Urban Visionary Author Charles Landry to Speak at Creative Cities Summit 2.0
by Creative Cities Summit
June 11th, 2008
Detroit, MI — Charles Landry, an international expert in city making, will be a featured presenter at the Creative Cities Summit Oct. 13-15, 2008 in Detroit. A best-selling author based in Great Britain, Landry is a noted authority on creativity and how cities can shape their futures by paying attention to their cultures.
“Charles Landry is one of the most respected visionaries and voices on creativity and city making,” said Karen Gagnon, co-director of Creative Cities Summit 2.0. “We are thrilled participants in the Creative Cities Summit 2.0 will get to hear and interact with him. His ideas have profoundly impacted the work we are doing with the Michigan Cool Cities initiative and his books have changed the way people the world over are thinking about cities and how they can be ‘creative for the world.’”
The Michigan Cool Cities Initiative is an economic development model that strives to build vibrant, creative, energetic cities that attract urban pioneers and young knowledge workers who are a driving force for economic development and growth. Building and reinvesting in neighborhoods that offer a sense of place is crucial to cities becoming centers of economic growth and opportunity.
In addition to writing and presenting, Landry has helped organizations and cities “transform their thinking so that they look at their potential imaginatively and can plan and act with originality.” He helps ground the latest trends into practical and successful initiatives and transformations. More about Charles Landry can be found at his website http://www.charleslandry.com/.
The Creative Cities Summit 2.0 chose Detroit because, like many industrial cities, it is working to evolve into a high tech, futuristic, entrepreneurial center of excellence that embraces knowledge, talent and creativity. Participants will include architects, designers, urban planners, civic leaders, entrepreneurs, artists, students, educators and community leaders sharing their experiences, projects, successes and failures as they re-imagine and rethink cities.
