NEW ORLEANS—Mayor Mitch Landrieu hosted the second Civic Innovation Summit Tuesday, March 21, as part of New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW). This year’s summit focused on building opportunities for government, philanthropic organizations and the entrepreneur community to partner and ensure a safe and vibrant future for New Orleans.
“We are excited to host the city’s second Civic Innovation Summit with NOEW,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “The Civic Innovation Summit is designed to highlight the importance of partnership between government and the entrepreneur community. While we have experienced great progress as a city, we understand there is more work to do. As we approach the 300th anniversary, we know it requires discussions and ideas like those developed during this event. We are grateful for the collaboration and look forward to exploring new solutions around pressing issues facing our city."
Hosted in partnership with NOEW and the 2018 Commission, the Civic Innovation Summit opened with remarks from Mayor Landrieu.
During the summit, participants engaged with three panels discussing innovative approaches to tackling the issues of violence reduction, equity and resilience in New Orleans. The violence reduction panel was moderated by PolicyLink President Angela Glover-Blackwell and featured New Orleans Police Department Commander Frank Young, LCMC Health Asst. Vice President Charlotte Parent, and W.K. Kellogg Foundation Program Officer Christy Slater. The resilience panel was moderated by Chief Administrative Officer and Deputy Mayor Jeff Hebert and featured iSeeChange.org Executive Producer Julia Kumari Drapkin and Asakura Robinson Company Principal Alexandra Miller. The equity panel was moderated by PolicyLink President Angela Glover-Blackwell and featured Deputy Mayor of Citywide Initiatives Judy Reese Morse, United Way of Southeast Louisiana President Michael Williamson, and J.D. Russell Consulting Principal Jade Brown Russell.
"NOEW has always been a celebration of entrepreneurship, innovation, and new thinking in New Orleans," said Emily Madero, acting CEO of The Idea Village. "The Civic Innovation Summit provides an excellent platform for entrepreneurs and civic leaders to come together to learn about the challenges facing our community and to collaborate on creating solutions to ensure we make New Orleans a better, more equitable place for future generations."
The Civic Innovation Summit is designed to create momentum in advance of New Orleans’ Tricentennial celebration in 2018, city reps said. Co-chaired by Mayor Landrieu and First Lady Cheryl Landrieu, the 2018 Commission is comprised of New Orleanians who are responsible for celebrating the city’s 300 year history and setting the course for the city’s future.
Held at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art Patrick F. Taylor and Howard Memorial Library, the event welcomed nearly 200 NOEW participants.
