We talk a lot about innovation on the pages of Model D. We also help convene groups to talk innovation at regular events around town, be it for Open City or our Speaker Series. Annually, we hold a session called IdeaLab in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, where leaders on the vanguard of innovation in Detroit present to the future elite of the business world with the hope of spreading the gospel of the opportunities that exist in our city.

But we also know that innovation is occurring in our neighborhoods, and that is what our series On the Ground is all about. Community leaders and residents are driving change and finding opportunities in the challenges that we hear so often in the mainstream media narrative of Detroit.

That's why we're inviting you to come to a neighborhood at the forefront of community development and redefining the narrative of Detroit--Brightmoor.

On Wednesday, Dec. 11 from 6 to 8 p.m., we invite you to come to the Brightmoor Community Center (14451 Burt Road - Map) to learn lessons from Brightmoor that can inform what we do in other communities in our city. A group of panelists made up of engaged residents, neighborhood leaders, and creative thinkers with a stake in Brightmoor will discuss their work and how it informs the future of Brightmoor and other Detroit neighborhoods.

The discussion will be moderated by Wayne Ramocan, an East Side peer of our panelists who is the Program Coordinator at the Osborn Neighborhood Alliance, a group that coordinates community development activities in that East Side neighborhood.

Our panelists include:
Kirk Mayes - Executive Director of the Brightmoor Alliance
Riet Schumack - Co-founder of Neighbors Building Brightmoor & Knuckle Head Farm
Rev. Larry Simmons - President of the Brightmoor Pastors Alliance, Pastor at Baber A.M.E. church
Bart Eddy - Co-founder of Detroit Community Schools and the Brightmoor Woodworkers
Dennis Talbert - Executive Director of the Brightmoor Community Center
Dawn Wilson - Community Connections Grant Program, Kuddles the Hip Hop Clown, Patton Pioneers

You've read about Brightmoor and the people driving innovation in the neighborhood in On the Ground. Now, come and engage with them. See more on our Facebook page.

When: Wednesday, Dec. 11, 6 to 8 p.m.
Where: Brightmoor Community Center, 14451 Burt Road (Map)