creative leadership : Featured Stories

CommonBond, an innovative non-profit organization that operates 95 housing developments throughout the Upper Midwest, also offers residents classes and one-on-one counseling about school, employment, finances, and health and wellness.

The Twin Cities is a leader in bicycle use and a major innovator in bicycle design and technology. The seven inventions profiled here have, or will have, an impact on the local and global cycling industry. And the pace of innovation shows no sign of slowing down.    

We recently sat down with Shawn Combs Walding, MnDOT’s Transit Advantages Coordinator for the Twin Cities Metro District to discuss alternative transportation in the Twin Cities, what local entities can do to promote transit use, and how easy it really is to be car-free. 

The message of this year's Rail~Volution conference in the Twin Cities was clear: To attract and retain top talent in the coming decades, cities must meet Millennials' preferences for effective transit options.

Four neighborhood initiatives along the Green Line demonstrate how the Central Corridor is becoming a local and national model for equitable and empowering community-driven transit-oriented development (TOD).    

Kyle Tran Myhre, who performs under the stage name "Guante," is a hip hop artist, two-time National Poetry Slam champion, social justice activist, educator, and writer whose work is to examine the nature of performance – what it means for a culture, how it can serve a greater purpose.

Two years ago, Lars Christiansen and Nancy Fischer sold their car and plunged into the Twin Cities’ rich network of public and alternative modes of transportation, which led to a healthier lifestyle and innovating the Friendly Streets Initiative.  

Driven by the seemingly boundless energy of local creatives, community leaders and entrepreneurs, Minneapolis-St. Paul’s burgeoning startup culture shows no signs of slowing down. Here are 10 compelling, life-changing startups to know about now.  

NEA, ArtPlace and others have poured millions of dollars toward creative placemaking projects in the Twin Cities in recent years. What are the street-level results of those investments?

Aiken is a painter, an illustrator, a graphic artist, a muralist, a lecturer, a curator, an arts advocate, and a community collaborator. This article is republished from Creative Exchange.

During these coveted warm months, wherever the people go, an army of gourmet and artisan food trucks are sure to follow. Here are six new food trucks hitting Twin Cities' streets that you might have missed. Get out and try something delicious.  

"What's next for your city?" That the question Urban Innovation Exchange (UIX) will explore at its first national convening this September 24-26, 2014 in Detroit.

The Twin Cities is emerging as a hotbed of innovative agricultural activity. An ambitious group of producers and retailers aims to redefine what it means to be local, and give retaurants and consumers more control over what they eat and drink.

MSP isn't usually mentioned in the same breath as Silicon Valley and Austin. But our local tech startup scene is leaping forward due to homegrown co-working companies, which lower barriers to success, growth and profitability through collaboration.

Is life better without a car? For Patricia Blakely, of Minneapolis, the answer is a resounding “yes!” In her book Carfree Living: Happy in the Not So Fast Lane, and this article, she outlines five simple steps to going car free.