Juneau Economic Development Council NEWS  |  January 2018
Innovation Summit Early Bird Rates Extended Until Feb. 5!
The early bird gets the best price.  Be sure to take advantage of the extension on early bird tickets for the Innovation Summit before February 5th. After that date, the Summit tickets go to $350. For just $275 we will provide professional development and networking opportunities, breakout sessions with industry leaders, dynamic Innovation Short presentations, tours around the community, entertainment, meals, cocktails, and an endless supply of coffee and tea. 
Here's what you can expect at the Summit!
  • Frans Johansson from The Medici Group will deliver a dynamic keynote presentation on how Diversity (of skill set, experience, background) Drives Innovation. Frans will conduct a two-hour workshop the following day for all Summit attendees.
  • Innovation Tours -- optional experiences before the Summit that give you an inside look at some of Juneau's upcoming businesses and spaces.
  • Innovation Shorts -- we have an awesome variety of Innovation Shorts this year! Over thirty presenters will deliver Shorts over the two days.
  • Panel discussions on Visitor and Ocean Products. We'll be discussing challenges and opportunities in both of the industries with industry experts.
  • and more!
See you at the Innovation Summit
See you at the Innovation Summit
Statewide FIRST® LEGO League Championship was held at Dimond High School



Earlier this month, sixty teams of elementary and middle school students from around the state met at Dimond High School for the Alaska Robot Rendezvous, a  FIRST ® LEGO® League Invitational Championship Tournament.


It was a celebration that was about more than robots; it was about inspiring students to create awesome solutions to real world challenges. Kids showed their programming, engineering and math skills by building autonomous robots to perform specific missions. All FLL Challenges are based on a current topic that is universally relevant. In this year's HydroDynamics Challenge, teams explored the topic of water and developed innovative solutions to issues related to water. Many team solutions have already been implemented around the state. Ideas ranged from using drones to map out small ponds and water sources for testing as drinkable water sources on the tundra to creating affordable, aesthetically-­--pleasing, free-­--standing water catchment and filtration systems for highway rest areas and trailheads. Teams have also learned and practiced FIRST® LEGO® League's Core Values, which include treating others with respect, finding answers on your own, and having fun while you're doing it.
 
The communities represented at the tournament included Anchorage, Barrow, Bethel, Big Lake, Fairbanks, Girdwood, Homer, Juneau, Kaktovik, Kenai, Kodiak, Moose Pass, Palmer, Point Hope, Point Lay, Seward, Skagway, Tok, Wainwright, and Wasilla. Thanks to support from GCI, this year's competition will also include 4 teams participating via video teleconference from Adak, Unalakleet, Glenallen, and Valdez. Sixteen Anchorage-­-- based FIRST LEGO League Jr teams (ages 6-­--9) will also hold an expo from 11AM - 1PM to showcase their work on this year's Aqua Adventures Challenge.
 
Champions Award 1st place (top honor at the competition) went to the TMS Chinooks from Teeland Middle School in Wasilla. They will represent Alaska at the FIRST World Championship in Houston, TX in April. Second place went to the Aurora Polar Bears from the Aurora Borealis Charter School in Kenai. The Polar Bears will represent Alaska at the FIRST LEGO League LEGOLAND California International Open in Carlsbad, CA in May. Happy Dave, a homeschool team from Juneau, was selected as the top innovation solution to this year's Hydrodynamics challenge. Happy Dave will participate in JEDC's innovative summit and continue to develop their solution and develop their application for the Global Innovation Award offered by XPrize. 

FIRST ® activities in Alaska are coordinated by the Juneau Economic Development Council
with statewide funding from BP, Alaska Airlines, Alaska Communications, and GCI and in-­--kind support from the UAA School of Engineering. Local sponsorships are also essential for the success of each tournament. 



Southeast Alaska Building Industry Association introduces the first ever Alaska Home + Lifestyle Fair and we invite various businesses in the building and lifestyle realm to join us as an exhibitor! We want to consolidate the variety of home and lifestyle brands that are accessible to people in Juneau and Southeast Alaska all in one place, so the more, the merrier! Interested in learning more? Download some documents here: http://www.jedc.org/alaska-home-and-lifestyle-fair
Economic Indicator: 
Younger Juneau Women are Choosing Science Degrees over Teaching and Men are Studying the Humanities in Larger Numbers


A generational shift has occurred in higher education. In Juneau's population aged 65 and older with a Bachelor's degree, 42 percent of degree holders are women and 58 percent are men. Among Bachelor's degree holders ages 25 to 39, 60 percent of degrees are held by women and 40 percent by men.

While 30 percent of Juneau women with Bachelor's degrees over age 65 earned their degree in teaching, only 8 percent of women ages 25 to 39 hold a degree in that field. In contrast to the older generation, younger women now hold more degrees in science (39 percent vs 29 percent) and business (16 percent vs 6 percent). Among Juneau men with Bachelor's degrees, younger men are pursuing the humanities in larger numbers (25 percent vs 14 percent) and less are earning degrees in science (54 percent vs 64 percent).

Investor Spotlight:

 
Become a JEDC Investor 

We invite you to invest in Juneau by becoming a JEDC Investor. Show your support of the work we do to forward Juneau and Southeast's economy.

By supporting JEDC you are supporting the long-term economic success of Alaska's capital city, and creating a business climate that in turn supports your business or organization.  

To learn more about our investor program, please visit www.JEDC.org/investors or send an email to Dana Herndon
Thank you for subscribing to JEDC News!
 
If you find JEDC News to be of interest and value, please forward the newsletter to your friends and colleagues. 

Sincerely,

Executive Director
Juneau Economic Development Council

In This Issue
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Board of Directors
Lauren MacVay, Chair
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Susan Murray, Secretary
Mayor Ken Koelsch
Alec Mesdag
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Marc Wheeler
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