2013 Conference Agenda
The BALLE Conference has a wide variety of speakers, networking events, special workshops, parties, and other enriching activities. Check out the below conference agenda for a summary of the pre-conference and main conference happenings.
In addition to inspiring presentations and powerful models shared by innovators and thought leaders on our Vision Session stage, join us for extensive interactive and collaborative sessions on Local Living Economy topics.
Download the 2013 BALLE Conference Program
At-A-Glance 2013 BALLE Conference Agenda
Monday, June 10, 2013
| 6:00PM | Invitational Local Economy Funders Circle |
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
| 9:00AM - 5:00PM | Invitational Local Economy Funders Circle |
| Noon - 5:00PM | Conference and Dorm Registration at the Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 6:00PM - 7:30PM | Judy Wicks speaking at Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center |
| 7:00PM - 11:00PM | Party at Block Club |
| 11:00PM | After Hours Gathering at Merge and Founding Fathers |
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
| Pre-Conference | |
| 7:00AM - 5:00PM | Conference and Dorm Registration at the Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 8:00AM - 4:30PM | Integrated Capital & Connections: An Invitational Gathering for Community Capital Catalysts (invitation only) Request an invitation |
| 8:00AM - 4:00PM | Network Leaders Exchange and Buffalo Tour (limited to current BALLE Members) |
| 8:00AM – 12:30PM | Living Economy Tour: Feed Your Soul: Buffalo's Urban Farm to Fork |
| 12:30PM - 5:00PM | Living Economy Tour: The New Urban Buffalo: Place-Based Economic Development |
| 5:00PM - 10:00PM | Shuttle bus between Buffalo State College, conference hotels, and Silo City |
| Main Conference | |
| 5:30PM – 7:30PM | MAIN CONFERENCE KICKS OFF! Conference Opening Reception and Dinner |
| 7:30PM – 10:00PM | Conference Opening Session: Welcome, Storytelling, and Connecting |
| 10:00PM - Midnight | Shuttle bus between Silo City, Babeville (after-hours party location), conference hotels, and Buffalo State College |
| 10:00pm | After-Hours Party at Babeville |
Thursday, June 13, 2013
| Main Conference | |
| 7:00AM | All-Levels Yoga and Pilates Classes at Hoyt Lake |
| 7:00AM - 5:00PM | Conference and Dorm Registration at the Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 7:30AM - 9:00AM | Continental Breakfast in Campbell Student Union Social Hall, Buffalo State College |
| 7:30AM - 9:00AM | The Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 8:00AM - 9:00AM | Time Slots for Mentoring |
| 9:00AM - 11:30AM |
VISION SESSION - MAINSTAGE | From Ego-systems to Eco-systems
Speakers: Janine Benyus, Judy Wicks, Nipun Mehta, Mike Pearson, Mark Brand |
| 11:30AM - 1:30PM | The Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 11:30AM - 1:30PM | Time Slots for Mentoring |
| 12:00PM - 1:30PM | Lunch - Campbell Student Union, Social Hall, Buffalo State College |
| 12:15PM | Film showing - We the Owners (52 mins.) in Campbell Student Union, Assembly Hall Room 2, Buffalo State College |
| 12:15PM - 1:30PM | New York State Sustainable Business Council Meeting |
|
1:30PM - 3:00PM |
INTERACTIVE SESSIONS 1 (concurrent breakouts)
|
| 3:00PM - 3:30PM | Networking Break |
| 3:30PM - 5:00PM |
INTERACTIVE SESSIONS 2 (concurrent breakouts)
|
| 5:00PM - Midnight | Shuttle bus runs between Buffalo State College, the Lexington Co-operative Market (site of the Cash Mob and the Thursday evening party), and conference hotels |
| 5:00PM - 7:00PM | Buffalo Cash Mob in the Elmwood Village |
| 7:00PM - 10:00PM | Dinner and Evening Party at the Lexington Co-operative Market |
| 9:00PM | Poetry Slam (during dinner) |
| 10:00PM | After Hours Gathering at Blue Monk |
Friday, June 14, 2013
| Main Conference | |
| 7:00AM | All-Levels Yoga and Pilates Classes |
| 7:00AM - Noon | Conference and Dorm Registration at the Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 7:30AM - 9:00AM | Continental Breakfast in Campbell Student Union Social Hall, Buffalo State College |
| 7:30AM - 9:00AM | The Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 8:00AM - 9:00AM | Time Slots for Mentoring |
| 9:00AM - 11:30AM | VISION SESSION - MAINSTAGE | Better Together: The Relationship Economy Speakers: Aaron Bartley, Billy Parish, India Pierce Lee, Carmen Rojas, James Johnson-Piett, Nikki Henderson |
| 11:30AM - 1:30PM | The Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College |
| 11:30AM - 1:30PM | Time Slots for Mentoring |
| 12:00PM - 1:30PM | Lunch - Campbell Student Union, Social Hall, Buffalo State College |
| 12:15PM | Film showing - Shift Change (56 mins.) in Campbell Student Union, Assembly Hall, Room 2, Buffalo State College |
| 1:30PM - 3:00PM |
INTERACTIVE SESSIONS 3 (concurrent breakouts)
|
| 3:00PM - 3:30PM | Networking Break |
| 3:30PM - 5:00PM | CONVERGENCE SESSIONS |
| 5:00PM - 9:00PM | Shuttle bus runs between Buffalo State College, the conference hotels, and Larkinville (site of the evening party) |
| 5:00PM - 9:00PM | Happy Hour and Closing Party at Larkinville |
| 9:00PM - Midnight | Shuttle bus runs between Larkinville (site of the evening party), the after-hours party location, the conference hotels, and Buffalo State College |
| 9:00PM - Midnight | After-Hours Party at Allen Street Hardware Cafe |
2013 BALLE Conference Agenda
MONDAY, JUNE 10
6:00PM Invitational Local Funders Circle
For more information, please contact Pamela Chaloult
TUESDAY, JUNE 11
9:00AM - 5:00PM Invitational Local Funders Circle
For more information, please contact Pamela Chaloult
Noon – 5:00 pm Conference Registration and Dorm Check In - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
6:00PM - 7:30PM Judy Wicks speaking at Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center (341 Delaware Ave)
Description: On the eve of the 2013 BALLE Conference, Judy Wicks, Co-Founder of BALLE, will discuss her new book, Good Morning, Beautiful Business, as part of Buffalo First!’s "Get the Rust Out" speaker series, which brings leaders in the New Economy movement to Western New York . "Get the Rust Out" is sponsored by the John R. Oishei Foundation, the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, Partnership for the Public Good, Talking Leaves Books and Buffalo First!.
7:00PM - 11:00PM Party at Block Club
Location: Block Club, 731 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14203 (5 minute walk from Hallwalls)
Description: Later on Tuesday, all are welcome to join Buffalo's Localist community, the BALLE crew, and fellow conferees for local brews, art, and music, courtesy of BALLE member and conference sponsor, Block Club. Oh, and bring your dancing shoes!
About the host: With BALLE it's a better party, with Block Club it is better design. Block Club is Buffalo's progressive branding and marketing agency and has been working for the last five years to build and strengthen brands for forward thinking companies and organizations, connect locally minded businesses and customers, and build community through hyperlocal products.
Locations: Founding Fathers (75 Edward St.); Merge (439 Delaware Ave)
Description: "Come together" with the Buffalo community at Merge, where sustainable practices, healthy alternatives, music, and art combine to teach us the importance of a vibrant community and a delicious local meal. Also be sure to walk around the corner to Founding Fathers Restaurant, where Buffalo's rich history—and craft beer—pours from the taps, and tales of old Buffalo lore will remind you that place matters.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12
7:00AM – 5:00PM Conference Registration and Dorm Check In - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
8:00AM - 4:30PM Integrated Capital & Connections: An Invitational Gathering for Community Capital Catalysts (invitation only)
Description: Join local economy funders, investors, financial institutions, and other experienced community capital catalysts interested in re-shaping the financial capital system. This invitational gathering will highlight the need for integrated capital & connections to build local economies, and to showcase some of the innovative solutions that are bubbling up across North America. As one of the sparks of the future, you will learn from your peers, share your own story, and get inspired. And most importantly, you’ll be able to put ideas to work in your own community. We are gathering the most pioneering community capital catalysts that want to build communities that are more healthy, sustainable and equitable.
Location: Burchfield Penney Art Center
8:00AM - 4:30PM Network Leaders Exchange and Buffalo Tour (limited to current BALLE Members)
Description: This year's Network Leaders Exchange is designed as your best chance to find and pick the brains of the very people who are in our shoes, or who are in the shoes we want to be in. Come prepared with your burning questions, your best program ideas and your biggest challenges and be prepared to get great take aways. We'll be engaging, sharing and learning together, utilizing the expertise within our Localist movement and our Fellows. Don't miss this great opportunity to engage with your peers on a day specially designed for all of us by leaders in the movement. The Exchange includes a special tour of Buffalo that Buffalo First is planning just for us.
Location: Campbell Student Union Social Hall
8:00AM – 12:30PM Living Economy Tour: Feed Your Soul: Buffalo's Urban Farm to Fork
Description: Take a tour of Buffalo’s thriving urban and sustainable agriculture initiatives and enjoy an all-local, chef-prepared lunch, led by Christa Glennie Seychew, food editor for Buffalo Spree magazine and owner of Feed Your Soul. We’ll visit three of Buffalo's most exciting urban farms, and lunch will be served at one of Buffalo's historic Olmsted Parks. Snacks, water, and some materials will also be provided throughout the day.
Location: Pickup and Drop off at Cleaveland Circle, Buffalo State College
12:30PM - 5:00PM Living Economy Tour: The New Urban Buffalo: Place-Based Economic Development
Description: Join us on a tour led by grassroots economic development gurus Anthony Armstrong (Buffalo Local Initiatives Support Corporation) and Aaron Bartley (PUSH Buffalo), highlighting the unique successes and challenges of sustainable economic development in Buffalo.
Location: Pickup and Drop off at Cleaveland Circle, Buffalo State College
5:00PM - 10:00PM Shuttle Bus
A shuttle bus will run a continuous loop between Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, the Best Western on the Avenue, The Mansion on Delaware, and the Conference Opening Reception and Dinner and Session at Silo City
5:30PM – 7:30PM MAIN CONFERENCE KICKS OFF! Conference Opening Reception and Dinner
Description: We'll kick off the 11th BALLE Business Conference at Silo City, a collection of towering grain elevators from the height of Buffalo's industrial history, now repurposed as a community asset. In 1842 a Main Street merchant by the name of Joseph Dart constructed what came to be known as the first grain elevator in downtown Buffalo, and at one time in Buffalo's history, grain elevators dominated the skyline of the waterfront, serving as a symbol of Buffalo's industrial importance as the largest supplier of grain in the world. Come enjoy great local food, music, and art at this impressive example of DIY Rust Belt Localism.
Complimentary tours of Silo City will be offered by Preservation Buffalo Niagara.
Local bookstore, Talking Leaves Books, will be selling a wide range of Localist titles at the evening party, and hosting book signings by Dr. Otto Scharmer and Gar Alperovitz at 6:30PM
7:30PM – 10:00PM Conference Opening Session: Welcome, Storytelling, and Connecting
Description: The main BALLE Conference will begin by welcoming everyone to Buffalo:
- Passing of the Prayer Bundle: Judy Wicks, Co-founder, BALLE; Elissa Sangalli Hillary, Local First; Sarah Bishop, Buffalo First!
- Local Welcome from Michael Martin, Executive Director, Native American Community Services of Erie and Niagara Counties
- Local Welcome from Buffalo Mayor, Byron Brown
Then, we will commence the Back-of-the-Napkin Business Plan Competition Sponsored by Organic Valley
- Introduction: Alissa Barron-Menza, BALLE
- Lewis Goldstein, Organic Valley
And finally, we will move into highly interactive storytelling and relationship development to commence our three days of shared learning and inspiration, led by Otto Scharmer of MIT’s Global Presencing Institute.
Also featuring:
- Sarah Bishop, Executive Director, Buffalo First
- Zandra Azariah Cunningham, President & CEO, Azariah’s Innocence
- Don Shaffer, President and CEO, RSF Social Finance
- Alfa Demmellash, Co-founder and CEO, Rising Tide Capital
- Eileen Fisher, Chief Creative Officer, Eileen Fisher INC.
Closing music by Zoe Viola Scruggs
(Note: A shuttle bus will run a loop between Silo City, Babeville (location of the after-hours party) , The Mansion on Delaware, the Best Western on the Avenue, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, and Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, between 10:00PM and Midnight)
10:00PM - Midnight Shuttle Bus
A shuttle bus will run a continuous loop between Silo City, Babeville (location of the after-hours party), The Mansion on Delaware, the Best Western on the Avenue, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, and Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College.
Location: The Ninth Ward at Babeville; Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center; Clean Air Coalition of WNY (all at 341 Delaware Ave.); Starlight Studio and Art Gallery (340 Delaware Ave.); The Waiting Room (334 Delaware Ave.)
Description: After the opening session, we invite you to join us as we converge on the corner of Delaware Avenue and West Tupper Street in downtown Buffalo, the home of Babeville—Buffalo-born musician Ani DiFranco's multi-purpose re-purpose of a once-deteriorating 19th Century church. Built during Buffalo’s Golden Age—the era when Mark Twain, Grover Cleveland, and Frederick Law Olmsted were all making their mark on the city—Babeville is home to Righteous Babe Records, the Clean Air Coalition of WNY, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center, and Asbury Hall. The Ninth Ward, an intimate basement venue, will host a local musician showcase, and Hallwalls screening room will show "You Are Where You Live," personal stories from the Clean Air Coalition of WNY, and "Rooted," a documentary about Buffalo's localist movement. Across the street, Starlight Studio and Art Gallery, which supports adults with disabilities in their artistic development, will be pouring Flying Bison brews and The Waiting Room, one of the city's newest music venues, will be having a rocking' good time.
(Note: The last shuttle bus will leave Babeville at Midnight for The Mansion on Delaware, the Best Western on the Avenue, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, and Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College. After that, you are on your own. Have fun and be safe! If you need a taxi, call: 716.877.7111)
THURSDAY, JUNE 13
7:00AM All-Levels Yoga and Pilates Classes
Yoga Description: Sunrise Flow with Buffalo Yoga – what a great way to start the day! Vinyasa translates to "mindful flow." Done purposely to wake up the body, create warmth and strength, reduce stress, and calm the mind. Appropriate for those new to yoga. Please bring a mat if you have one.
Pilates Description: Joseph Pilates said "Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness." Elkins Method Mat Pilates focuses on strengthening and stretching muscles, while breathing deeply and practicing controlled and precise movements. Appropriate for those new to Pilates. Please bring a mat if you have one.
7:00AM – 5:00PM Conference Registration at the Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
7:30AM - 9:00AM Continental Breakfast
7:30AM – 9:00AM The Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
Description: Don't miss The Living Economies Expo is BALLE’s annual exhibit fair of fantastic local artisans and vendors and our incredible conference sponsors.
8:00AM - 9:00AM Time Slots for Mentoring
Description: Back by popular demand (and better than ever), BALLE offers attendees the opportunity to sign up for one-on-one mentoring with some of the Localist movement’s most successful social entrepreneurs, network-builders, funders, and philanthropists. Don’t miss this chance to get direct consultation with the brightest minds in the business. Keep an eye out for details once you’re registered.
9:00AM - 11:30AM VISION SESSION - MAINSTAGE
Description: Vision sessions are our place for bringing everyone together to hear about the big ideas, innovations solutions to our collective challenges, and inspiring trends that are shaping the movement. Our theme for Thursday morning is Moving From Me to We: New Frontiers in Interdependence. Speakers include:
- Janine Benyus, Founder, Biomimicry 3.8
- Judy Wicks, Author of Good Morning Beautiful Business; Founder of the White Dog Cafe; Co-founder and Board member, BALLE
- Nipun Mehta, Service Space
- Michelle Long, Executive Director, BALLE
- Mark Brand, CEO, Mark Brand Inc.
Morning movement guided by Sarah Haykel
Music provided by Amilcar Hill
Speaker details on speaker page
11:30AM - 1:30PM Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
Description: Don't miss The Living Economies Expo is BALLE’s annual exhibit fair of fantastic local artisans and vendors and our incredible conference sponsors.
11:30AM – 1:30PM Timeslots for Mentoring
12:00PM - 1:30PM Lunch
12:15PM Film showing - We the Owners (52 mins.)
Description: “We the Owners” captures inspiring stories of employee-owners and founders from Namaste Solar (a cooperative), New Belgium Brewing, and DPR Construction about founding companies, expansion, succession, recruitment and layoffs. They work collaboratively to be profitable, innovative and sustainable.
Location: Campbell Student Union, Assembly Hall Room 2, Buffalo State College
12:15PM – 1:30PM New York State Sustainable Business Council Meeting: Building the New York State Business Voice and Power for a Living Economy
Come join with BALLE members from across New York State and others who have joined together to form the New York State Sustainable Business Council. This will be an opportunity to meet with others from throughout the state, learn how you can be a part of this collaboration as well as to discuss some of the top issues and strategize on everything from building procurement for local business, Fracking & renewable energy, campaign finance reform, and more to help build a strong local economy frame and policies in New York State. Open to anyone who is interested in attending.
1:30PM - 3:00PM INTERACTIVE SESSIONS 1 (concurrent breakouts)
Local First Grows Up: Localizing Procurement by Governments and Anchor Institutions
Description: Bringing the Local First message to government procurement offices and the purchasing departments of large anchor institutions is a strategic way to trigger a tidal wave of new spending at local businesses in your community. In the U.S. alone, as much as 6% of GDP comes from the spending of medical institutions and higher education. We have gathered the most successful practitioners from across the continent to teach you how to get your community's big spenders to think local first.
Speakers:
- Kimber Lanning, Executive Director, Local First Arizona, 2011 BALLE Local Economy Fellow, BALLE board member
- Craig Taylor, Executive Director, Office for Business & Community Economic Development, University of Minnesota
- Natoya Walker Minor, Director, Office of Equal Opportunity Office, City of Cleveland
- Steve Dubb, Research Director, The Democracy Collaborative (host)
The Community Ownership Revolution
Description: A new business and economic paradigm is growing around us in ways we don't fully realize: the cooperative economy is exploding worldwide, though it takes many names and many forms. Accordingly, in our work creating local living economies, our focus can no longer focus exclusively on growing community-serving businesses. Going forward, we need more community-owned businesses that expand access to ownership and to maximize the generation of real, lasting prosperity for all members of our communities. We’ll hear about the rise of the cooperative and community ownership economy, and explore a host of inspiring, instructive examples, from purchasing cooperatives, to worker ownership, to union cooperatives, and beyond.
Speakers:
- Kristen Barker, President, Cincinnati Union Cooperative Initiative
- Karen Kulp, President and CEO, Cooperative Home Care Associates
- Gina Schaefer, Owner of nine ACE Hardware stores, ACE National Cooperative Board Member, and Board Member of Think Local First DC
- Gar Alperovitz, Author, Lionel R. Bauman Professor of Political Economy at the University of Maryland, Co-founder of The Democracy Collaborative (host)
Local is the New Global: The Lessons of Manufacturing in the New Economy
Description: Everyone thought the story was over: Globalization had arrived, economic rationalism had prevailed, and manufacturing in the U.S. and Canada was officially dead. Well, think again. Manufacturing has made a tremendous recovery in the past few years, as leaders in the sector have been actively reinventing their industry and funders and advocates have figured out how to localize supply chains and make domestic local manufacturing make sense. Experience the lessons of how the manufacturing sector has bounced back with a Localist approach, learn how you can support local manufacturing in your area, and explore how other sectors can share in the success of relocalization.
Speakers:
- Mitch Cahn, President, Unionwear
- Mike Pearson, President & CEO, Union Packaging LLC
- Michael Peck, Founder, MAPA Group
- Kate Sofis, Founding Executive Director, SFMade (speaker and host)
How to Build a Powerful Community Business Network
Description: No business can change the economy by itself, but when businesses come together they can create networks that can have transformative local, regional, and global impact. The BALLE universe is populated with business networks of all shapes and sizes, formats and structures, strategies and styles. We have selected several of the most effective and successful – ranging from earlier stage networks through more established collaborations – to discuss effective strategies for bringing together local businesses to leverage their power to create real prosperity in your community.
Speakers:
- Jess Daniel, 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellow, Founder and Chief Enabler of FoodLab Detroit (invited)
- Karen Stovell, Executive Director, Forward Ever Sustainable Business Alliance and Kimberlee Williams, CEO, FEMWORKS, Founder of Forward Ever Sustainable Business Alliance and 2011 BALLE Local Economy Fellow
- Mickki Langston, 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellow and Executive Director, Mile High Business Alliance (invited)
- Jamie Gauthier, Executive Director, SBN Philadelphia (host)
Rethinking Investment for the New Economy
Description: It stands to reason that a new economy cannot run on the old forms of investment that created the old economy. Investors, lenders, and capital catalyzers need new approaches for getting their capital where it needs to be. Fortunately, we have them. In spades. These pioneering presenters are rethinking investment from every angle possible, and they want you to re-think it with them. Whether you are an institutional or individual investor, come learn how to create win-win opportunities that support your Localist investment goals.
Speakers:
- Catherine Covington, Senior Program Associate, RSF Social Finance
- Tim Crosby, Director, Slow Money Northwest
- Sarita Role Schaffer, 2013 Local Economy Fellow, Director and Regional Coordinator of Viva Farms
- Teri Lovelace, Vice President, Virginia Community Capital
- Michael Shuman, BALLE Fellow, Cutting Edge Capital Fellow, and Director of Community Portals for Mission Markets (speaker and host)
Gross National Happiness Business Lab Part I: Aligning with Purpose – Classroom Building C122
Description: Join us for an intimate and expansive journey into meaning, community and the development of our thinking from the head to the heart. This GNH Business Lab prototype is heavily interactive and spans two sessions. Participants are asked to only attend if they participate in both Parts 1 and 2 of this lab (Part 2 is in the same space immediately following Part 1).
Our reality is changing. The level of complexity within which we work is changing. Systems indicators show that our emerging future will be much different and will require new leadership capacities. A large body of well-being research indicates that these shifts require us to tap into a deeper level of our humanity, of who we really are, and who we want to be as a society.
So what do Eileen Fisher, Etsy, and Bhutan have in common? All are exploring individual and collective purpose with their teams, suppliers and partners and measuring success based on genuine progress and happiness.
Conversation Catalysts:
- Eileen Fisher, Chief Creative Officer, Eileen Fisher INC
- Matt Stinchcomb, Vice-President of Values & Impact, Etsy
- Otto Scharmer, MIT, Presencing Institute (host)
- Michelle Long, BALLE (host)
3:00PM - 3:30PM Networking Break
3:30PM - 5:00PM INTERACTIVE SESSIONS 2 (concurrent breakouts)
Description: Local First campaigns and the cultivation of consumer awareness and education are the origin and heart of the Localist movement. Now, a new generation of exciting Local First efforts are taking this keystone element of living economy work to the next level. Don’t miss this wave of the latest and greatest in local first work, and learn how you can bring these tactics and techniques home to teach your community to think Local First.
Speakers:
- Patrick Finan, Founder and Principal, Block Club
- Elissa Sangalli Hillary, Executive Director of Local First West Michigan and 2011 BALLE Local Economy Fellow
- Carlos Velasco, Director, Fuerza Local and Francisco Cervera, CEO and Co-founder of eMoneyPool and Committee Member for Fuerza Local
- Jan Rhodes Norman, Co-founder, Local First Ithaca (host)
Lowering Barriers to Entry: Supporting and Growing Entrepreneurs with Pop-ups and Innovative Incubation
Description: It takes more than a good idea to run a business. Getting a business off the ground can be the hardest part of any entrepreneur’s journey, and marshaling ongoing resources and support to grow can be equally daunting. We’ll explore the latest innovations for supporting and developing entrepreneurs. Come get the inside word from both successfully incubated entrepreneurs and the creative incubators that helped bring their businesses to life.
Speakers:
- Alfa Demmellash, Co-founder and CEO, Rising Tide Capital, board member of BALLE and Angela McKnight, Founder & CEO, AngelaCARES, Inc. -- an entrepreneur incubated by Rising Tide
- Stacey Price, Executive Director, Think Local First DC
- Bonnie C. Smith, President, Westminster Economic Development Initiative Inc. (WEDI) and Louise Sano, Owner, Global Villages - an entrepreneur - incubated by WEDI
- Jamila Payne, Founder and CEO, Soul Purpose Company, BALLE board member (host)
Gross National Happiness Business Lab Part II: Entrepreneurs in Love - Compassion and Generosity in Business – Classroom Building C122
Description: Join us for an intimate and expansive journey into meaning, community and the development of our thinking from the head to the heart. This GNH Business Lab prototype is heavily interactive and spans two sessions. Participants are asked to only attend if they participate in both Parts 1 and 2 of this lab (Part 1 is in the same space immediately before Part 2).
It’s about more than the bottom line. It’s about more than the triple-bottom line, even. It’s about a tectonic shift in our understanding of the role of love, compassion, and generosity in the world of business. Nothing in the world is done individually. Learn with these heart-centered entrepreneurs how our businesses can shift from transactions to relationships and catalyze deep change and healing in our communities through leading by example.
Conversation Catalysts:
- Nipun Mehta, Founder, ServiceSpace
- Birju Pandya, Managing Director, Armonia Partners LLC
- Judy Wicks, Author, Good Morning, Beautiful Business; BALLE-mama
- Otto Scharmer, MIT, Presencing Institute (host)
- Michelle Long, BALLE (host)
Economic Development and Community Capital
Description: Economic development efforts can’t fully deliver real prosperity unless communities can retain and mobilize local financial capital in support of local businesses. Fortunately, communities everywhere are creating new approaches for leveraging community capital to support business growth and drive local economic development. You’ll hear from three 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellows on their experiments, challenges, and successes with deepening the connection between capital and economic development.
Speakers:
- James Johnson-Piett, 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellow, Principal and CEO, Urbane Development LLC
- Matt Raker, 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellow, Vice President of Entrepreneurship and AdvantageGreen at AdvantageWest
- Angie Hawk Maiden, 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellow, President and CEO, Appalachian Center For Economic Networks (ACEnet) and ACEnet Ventures
- Merrian Goggio Borgeson, Co-founder, Tule Partners and BALLE Consultant (host)
20/20 Visioning: A Zingtraining on Business Visioning
Description: The Zingerman’s Community of Businesses has taken business visioning more seriously than almost any other businesses around. Few others have more effectively and proactively cultivated ambitious and exciting visions for their companies, and actually followed them through. Zingerman’s is a powerful example of how to do it right, and we are once again fortunate to have co-founder, Paul Saginaw, doing one of his legendary trainings, perfect for all businesses, large or small.
Linked here are three examples of visioning documents the training will review:
- Visioning for creating new businesses
- Visioning to change core aspects of current business practice
- Long-range visioning for existing businesses
Speakers:
- Paul Saginaw (Chief Spiritual Officer, Zingerman's Community of Businesses; Board Member of BALLE)
Description: Underlying our beliefs about the nature of business, the purpose of our economy, and the meaning of prosperity are cultural stories that serve to justify, motivate, and inspire particular kinds of actions and behaviors. Few Localists would debate that the stories underpinning our current global economy and the nature of business are misleading and destructive. With some of our community’s leading visionaries and story-shapers, we’ll explore the updated stories we need to help us make sense of our world, change paradigms, and engage everyone in co-creating the new economy.
Speakers:
- Gar Alperovitz, Author, Lionel R. Bauman Professor of Political Economy at the University of Maryland, and Co-founder, The Democracy Collaborative
- Adrienne Maree Brown, Facilitator, Detroit Food Justice Task Force
- D’Artagnan Scorza, 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellow, Executive Director, Social Justice Learning Institute and CEO, Urban Agriculture Enterprises, Inc.
- Fran Korten, Publisher, YES! Magazine (host)
5:00PM - Midnight Shuttle Bus
A shuttle bus will run a continuous loop between Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, the Lexington Co-operative Market (site of the Cash Mob and the Thursday evening party), the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, the Best Western on the Avenue, The Mansion on Delaware, and back to Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College.
Location: Lexington Cooperative Market, 807 Elmwood Ave, Buffalo, NY
Description: Cash mobs are a Buffalo-born idea that has now spread to over 44 cities in the United States. In Buffalo alone, the #BuffCashMob has generated over $10,000 of revenue for local businesses while garnering dozens of news stories which help grow the customer base for these plucky entrepreneurs. On Thursday night, we'll throw Buffalo's biggest cash mob, spanning Elmwood Avenue from Breckenridge Street to the Lexington Co-Operative Market.
7:00PM - 10:00PM Dinner and Party
Location: Lexington Cooperative Market (807 Elmwood Ave.)
Description: Following the cash mob, dinner will be served at the Lexington Co-operative Market, featuring local food and drink, live local music, and characteristic BALLE celebration.
Local bookstore, Talking Leaves Books, will be selling a wide range of Localist titles at the evening party, and hosting book signings by Judy Wicks, Steve Dubb, Michael Shuman, and Jamila Payne at 8:00PM
9:00PM Poetry Slam (During Dinner)
Location: Second Chic (810 Elmwood Ave.)
Description: Let the sweet sounds of storytelling carry you across the street from the Lexington Co-op and into Second Chic for a poetry slam with local artists.
10:00PM After Hours
Location: Blue Monk (727 Elmwood Ave.)
Description: Join Buffalo's beer enthusiasts at the Blue Monk, a Belgian-inspired gastropub in the heart of the Elmwood Village.
(Note: The last shuttle bus will leave the Lexington Co-operative Market at Midnight for The Mansion on Delaware, the Best Western on the Avenue, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, and Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College. After that, you are on your own. Have fun and be safe! If you need a taxi, call: 716.877.7111)
FRIDAY, JUNE 14
7:00AM All-Levels Yoga and Pilates Classes
Yoga Description: Sunrise Flow with Buffalo Yoga – what a great way to start the day! Vinyasa translates to "mindful flow." Done purposely to wake up the body, create warmth and strength, reduce stress, and calm the mind. Appropriate for those new to yoga. Please bring a mat if you have one.
Pilates Description: Joseph Pilates said "Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness." Elkins Method Mat Pilates focuses on strengthening and stretching muscles, while breathing deeply and practicing controlled and precise movements. Appropriate for those new to Pilates. Please bring a mat if you have one.
Location for Yoga and Pilates: Hoyt Lake
7:00AM – Noon Conference Registration and Dorm Check In - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
7:30AM - 9:00AM Continental Breakfast
7:30AM – 9:00AM The Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
Description:Don't miss The Living Economies Expo is BALLE’s annual exhibit fair of fantastic local artisans and vendors and our incredible conference sponsors.
8:00AM - 9:00AM Time Slots for Mentoring
9:00AM - 11:30AM VISION SESSION - MAINSTAGE
Description: Vision sessions are our place for bringing everyone together to hear about the big ideas, innovations solutions to our collective challenges, and inspiring trends that are shaping the movement. Our theme for Friday morning is Catalyzing Prosperity for All: Economic Justice and the New Economy. Speakers include:
- Aaron Bartley, Executive Director, PUSH Buffalo
- Billy Parish, President and Co-founder, Mosaic
- India Pierce Lee, Program Director for Neighborhoods, Housing, and Community Development, Cleveland Foundation
- Mike Pearson, CEO & President, Union Packaging
- Nikki Henderson, Executive Director, People's Grocery, 2013 BALLE Local Economy Fellow
Speaker details on speaker page
Drumming performed by Healing Hands Productions
Spoken word by Karima Amin
Music provided by Amilcar Hill
11:30AM - 1:30PM Living Economies Expo - Campbell Student Union, Buffalo State College
Description: Don't miss The Living Economies Expo is BALLE’s annual exhibit fair of fantastic local artisans and vendors and our incredible conference sponsors.
11:30PM – 1:30PM Timeslots for Mentoring
12:00PM - 1:30PM Lunch - Campbell Student Union, Social Hall, Buffalo State College
12:15pm Film showing - Shift Change (56 mins.)
Description: An inspiring look at the Mondragon cooperatives in Spain, and thriving U.S. worker coops from Cleveland's Evergreen to the Bay Area's Arizmendi Bakeries and Madison's Isthmus Engineering. Post-film discussion led by Mondragon delegate Michael Peck and the Democracy Collaborative’s Steve Dubb. www.shiftchange.org
1:30PM - 3:00PM INTERACTIVE SESSIONS 3 (concurrent breakouts)
Towards a Localist Policy Agenda
Description: There comes a time in every movement when the creative, effective, and inspiring successes in dispersed communities reach a critical mass that makes deep system-wide change possible. Now is that time in the Localist movement, and one of the elements needed to catalyze this next transformation is a shared framework for pursuing policy changes at the local, state, and federal levels. This session will explore and advance the beginning of a shared Localist policy agenda that can support, augment, and underpin our individual advocacy and policy-change initiatives.
Speakers:
- Kimber Lanning, Executive Director, Local First Arizona, 2011 BALLE Local Economy Fellow, BALLE board member
- Jonathon Welch, Co-founder, Talking Leaves Books
- David Levine, Chief Executive Officer, American Sustainable Business Council
- Micaela Shapiro-Shellaby, Organizing Director, Coalition for Economic Justice
- Stacy Mitchell, Senior Researcher, Institute for Local Self-Reliance (speaker and host)
Measuring what Matters: Articulating the Impact of Localism
Description: We may know what a thriving local living economy looks like and feels like, but how do we measure it, track our progress, and articulate our impacts? Join us and become a part of BALLE’s program to develop target areas for collective Localist impact, and within those impact areas, shared indicators of progress. Help shape the initiative, get ideas to help you measure your work, and learn how to get engaged with this growing program.
Speakers:
- Rebecca Stewart, M.P.P., Research and Evaluation Director, The Improve Group
- Susan Miller, Senior Director of Community Engagement, BALLE
- Leah Goldstein Moses, President and CEO, Improve Group (host)
- Christine Ageton, Senior Director of Fellowship and Alumni, BALLE (host)
Pardon the Disruption: Technology Platforms for Reinventing Industries and Advancing Localism
Description: In one of the most profound economic realignments of our era, new business platforms are rewiring the economic systems and supply chains that defined the old economy. Whether it is transforming supplier and customer relationships, imploding business models with peer-to-peer sharing networks, or otherwise unraveling business-as-usual, these disruptive approaches are defining the new status quo. Get a peek behind the curtain of these successful disruptors, and consult with fellow provocateurs on how you might be the one to turn your industry upside-down.
Speakers:
- Benzi Ronen, Founder and CEO, Farmigo
- Matt Stinchcomb, VP, Values and Impact, Etsy
Leader-as-Host: Cultivating Leadership for Localism
Description: Here’s the good news: Localism is well underway, and we’re leading the charge. Here’s the challenge: Nearly everything we learned about leadership we learned from the old economy. As pioneers of the Localist movement, what leadership baggage do we want to take with us and what do we want to leave behind? In this workshop, we’ll explore the leader-as-host: How do we engage the intelligence and capacities of everyone in our organizations and communities?
Speaker:
- Deborah Frieze, Walk Out Walk On
Let There Be Capital: Creative Avenues for Funding Business
Description: There are no two ways about it: Businesses need resources. These turbulent economic times have made conventional funding less accessible to entrepreneurs, but have also led to an explosion of dynamic and innovative strategies for raising capital for start-up and established businesses. What’s new? What works? What’s legal? We’ll focus on several “best of” replicable funding strategies from the past two years of our Accelerating Community Capital series.
Speakers:
- Arno Hesse, Co-founder, Credibles
- Jenny Kassan, CEO, Cutting Edge Capital
- Francisco Cervera, CEO and Co-founder of eMoneyPool
- Elizabeth Ü, Author and Executive Director, Finance For Food (speaker and host)
Foundations and Grassroots Funders: Catalysts for Localism
Description: Community Foundations and grassroots funders have long played a role in supporting local entrepreneurial and philanthropic ventures in their communities. As the Localist movement expands, these critical sources of support have an essential in catalyzing our shared work, from convening local leaders to helping underwrite our broader work. Place-based funders are increasing leading local living economy development across North America, so this is your chance to absorb their accumulated wisdom and explore together what’s next.
Speakers:
- Bob Dandrew, Director of Local Economies Project, New World Foundation
- Paul Hogan, Vice-President, John R. Oishei Foundation
- Dawn McGee, President, High Stakes Foundation
- India Pierce Lee, Program Director for Neighborhoods, Housing, and Community Development, Cleveland Foundation
- Sandy Wiggins, BALLE Board Chair and principal at Consilience, LLC (host)
3:00PM -3:30PM Networking Break
3:30PM - 5:00PM CONVERGENCE SESSIONS (next steps to amplify this movement) - Campbell Student Union, Social Hall, Buffalo State College
Description: A new programming space for BALLE this year, our focus for this time will be to move together into convergence – that is, to explore together how we can take our collective work forward through shared and individual action. We know the Localist movement is decentralized and collectively owned. Accordingly, this is a space for conversations organized onsite during the conference and specifically during this session, by conferees, for each other to explore key “first next steps” for moving elements of our shared work forward.
BALLE will provide some simple structure for helping attendees find each other, and for capturing conversations and actions. BALLE will share these afterwards with all attendees and everyone who couldn’t join us in Buffalo to support further self-organizing. Bring your burning questions and come together to share your thinking and offer your leadership to the broader movement. Watch for more details after you register, and once you’re onsite.
(Note: A shuttle bus will run a loop between Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, the Best Western on the Avenue , The Mansion on Delaware, Larkin Square (site of the Friday night party, and back to Cleveland Circle, between 5:00PM and 9:00PM.)
5:00PM – 9:00PM Shuttle Bus
A shuttle bus will run a continuous loop between Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, the Best Western on the Avenue , The Mansion on Delaware, Larkin Square (site of the Friday night party), and back to Cleveland Circle.
5:00PM - 9:00PM Happy Hour and Closing Party
Location: Larkin Square - The intersection of Seneca & Swan Streets Buffalo, NY 14210
Description: We'll bid farewell to Buffalo where the city's ingenuity and industrial heritage began. Larkin Square sits at the center of Buffalo's first manufacturing district, known as "The Hydraulics" for the hydraulic canal system built there in 1827. The area later became known as the Larkin District after the Larkin Soap Company established its mail-order business here. Now, the Larkin at Exchange Building is home to businesses employing nearly 2000 workers and Larkin Square is the cultural and community epicenter of a reinvented Buffalo neighborhood. Attendees can purchase dinner at The Grill and Square One Sandwiches, which will keep you well-fed, while a melting pot of music and performance art will keep you inspired and partying late into the night.
Local bookstore, Talking Leaves Books, will be selling a wide range of Localist titles at the evening party, and hosting book signings by Deborah Frieze, Elizabeth U, Billy Parish, and Fran Korten at 8:00PM
Many kind thanks to Larkin Square for contributing the venue and entertainment for tonight’s party, and for being great supporters of Localism in Buffalo!
9:00PM - Midnight Shuttle Bus
A shuttle bus will run a continuous loop between Larkin Square, the intersection of Main St. and Allen St. (where attendees can disembark and walk through five blocks of Greater Allentown's First Fridays Gallery Tour to the After Hours Gathering venue, Allen St. Hardware Café), the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, the Best Western on the Avenue , The Mansion on Delaware, Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, and back to Larkin Square. This loop will continue until everyone is gone from Larkin Square. At that point, the shuttle will loop between Allen St. Hardware Cafe, Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, the Best Western on the Avenue , and The Mansion on Delaware.
Location: Allen Street Hardware Cafe (245 Allen St.)
Description: After strolling through the First Fridays Gallery Tour in Buffalo’s alt/art hub, the Allentown neighborhood, you’ll end up at the Allen Street Hardware Cafe, where you'll enjoy local blues legend Jony James and his band, and DJ Cutler in the cafe's Back Room (BALLE Conference attendees get free admission!).
(Note: The last shuttle bus will leave Allen St. Hardware at Midnight for Cleveland Circle at Buffalo State College, the Holiday Inn Buffalo-Downtown, the Best Western on the Avenue , and The Mansion on Delaware. After that, you are on your own. Have fun and be safe! If you need a taxi, call: 716.877.7111)
