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| MATR Newsletter - Tue Mar 6, 2018 |
"Self-driving cars are as much of a paradigm shift as the invention of the telephone, and we all need to get prepared for the ride of our lives." Roy Amara, the late president of the Institute for the Future -- Autonomous Cars Are About To End Carcatecture - Is Your Community Planning for this Incredible Opportunity? -- http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html
Montana Department of Commerce
Montana Economic Developers Association
- The Department of Commerce is bringing nine manufacturers of hunting and tactical equipment to Germany to test the waters of exporting their products to Europe.
"Outdoor recreation in Montana is a $7.1 billion industry," said Commerce Director Pam Haxby-Cote. "For the many small businesses that manufacture gear to help us recreate in our public lands, selling internationally is a path to growing and diversifying their sales. German consumers value outdoor recreation as well, so this market is full of opportunity for Montana."
- Montana's Opportunity Zone application window opens
The program provides a federal tax incentive for taxpayers who reinvest unrealized capital gains into "Opportunity Funds," which are specialized vehicles dedicated to investing in low-income areas called "Opportunity Zones."
TechLink
- MEDA March Online News
Have you registered for Rockin' it Rural yet? Check out the updated agenda, register, and get your lodging today.
Great Falls Development Authority
- TechLink Pulse Newsletter for March 2018
The Department of Defense has over 100 labs and research facilities located around the country and a significant portion continuously develop cutting-edge inventions. These labs are well-funded - a great opportunity for companies to tap into a $70 billion federal research and development budget.
21st Century Education Initiative - "You Should Care..."
- The Great Falls Development Authority has several upcoming trips that we want to alert you to as we need your help!
This is a team sport so we rely on your insight and ideas. Please let us know if you have companies we should be targeting during these shows.
- Here is our Top 19 for this week, celebrating work and successes to grow and strengthen the Great Falls regional economy. Thank you for reading our 336th Top 10!
We are HUNGRY to Grow the Great Falls regional economy, create higher wage jobs, build our tax base, improve our market competitiveness, and enhance the quality of life and economic opportunity for residents of Great Falls, Cascade County, and the entire 13-county Great Falls trade area.
Visit Montana
- 10 Ways Higher Education Could Be Transformed to Support the Needs of a Changing World
Almost every commentary on a number of social ills has a subtext that highlights the uncertainties around the future of education.
- Why an Honors Student Wants to Skip College and Go to Trade School
Instead of going to college, Ms. Nicholson hopes to attend a two-year technical program that will qualify her to work as a diesel mechanic. Her guidance counselor, two teachers and several other adults tell her she's making a mistake.
Energy and Climate Change
- The Fascinating Town In Montana That Is Straight Out Of A Fairy Tale
When it comes to popular vacation destinations in Montana, Whitefish nearly always tops the list.
- Introducing the Glovebox Guide to Recognizing Montana's Mountains
Artist Gary Little has been enamored with Montana mountain ranges for decades but realized there was a serious lack of comprehensive, informative resources on the subject. So, he decided to change that.
Come Home Montana
- Will Microgrids Mean Self-Reliance for Rural Communities?
Microgrids may use some energy from the electric grid or sell excess electricity back to traditional utility companies, but they can operate on their own during outages.
- Montana's Nobel-winning climate scientist Steve Running: Temperatures rising, but predicted precipitation increase uncertain
By 2050, temperatures in Helena could look more like Salt Lake City, a Nobel Prize-winning climate scientist said Monday, with the only remaining question being whether a predicted uptick in winter precipitation will come to fruition.
Developing a more Entrepreneurial Montana
- Montana Career Opportunities - Digital Media Specialist, Learning & Development Coordinator - Murdoch's
Located in Bozeman, MT, Murdoch's Home Office is nestled at the base of the Bridger Mountains.
- Job Service recognizes three Missoula businesses as Employers of Choice - Blackfoot Communications, Paradise Dental Technologies and Alter Enterprise
The awards are handed out to three local businesses every year based on benefits offered to employees, leadership, workplace culture, employee development, community involvement and other criteria that make them great workplaces.
- Montana Career Opportunities - Pilots, Line Service Technician - Edwards Jet Center
At Edwards Jet Center we strive to continue to improve our products and services to make sure each trip is a memorable experience. Our satisfaction comes through exceeding our customers' expectations.
- Montana Career Opportunity - Grants Administrator III Housing & Community Devlopment and more... - City of Missoula
Under general supervision, develops and administers grant programs and related contracts for the Office of Housing and Community Development.
- Red Lodge, Montana: A Resort Town With a Down-To-Earth Attitude
Boasting drop-dead scenery, limitless outdoor adventures and a thriving arts and cultural community, Red Lodge shines with a vibrancy that attracts newcomers of all ages.
- Montana Career Opportunities - GIS Programmer/Analyst - Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks
You must have prior experience building and maintaining GIS web mapping applications and tools, tracking down and fixing bugs, developing automation scripts and tools, technical expertise in obtaining, manipulating, and organizing spatial data as well as defining, planning, and implementing analysis and processes.
Montana Business
- InnovateUM 2018 "One University - One City" - 4/25 - Missoula, Montana
Guests from Finland's Espoo Innovation Garden, Aalto Design Factory, and Startup Sauna, as well as Google, Stanford d.school, ClassPass, and the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute will share bright lights from their communities that have successfully nurtured place-based, cross-sector innovation ecosystems.
Careers
- Bitterroot man features Montana-made products in subscription gift boxes
Scott Sacry has found a way to boost Montana small businesses by introducing their products, from local buffalo jerky to bath products to candy, coffee and tea, to both out-of-state and local customers.
- Montana Leads the Nation in States Where the Middle Class Is Being Left Behind
The income generated by the middle fifth of households in Montana fell from 15.5% of all income in 2007 -- one of the larger shares in the country -- to just 14.5% in 2016, now one of the smaller shares and the largest decline of any state.
Rural Communities
- She became an early employee at Facebook thanks to asking this one question.
If you're on the other side of the table -- the interviewee -- you'll need an arsenal of questions, too. Because at some point, they're gonna ask: Do you have any questions for me?
Canada Business & Economic Development
- Yes, startups can flourish in rural America
Rural America can also be a place for entrepreneurial pioneers to test out ideas, and it can provide fertile ground for fast-growing startups.
City Club Missoula
- Canada's New Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster To Create 13,500 Jobs
The supercluster will bring together small, medium-sized and large companies, academic institutions and not-for-profit organizations to generate bold ideas, resulting in new jobs, groundbreaking research and a world-leading innovation economy.
Developing an Angel Network in Montana
- City Club Missoula Presents: Schoolhouse Talk: Deploying The Public's Investment In Our Schools - 3/12
MCPS Superintendent Mark Thane, Business Manager Pat McHugh, and Elise Guest will walk us through how the bond dollars are being spent, how state and federal budget cuts will impact MCPS's budget, and in turn, the potential impact of those cuts on local property tax bills.
Government
- Group aims to connect startups with investors to spur Billings business growth
The world is becoming increasingly friendly to technology and entrepreneurship. If Montanans don't push to bring innovation here, it'll go somewhere else.
- Silicon Valley Is Over, Says Silicon Valley
"I'm a little over San Francisco," said Patrick McKenna, the founder of High Ridge Venture Partners who was also on the bus tour. "It's so expensive, it's so congested, and frankly, you also see opportunities in other places."
Idaho
- Rep. Gianforte talks about tax cuts - and a lot more - with business leaders in Helena
"We'd like to think there is a magic wand that we could wave to make all of our schools safe," he said. "I don't know what that is. ... It will be hard for any new regulations at a federal level to make our schools safe."
- PBS Acquires Rights To Sundance Docu 'Dark Money'
The film follows a Montana-based reporter's investigation of one of the greatest present threats to American democracy--the influence of corrupt money on our elected officials.
Oregon Business
- Boise is the fastest-growing area in the U.S., Forbes says. And it will keep growing.
"(Boise has) the pieces in place. It's got the location, it's got low cost, a healthy tech presence," Moody's senior economist Adam Kamins told Forbes.
Other Economies
- Cybersecurity firm Carbon Black picks Oregon for West Coast hub
Carbon Black said it wanted a West Coast hub and "realized there is a strong network of top cybersecurity talent" near Hillsboro.
Regional Economic Development
- Wisconsin Leaders Unite Around Innovation and the Wisconsin Idea
The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation is pleased to publish a collection of essays from two dozen state leaders on the importance of innovation to the well-being of Wisconsin.
Wyoming Business
- Panel: Affordable housing is critical to economic development
The lack of affordable workforce housing "snuck up on us," she said.
Montana Education Excellence
- Blockchain Valley: Wyoming is Poised to Become the Cryptocurrency Capital of America
Wyoming is a state of rugged individualists that seems to have a penchant for being "first" on matters of no small importance.
- Top 10 Reasons Wyoming Is More Tech Savvy Than You Think
Many think Wyoming is home to cattle, mountains, rodeos, wildlife and not much else, but it is so much more. Wyoming is home to a burgeoning tech sector.
Community
- UM accounting program ranked among the nation's best; job placement high
The 36th annual Professors Survey released last month by the Public Accounting Report ranked UM 16th in the country among accounting programs with less than 17 full-time faculty members. UM placed 19th when compared to programs of all sizes in the West.
- Major medical training center coming to Uptown Butte
It should bring 3,000 to 4,000 doctors, nurses, technicians, first-responders and others here each year to learn and hone skills using high-tech mannequins, imaging simulators and virtual-reality settings and scenarios.
- John Cech Selected as Carroll College's President - Montana's current deputy commissioner of higher education
"I am confident I have the experience, passion, and desire to lead Carroll forward to embrace a shared vision which will enable the College to further its amazing mission as one of our nation's premier Catholic diocesan colleges focused on preparing students for life," Cech said in a statement. "I believe in the power of education as a force for equality and social justice and I am a product of both public and Catholic education."
Funding and Building your Business
- MCAT - What's Your Vision For Community Media In Missoula? Join A Focus Group, April 3 Or 4
MCAT and the City of Missoula will host focus groups to explore community media, technology, and cable - and we need your voice to help plan for the future communications needs of our community! Your participation is essential
Connectivity & Communications
- Google releases Mobile Scorecard & Impact Calculator tools to illustrate importance of mobile page speed
One tool shows how a site stacks up against the competition on mobile. The other aims to drive home the impact mobile speed can have on the bottom line.
GIS Technology
- Rural Communities Take Broadband Into Their Own Hands
A lot of us take high-speed internet for granted, but about 40 percent of rural Americans live where there are no options for broadband.
Non-Profit News
- 'How GIS Is Changing The World' - 3/8 - Missoula, Montana
This collection of panelists will offer insight into the many ways GIS is used everyday throughout nearly every profession. Please come with questions!
- How to Spot Fake News - and Implications for GIS Practitioners
As we frequently comment in this blog, just because you can map your own or other people's data in any projection, color, and classification method you choose, and share the results with anyone you choose, doesn't make that data flawless!
Miscellaneous Ramblings
- MPG Ranch Education & Volunteer Opportunities (Lolo, Montana)
The MPG Ranch promotes conservation through restoration, research, education and information sharing.
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- The 10 most critical problems in the world, according to millennials
For the third year in a row, millennials who participated in the World Economic Forum's Global Shapers Survey 2017 believe climate change is the most serious issue affecting the world today.
Transportation
- The Future of 'Fab Lab' Fabrication
Now there's Lass' law--the prediction that the number of fab labs, or such tools, will double roughly every year and a half.
- Your Next Car Might Be A Subscription
As car companies see people willing to ditch their vehicles, they're responding by offering more flexible options. Instead of owning one car, what if you got whatever car you want, just when you needed it?
- Firth's Tech: Should my next vehicle purchase wait for self-driving cars?
If Google has gotten all the way to testing its self-driving vehicles on people jumping out of bags, then it must be time to consider whether or not we should be waiting to buy a new car until these self-driving cars are available for purchase, right?
- Idaho Transportation Department Pilots Smart Pavement Markers
Solar-powered pavement markers from a Pocatello, Idaho, startup are helping the state transportation department light particularly dark highways.
- Venture-capital backed bike-share tech firm LimeBike eyes Missoula launch
LimeBike, popular in cities like Seattle and Austin, allows customers to rent its bikes for $1 per hour and leave them anywhere. Using a smartphone app, you can find bikes near you, unlock one and be on your way.
- This self-driving vehicle could be the future of "Uber-Pool"
Renault EZ-GO is a self-driving, electric car concept that can transport up to 6 people. It's basically like the future of Uber Pool or Lyft Line.
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