MATR Newsletter – September 9, 2022
The state with the best education wins!

Corona Virus Information

• Montana’s expansive vaccine laws translated to more death

  Montana politics, politicians may have been able to save 1-in-3 COVID deaths. Doctors, public health leaders frustrated, stymied by Gianforte administration

Come Home Montana

• 10 new Montana nonprofit jobs

  Development Manager Montana Free Press – Helena, Montana, 59601 View Job Veteran Case Manager The Poverello Center – Missoula, Montana, 59802 View Job Executive Director Trust for Montana Libraries –…

Eventgroove

• Eventgroove’s New “Raffle for Success” eBook Reveals Data-backed Insights and Strategies for Nonprofits Running In-Person and Virtual Fundraisers

  Eventgroove analyzed platform data and drew on its over twenty years of business to identify the factors that make successful raffles for nonprofits.

Montana Department of Commerce

• Made in Montana: September 2022

  2023 Made in Montana Tradeshow
  March 10 & 11, 2023
  Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds in Helena

Big Sky Economic Development

• New co-work space Rock31 opens its doors in Downtown Billings

  Steve Arveshcoug, Executive Director of Big Sky Economic Development says Rock31 allows entrepreneurs connection with other business-minded individuals to encourage one another, and come up with new ideas…

• Big Sky Economic Development on Montana This Morning with Steve Arveschoug – Rock 31 is Open

  How is Billings, Montana doing?   Big Sky Economic Development Director Steve Arveschoug gives us an update on that and their new headquarters which includes Rock31

Zoot Enterprises

• Bozeman based Zoot Enterprises innovates childcare option for employees and allows other companies to participate.

  The business membership program at Zoot allows other businesses to use its childcare center and currently has 15 contracted businesses in Bozeman that use Zoot for workplace childcare.

MEDA -Montana Economic Developers Association

• MEDA News – Lunch and Learn with Tara Mastel: MT Newcomers Study

  Mark Your Calendar For Upcoming Events

• Montana community members invited to participate in Reimagining Rural program – 9/8 – 9/22 – 10/6 – Online

  The Reimagining Rural virtual gathering includes three statewide sessions, which are broadcast via Zoom to groups gathered in-person in participating towns. Following each session’s speakers, local groups will have a facilitated conversation about how new ideas might work in their communities.

• Rethinking rural economic development – 9/19 – Online

  This webinar brings together economic developers from rural regions for a discussion of opportunities, challenges and creative strategies.

Housing

• Are Log Homes Really Energy Efficient?

  The biggest question many homeowners have going into owning a log home is how they can make it as energy efficient as possible. Log homes need constant maintenance in order to maintain their integrity and keep costs of energy usage low. There are a ton of options to choose from to keep your log home’s energy efficiency up, including choosing a wood log alternative like EverLog Concrete logs, timbers, and siding.

Incubators and R&D

• Turning batteries into fertiliser

  A proprietary process recycles the nutrients in used batteries into an organic fertiliser that improves crop yields

Idaho News & Events

• Researchers at Idaho’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are considering circular economy strategies to mitigate the impact of wind turbine blades at the end of their useful lifespan.

  Researchers at NREL have been investigating novel blade materials that are inherently more recyclable, thereby integrating solutions at the earliest stages of turbine component design.

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

• Montana Federation of Public Employees, others also object to elimination of ‘trauma’ from educator standards

  “I advocated for the inclusion of the words ‘well-being’ instead of ‘health’ because I wanted the focus to be on the whole child,” said Schoening, who served on a committee that worked on the language; she’s now head of graduate studies in education at Whitworth University in Spokane. “There was never a discussion about removal of ‘trauma-informed.’ As educators, we all need to be looking through that lens.”

Government News & Events

• Washington State Moving Ahead With Complete Streets

  Move Ahead Washington, a law approved by the Washington State Legislature earlier this year, is expected to have a huge effect on transportation planning and engineering on state-controlled roads.

North Dakota Business and Economic Development

• North Dakota is Expanding Broadband’s Reach with Capital Projects Fund

  With support from the federal Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund, North Dakota is poised to extend broadband to 40% of the locations in the state still lacking high-speed internet access.

Transportation

• Use the Power Poles for Electric Cars!

  These should cater to EV owners who live in apartments, townhouses, or units that do not have access to EV charging onsite.

• How green hydrogen could end the fossil fuel era – TED Talk

  As climate change accelerates, finding clean alternatives to fossil fuels is more urgent than ever. Social entrepreneur Vaitea Cowan believes green hydrogen is the answer. Watch as she shares her team’s work mass producing electrolyzers — devices that separate water into its molecular components: hydrogen and oxygen — and shows how they could help make green, carbon-free fuel affordable and accessible for everyone. “This is how we end the fossil fuel era,” Cowan says.

• Now We’re Getting Serious……Watch the ‘Tesla SpaceX Hypercar’ with SpaceX boosters – it will blow your mind

  The Model R produces 2,600 horsepower in total and reaches a top speed of 290 mph (467 kph) under short burst loads (2,950 horsepower and 326 mph (526 kph) for the more severe racing variant, respectively). It is propelled by ecologically friendly liquid hydrogen propellant.

• United Airlines invests $15 mln in Eve Air, orders 200 air taxis

  The conditional deal for Eve’s four-seater air taxi, or electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle (eVTOL), includes an option for 200 more.

• Video – Carmakers rolling out more affordable electrics

  Auto companies are rolling out more affordable electric vehicles that should widen their appeal to a larger group of buyers

• Senator Jon Tester Highlights Importance of Passenger Rail Service to Montana’s Economy

  “The Empire Builder that serves Montana is so critically important to our state and is under attack almost every single day by somebody who doesn’t want that service to be there…The bottom line is if we lose Amtrak in Montana, it is an incredible hit,” Tester said. “If we can make our train travel as convenient as it is in other countries, I think it can be a tremendous economic developer in our country.”

Energy and Climate Change

• Solar Energy Saved Europeans $29 Billion This Summer

  Ember says solar records were broken in 18 out of 27 EU countries.

TED and TEDX Talks

• Recommended TED Talk – Why I have coffee with people who send me hate mail

  Cekic has an enormous heart – and there is great wisdom in what she says. With gentle humor, she encourages a novel way to deal with that scourge of social media – hate mail. This talk is both powerful and inspiring.

Privacy, Hacking and Virus Alerts

• Los Angeles school district hit by ransomware cyberattack over Labor Day weekend

  “This was an act of cowardice,” said Nick Melvoin, the school board vice president. “A criminal act against kids, against their teachers and against an education system.”

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