What’s your vision for Maine and what can you do to make it happen?

Those will be the questions asked, and hopefully answered, at a major economic summit being held this week in Freeport.

The Envision Maine Summit aims to encourage conversation and brainstorming among business owners, innovators, lawmakers and anyone else who has an interest in shaping Maine’s next economy, said Alan Caron, president of Envision Maine.

There’s a great array of services and programs in Maine for people who want to create startups and help businesses grow, Caron said.

“What we don’t have is a place where we can talk about collective action,” he said. “All those programs rightfully focus on the individual – what can the individual do? What does an individual need? What we’re trying to talk about here is what can we do together to help those individuals and build an even more robust infrastructure.”

Such conversations have been taking place for a while, Caron admits, and they’ll continue. But he hopes the summit is catalytic.

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“It doesn’t start here and it doesn’t end here,” Caron said, “but I think there’s a lot of energy around the state right now to really commit ourselves to becoming an entrepreneurial and innovative state – not having it just be a nice thing if it happens, but making it happen.”

Friday’s full-day event will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn in Freeport. As of last Friday, roughly 175 people were registered to attend. The hotel can handle 260 people, and Caron believes the event is likely to sell out. A ticket costs $75.

U.S. Sen. Angus King will kick off the event with an 8 a.m. keynote address titled “A moment of opportunity for Maine’s economy.” The schedule also includes six panel discussions on topics that include educating Maine’s future innovators and how to streamline services for entrepreneurs.

But the segment that most excites Caron is the hour-long period set aside for 10 notable individuals in Maine’s business and nonprofit communities to share their vision for Maine’s future and what they can do as individuals to make that potential future a reality.

Limiting each person’s talk to five minutes will force them to tightly focus on their vision and how they’ll contribute.

“I think it’s going to be tremendous fun,” Caron said. “The point of that is not just to hear their vision, but to help us see where they align with each other.”

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Participating in this lightning round are Melissa Smith, CEO of South Portland-based WEX Inc.; Corky Ellis, founder and chairman of Kepware Technologies; Lisa Pohlmann, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine; Jess Knox, statewide hub coordinator of Blackstone Accelerates Growth; and John Piotti, executive director of Maine Farmland Trust, among others.

Shannon Kinney, founder of Dream Local Digital, a digital marketing firm in Rockland, will also take part in the lightning round.

“I think the format lends itself well to a fast-moving innovative culture and to the initiative of the organization, which is moving forward and innovating Maine’s economy,” she said Friday. “I’m excited and honored to be part of that.”

Another five-minute speaker will be Shawn Moody, founder of Moody’s Collision Centers, an auto-repair business with eight locations in southern Maine, and a former gubernatorial candidate. Moody said he looks forward to the event because he believes he’ll be bringing a perspective that’s different from those of the other participants.

His vision is of a future where young people see Maine as a land of opportunity, rather than a place to escape the first chance they get.

“We have indoctrinated our young people at a young age at home or in school that there are no opportunities in Maine, but the reality is we face a big demographic cliff that will create tremendous opportunity,” he said. “What can we individually do to take all the guidance counselors, educators and parents to change the message?”

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Moody also intends to share some ideas that are contrary to what he expects from other panelists. While he expects to hear a lot about creating high-tech jobs in the state, he plans to steer the conversation to all those Maine workers who are not equipped, and likely will never be, to take a high-tech job.

“Contrary to what other panelists talk about, Maine is a blue-collar state and the gap between retooling someone to take a high-tech job and where they are in their work experience and background is too big a gap,” he said. “We need more blue-collar jobs. So rather than modify the person for the dream of a high-tech job, let’s find jobs that fit the talent we have. There has to be a balance there.”

The diversity of opinions Moody expects to hear will offer a “wide-angle vision of what the opportunities are for Maine.”

Since it’s election season, those vying to be Maine’s next governor will also be given an opportunity to share their vision for Maine’s economy and what government can do to help fulfill that vision. Caron invited all three candidates to participate, but only independent Eliot Cutler and Democrat Mike Michaud have agreed to attend. Republican Gov. Paul LePage declined the invitation despite Caron’s attempts to accommodate his schedule, including extending the time for the event.

Caron, who writes a column for the Portland Press Herald, founded Envision Maine in 2010 to be a convener of people interested in Maine’s next economy.

“We’ve been doing that quietly in a lot of different ways, and I think you’re seeing the effects of that in the summit and the extraordinary array of people giving up their time to come,” he said.

Whit Richardson can be contacted at 791-6463 or at:

wrichardson@pressherald.com

Twitter: whit_richardson


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