Innovation in Marin
September is the month in which we highlight the innovative people, companies and organizations that reside and work in Marin County. On September 15th the Marin Economic Forum will be hosting Marinnovation 2015, our annual showcase of innovative businesses from across Marin. Marinnovation highlights Marin’s vibrant, creative culture and showcases technologies and ventures developing right here, right now. This year, we will be highlighting digital education and innovation, and are extremely pleased to have two wonderful keynote speakers from the George Lucas Educational Foundation; Dr. Milton Chen, Senior Fellow, and Peter Poutiatine, Senior Coordinator, School Selection and Trends. Additionally, Dr. Robert Eyler, MEF’s Chief Economist, will be discussing the continuing role of innovation in Marin County and the Bay Area, and how Marin continues to be a great place to do business.
Marin County has always been a place for innovation, from its founding as one of California’s first 27 counties in 1850, through to the present day. And that innovation has taken many forms over the years. The sport of mountain biking, and the mountain bike itself, was innovated on the slopes of Mt. Tamalpais. The oldest trail race in America, the Dipsea Race, runs from Mill Valley to Stinson Beach. And of course, the innovative sounds of the Grateful Dead are closely tied to the history of Marin. Today, innovation can be recognized in many forms around the County, including: the work being done at Renaissance Marin and the Small Business Development Center to empower local entrepreneurs; our local healthcare providers working towards innovative solutions to modern healthcare issues; the research being done on aging and chronic disease at the Buck Institute; the multiple innovative environmental and conservation projects across the County that received more than $2.7 million in funding from the Coastal Conservancy earlier this year, and; the Marin County Board of Supervisor’s Innovation Recognition Awards, which this year went to the Marin County’s Sheriff’s Office for its jail kitchen bakery program.
This year, Marinnovation 2015 is proud to be a partner of the second annual North Bay Innovation Week (NBIW), which runs from September 14th through the 20th. NBIW showcases the breadth and depth of North Bay organizations that stimulate innovation & entrepreneurship. In addition to attending Marinnonvation, I highly recommend everyone check out the schedule of events for North Bay Innovation Week, which can be found here.
We look forward to seeing you at Marinnovation 2015!
