Photo credit: Flickr user ThePlus.

Akron is the birthplace of Knight Foundation. Brothers John S. and James L. Knight found their passion for journalism and communities in Akron, and their vision has blossomed into a national network that promotes the power of information to connect people and help democracy thrive. That’s why it’s always valuable to see what we can learn in Akron.

I recently traveled there with Carol Coletta, our vice president for community and national initiatives. We met with some of the many individuals and organizations that are engaged in contributing to Akron’s success. It was a terrific opportunity to listen and learn from local leaders of various sectors.

We’re eager to continue the learning. We’re especially interested in discovering and seeding more efforts in Akron that attract, retain and harness talent; expand opportunity by increasing entrepreneurship and economic mobility; and build Akron as a place that accelerates the growth of ideas and brings people from diverse backgrounds together.

Below are just a few of the many exciting efforts taking place or coming up in the near future:

Place

·      Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study and Better Block are teaming up this spring to host a bike symposium and complete two Bike-N-Brainstorms rides. The events won’t just encourage more bicycling. The associated Better Block keynote and workshops will provide specific actions that participants can take in areas that lead to rapid change, such as permitting, liability, volunteer coordination, policy and code testing, and marketing.

·      Social Venture Partners’ bigBANG! Social Innovation Showcase (April 8) – a convening of people from the business, nonprofit, government, academic and philanthropic worlds who want to support a vibrant ecosystem of social entrepreneurship and catalyze positive change. It will feature keynote speaker Aaron Hurst, CEO of Imperative and founder of Taproot Foundation, along with fast pitch presentations from innovative nonprofits.

Hilary Sparks-Roberts, deputy director of Social Venture Partners, is seeking more Akron and Summit County organizations to participate. Email her at [email protected].

·      The Creative Interventions Tour, led by artist Hunter Franks, is coming to Akron. This summer he’ll spend three weeks in the city leading creative events that inspire and enable spontaneous interactions and bring people from diverse social and economic backgrounds together. 

·      Downtown Akron Partnership – Suzie Graham and her team just released a video on downtown vibrancy. They’re also taking a serious look at the results of the recent Arts & Culture Assessment for Summit County to see how to improve and better use the art walk over the next two years to improve the city.

·      Western Reserve Land Conservancy’s Thriving Communities Institute is using land banking and revitalizing vacant properties to bring new vibrancy to urban centers in Northeast Ohio, including Akron.

Talent

·      To attract talented young people to Greater Akron—and to help retain them—The Torchbearers are kicking off the Intern Edge program this summer. It will introduce the interns to new places to live, play and volunteer, and connect them to community leaders.

·      It complements the ongoing work of Business Volunteers Unlimited, which is working to connect diverse young professionals with the nonprofit community in Akron. You can read a recent blog post by Regional Vice President Elizabeth Winter here.

Opportunity

·      The Fund for Our Economic Future is exploring ways to leverage its regional Growth and Opportunity Initiative for the specific benefit of Akron through job creation, preparation and access efforts aimed at the urban core.

These projects and more are helping Akron thrive in the 21st century.

Meredith Hector, director of program administration at Knight Foundation