The Maker City movement is big. So big that President Barack Obama declared June 17-23 National Week of Making.
“During National Week of Making, we recommit to sparking the creative confidence of all Americans and to giving them the skills, mentors, and resources they need to harness their passion and tackle some of our planet’s greatest challenges,” Obama said in a press release last week.
The national initiative was launched in June 2014 as a way to help inspire and provide the technologies needed to spark creativity in entrepreneurs of all ages.
Here’s an update from the White House on the progress of the initiative:
- 8 Federal agencies are announcing new grants, education initiatives, training, knowledge networks, and other supports to help create more makers and assist more entrepreneurs to take prototypes to scale with new ventures.
- More than 1,400 K-12 schools, representing almost 1 million students from all 50 states, are committing to dedicating a space for making, designating a champion for making, and having a public showcase of student projects.
- More than 100 additional commitments including the distribution of 1 million foldable microscopes to children around the world by Foldscope Instruments; the investment in 100 new makerspaces by Google as part of the Making Spaces program; and new steps to support making at 77 universities and colleges through Make Schools Alliance.
MAKER CITY PLAYBOOK
Check out this Maker City Playbook funded by the Kauffman Foundation with support from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
The Kauffman Foundation is one of the largest private foundations in the U.S. and was founded in the 1960s by the late entrepreneur and philanthropist Ewing Marion Kauffman. The foundation focuses its grants on education and entrepreneurship, according to its website.
EVENTS
Be sure to visit our calendar. We found plenty of events that will help you get involved in the community and be part of the Maker Movement.
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R E A D N E X T
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The hybrid event in August will take place in person at SMU and virtually. The seventh annual Dallas Startup Week powered by Capital One is Dallas-Fort Worth's largest event focused on driving entrepreneurial success, economic impact, and innovation in the region.
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Kessler helped Topgolf triple in size to nearly $1 billion in revenue, growing its venues from 25 to 70. Now he's bringing his track record of experiential innovation and franchise-building to the world of plant-based personal care.
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The NTXIA is a founding member of the new National Smart Coalitions Partnership, now one of the largest smart cities networks in the country. The organization unites more than 100 governments across seven regional smart cities consortiums. The goal? To accelerate sustainability and resilience in communities.
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The City of Irving has won silver certification from Bloomberg Philanthropies' What Works Cities—the national standard of well-managed cities recognizing the most effective use of data to inform policy and funding decisions. The honor comes in a year that's tested the mettle of municipalities nationwide. Since 2018, 40 cities have achieved the certification. This year 16 new cities were recognized, including gold-winning Austin and silver-winning San Antonio. “During the pandemic, using data to inform decision-making was more important than ever for cities," said Michael Bloomberg in a statement. “By putting data at the center of their COVID-19 response efforts, these cities saved lives and…
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The fast-scaling company with a vision of becoming a $1B "Starbucks of soap" will use the investment to support more store openings, product category expansion, and growth in e-commerce.
