it’s good for us.”

Northwestern Energy

U.S. DOE Releases 1st-Ever Roadmap to Accelerate Connecting More Clean Energy Projects to the Nation’s Electric Grid
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released a new roadmap outlining solutions to speed up the interconnection of clean energy onto the nation’s transmission grid and clear the existing backlog of solar, wind, and battery projects seeking to be built.

Great Falls Development Alliance

The Great Falls Development Alliance releases updated housing assessment showing increased demand
Adam Seidman of the Concord Group, GFDA’s consultant, said that they project there’s demand for about 650 new housing units per year over the next decade.

Montana Bioscience Cluster Initiative

BioScience under the Big Sky Spring 2024 Newsletter
The Montana Bioscience Alliance serves as a hub for Montana’s biotechnology companies, entrepreneurs, laboratories, hospitals, clinics and universities to commercialize, grow and sustain globally competitive bioscience companies — ultimately to create high-quality jobs and economic opportunity in Montana.

Prospera Business Network

Prospera receives $60,000 grant from Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines and Wells Fargo through the Member Impact Fund
Grant program supports affordable housing and community development

Montana’s Tech Hub Effort

Montana State University to host Student Research Celebration on April 25
This celebration, organized by the MSU Undergraduate Scholars Program, will highlight the research of more than 130 undergraduate and graduate students from academic programs across campus. Additionally, campus organizations will be present to share the resources they offer to students.

Montana Business

Montana Highway Patrol terminated trooper who requested mental health support – Proactive Trauma Preparedness Is Available
When Miller reached out to superiors for help before he lost his job, they refused him, even after promising support, he said. Then, his bosses tried to force him to resign, he said; when he wouldn’t step down, they fired him.
Montana school district turns to peer network to boost mental health
According to the Office of Public Instruction’s 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 22.7% of Montana students seriously considered attempting suicide. Twenty-two percent of students actually made a suicide plan.
Amazon’s Just Walk Out tech could start popping up everywhere. Here’s how it works.
The technology, which debuted in 2018 with the first Amazon Go convenience store in Seattle, uses artificial intelligence, a lot of cameras and some sensors to enable shoppers to grab what they want and leave without stopping at a cash register.
Missoula approves $24M grant agreement for downtown transportation project
Construction isn’t likely to start in downtown Missoula until 2026 with completion set for 2028
Missoula Chamber of Commerce – 2024 State of Missoula: Missoula Now – 4/23 – All Are Invited to Participate
The Missoula Area Chamber of Commerce presents the 2024 State of Missoula, an eagerly anticipated event that brings together the foremost influencers and visionaries shaping our community’s destiny. This year, our distinguished panel comprises representatives from key organizations dedicated to Missoula’s prosperity.

Next Generation Broadband in Montana

New Resource Alert: Rising Tide of Municipal Broadband Networks Fact Sheet
As the municipal broadband movement continues to gain momentum, we created a new fact sheet to highlight the dramatic surge in the number of communities building publicly-owned, locally controlled high-speed Internet infrastructure over the last three years.

Montana Governor Greg Gianforte

Fighting Every Wildfire Makes Big Fires More Extreme – “In Montana, we do not, and will not, have a ‘let it burn’ policy” Gov. Greg Gianforte
It also may harm forests’ ability to adapt to climate change and effect the way plants and animals interact with fire.

Housing

Missoula closing in on incentives program to boost housing affordability
Emily Harris-Shears, the city’s housing policy specialist, on Wednesday said the program began to take shape in 2022 and should be ready for adoption this spring. As it stands, she said, interest among developers is high.

Visit Montana

E-bike tour guide pedals Yellowstone National Park, Gardiner rides
As the owner of Big Sky Ebike Tours and Rentals in Gardiner since 2020, O’Connor said he’s “living the dream” guiding cycling tours in and around Yellowstone National Park. After all, where else can cyclists possibly see bison, elk, bighorn sheep, bears, foxes, coyotes, deer and a variety of hot pools, fumaroles and geysers in one trip, not to mention spectacular views of the surrounding mountains?

Incubators and R&D

University of Montana Leads With Fisheries Education and Research
Whether it’s strapping into wetsuits to snorkel for data or bringing the lab streamside to sample fish, the University of Montana’s Fisheries Techniques class goes beyond classroom curriculum to get students hooked on the real-world applications of fisheries conservation and management.

The Creative and Cultural Economy

Program Brings Together Three Generations to Discuss Aging
The rural health program is designed to help participants on both ends of the age spectrum. The goal is to challenge assumptions people have against aging and bridge generational divides in rural communities.

21st Century Education Initiative – “You Should Care…”

Blue & Gold News from Montana State University President Cruzado
It has been a wonderful and busy spring, with your university hosting numerous groundbreaking celebrations for future buildings that will provide transformative opportunities for MSU students from across our great state and beyond.

University of Montana & Montana State University Tech Transfer

Spring 2024 Montana State University “CATalyst” Quantum Gap Fund Opportunity Announcement
The MSU Technology Transfer Office announces the availability of quantum technology commercialization “gap funds,” to support the pre-commercialization activities around MSU-owned inventions exhibiting strong market potential.

Government Technology

Cloud-Based Solution Clears Roadways for First Responders
The Next-Gen Emergency Vehicle Preemption technology provides first responders the ability to alter traffic lights on a complete route to an event, not just one light at a time.

City Club Missoula

City Club Missoula – State of the City 2024 – Video of the luncheon and Table Talk.
Video of City Club Missoula’s State of the Community Luncheon . Mayor Andrea Davis, County Commissioner Dave Strohmaier, and UM President Seth Bodnar discussed the challenges and opportunities in Missoula and commented on the state of our shared community.

Careers

4 free AI-powered résumé makers to help you land your next job
Build a standout résumé in minutes without spending a penny—or even doing all the work.
Eli Lilly weight loss drug shows promise treating sleep apnea, long linked to obesity
The results, while unpublished, are the latest in a string of hopeful signs for a new generation of drugs developed to treat diabetes.

MSU Leadership Institute & UM Global Leadership Initiative

MSU Leadership Institute’s Boardroom Bobcats mentorship program students serve on local nonprofit boards
For a full academic year, Boardroom Bobcats students serve as non-voting board members for local nonprofits. In addition to attending regular board meetings, the students undertake projects and participate in professional development trainings hosted by the MSU Leadership Institute and aimed at developing lifelong leadership skills.

Transportation

Here’s a Parking Policy That Works for the People – Goldilocks
Charging the right prices for curb parking can remove the incentive to cruise for it.
This new Google Maps feature is game changer for EV drivers
Google Maps and Search is rolling out new features tailored just for electric vehicles, including specific information on the location of EV chargers and hotels with on-site chargers. Maps will also help drivers plan charging stops on their travels in real time.
‘Learning curve’: California’s first turbo roundabout near Bay Area is showing mixed safety results
“As people become accustomed to the new feature, the concerns cease, the criticism stops, and the severe traffic incidents are greatly reduced,” he said.