MATR Newsletter – December 25, 2020
The state with the best education wins!

Northwestern Energy

• Bozeman approves ‘bold’ plan calling for emissions reductions

  The plan calls for a 26% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in the next five years, 100% net clean electricity by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2050.

PFL

• Montana company hiring in Indianapolis

  “Our team is working hard to recruit and hire new 80 employees,” said PFL Chief Executive Officer and Founder Andrew Field.

MEDA -Montana Economic Developers Association

• Unmatched resolve: Brent Donnelly SBA Montana District Director’s reflections on a 56- Montana County small business road trip

  The Peaks to Plains Business Resiliency Tour, a 3,400-mile road trip that took us to small businesses in all 56 Montana counties within seven days.

• 2020 Montana Manufacturing Report

  The three primary topics are: the state of manufacturing at the state and national level in a general economic context; a survey of Montana manufacturers about the state of Montana manufacturing; and an impact survey of firms which used MMEC’s consulting services

• Tonix Pharmaceuticals buys 44 acres in Hamilton, Montana for vaccine production facility

  Saying that humans will have to coexist with variations of COVID-19, a pharmaceutical company based in New Jersey plans to open a new production facility in Hamilton for the development of domestic vaccines, including those aimed at coronavirus.

Funding and Building your Business

• C2M Beta and Blackfoot Communications Announce 3rd Cohort Open Application for Business Accelerator

  C2M Beta is a technology accelerator partnering with startups and innovative corporations to create impact in the Rocky Mountain region.

Idaho News & Events

• Idaho police warn against rise in catalytic converter thefts

  Thieves are using portable cordless cutting tools to steal the converters for their precious metals.

• The Coolest Thing Made in Idaho

  Congratulations to our list of over 100 nominees that you can view here.

2021 Montana Legislature and Politics

• New on TED.com – Why lakes and rivers should have the same rights as humans

  Why granting lakes and rivers legal “personhood” — giving them the same legal rights as humans — is the first step to protecting our bodies of water and fundamentally transforming how we value this vital resource.

Miscellaneous Ramblings

• ‘Hovering’ cuts hospital returns after joint replacement

  The rate of hospital readmissions for hip and knee replacement patients declined from roughly 12% to 3% when they were part of a “hovering” program, according to a new study.

Transportation

• Watch: The Car-Free City Becomes Reality

  The latest City Beautiful video shows off the fruits of car-free initiatives in European cities.

• Amazon’s New Robotaxi Has No Steering Wheel, But It Can Drive for 16 Hours Straight

  It’s a little surprising that the tech behemoth is funneling so much money into a driverless passenger transportation service; you’d think Amazon would rather focus on automated package delivery, say, using driverless vehicles to get packages to the right block, then robots to transport items from delivery vehicles to customers’ front doors.

• Nuro gets permit to start commercial autonomous deliveries in California

  “After years of hard work to fulfill the promise of automated vehicles, we expect 2021 to be an important moment for Nuro and for the world,”

Other Economies

• Sweden: How to Live in the World’s First Cashless Society

  In 2021, Sweden introduces its own cryptocurrency. In 2023, it becomes the world’s first cashless society.

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