Initiator:  Heather McCall, Main Street New Jersey

Participants :
Steve Runk, NJ Council on the Arts
Molly Kaufman, HANDS
Isha Vyas, Middlesex Co. Cultural & Heritage Commission
Karen Hatcher, Celebrate NJ & NJ Students in Action
Lori Braunstein, Sustainable Cherry Hill
Alison Hayes, Graphic Magic
Wendy Liscow, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation
Swena Gulati,  Arts Build Communities- Rutgers
Joe Barris, Monmouth County Planning Dept.
Richard Kroth, College of New Jersey
Carole Anzalone-Newman, Main Street South Orange
Lynn Lemyre, Artworks Trenton
Regan Young, RYEBREAD Architects
Rachel Evans, Kean University
Nathan Rix (?)
Elizabeth Halverstam, Arts Horizons
Janice Selinger, NJN Public Television
Ronda Abbruzzese, Main Street Woodbury
Eduardo Garcia,  West Windsor Arts Council
Ann Marie Miller, Art Pride NJ
Dan Aubrey, Trenton Cultural Resource/Co. Works

Summary of Highlights:

As leaders and professionals in our fields, we often sit in our offices and bang our heads against the wall in our efforts to create change.  We can easily rattle off a list of "Why we can't" vs. creating a space in our planning for a great big *ss idea that would change everything when the right opportunity comes along.  So, in this session we posed the question "If you have all the political support and money you needed, what would be your crazy BIG idea to encourage innovation & creativity in NJ?" 

Many of the ideas expressed centered on improving the opportunities for communication, collaboration and capacity building to move creativity & innovation forward.

Although not all 100+ participants attended this session, I'm sure there are some awesome big ideas percolating throughout this group.  Feel free to add additional ideas, offer resources, and feedback on the ideas posted for this session.  Even though we may not have the resources to make some of these ideas happen today, we can certainly use our newly formed partnerships to collaborate move our big ideas forward in the future!

IMPROVING COMMUNICATION

• SPARK NJ (Karen)
  
  • a mechanism for increasing pride, communication, capacity in NJ.
  • one stop collections space/resource to teach & provide tools for locals
  • cross discipline
  • initial focus on children & community (future innovators & creators!)
  • would be an online media effort to tell how awesome our projects are
  • includes available spaces for initiatives and resource links
• Sustainability for Everyone (Lori)
  
  • Top to bottom integration of high school age youth the local sustainability conversation
  • Intentional focus
  • Ongoing conversations, interaction.  Not just a once per year outreach.
    
    • could start with Boys State, Girls State, or Governor's School initiatives
• Summer Summit (Rachel)
  • a FUN (they would actually really want to compete to be there!) professional development retreat for selected students, teachers, administrators
  • would increase communication across local school partners and students
  • assess how the school is doing, where it wants to go
  • possibly focused opportunity for 11-16 yr olds ( who can't get summer jobs yet)
  • has credibility regardless of administration changes and can be built upon year after year
    • see Artist Teacher Institute for potential model/resources.
• One Stop Shop for NJ Event PR (Swena)
  
  • Open Source.  Incorporates GIS & Google Maps
  • Need for a One-Stop Shop!  Discover NJ doesn't come up in Google Search!
  • If we could track and know about our special assets we could make a better case for the arts.  We could collect geography info and data on NJ arts consumers.
• Public Policy Discussion Space (Nathan)
  
  • Space for discussion of public policy
  • Help with the "Seven Stages of Policy Grieving" (aka. Awareness, Wishful Thinking, Repeating Sound Bites--- see book "Coming to Public Judgement" by Daniel Yankovitz)
  • Existing town hall is current method of "Brining People Along". 
  • Can have pro/con side
  • Is intergenerational
  • Nonpartisan
  • Starts small
    • BIG IDEAS implementation resource:  Citizen's Campaign, Leadership NJ, Debate Clubs of Newark (High School level), or even taking policy to the people bars, BBQs etc.

IMPROVING ACCESS

• Everyone in NJ will engage in making some form of art.(Steve)
  • throughout the entire state
  • over a 5 yr period
  • NJ participants create the art.  Their art.   Whatever unique form it takes.
• "The System" - Union City,NJ
  
  • Based on Venezuela model for youth education in music
  • music program for youth incorporating tutoring, mentoring (3 hrs a day, 3 days per week)
  • Goal to reduce "brain flight" from community, integration on different cultures/new immigrants, and support disadvantaged youth
  • Would be a model that could be replicated across the state
  • Big Idea?  This program would incorporate a musical instrument making school which could focus on both classical instruments and new electronic modification & methods of making music. 
• Arts as Unifying Force (Elizabeth)
  
  • A rebirth of Englewood, NJ's youth program.
  • Incorporates many art forms
  • Unifies across cultural barriers, helps with intellectual flight
    • Big Idea to push this effort forward?  Participant incentives to overcome transportation & income barriers to participation
• Physical Space for Local Artists (Carole)
  
  • Art in a Box (San Francisco).  Like a book club or a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)- art circulates for a fee.  Once per month a piece of art is delivered
  • Pop up galleries
  • Donated spaces and public spaces
  • Nonprofit Galleries
• Connecting Regional Scenic Byways (Joe)
  • Through County collaborations, marketing and experiences

CREATING ORGANIZATION

• NJN 2.0 (Janice)
  • A continuation of a New Jersey news source
  • Would combat the loss of professional journalism with a NJ focus
  • Would elevate the discourse and continue coverage of serious topics not covered by other media outlets (arts, environmental issues, policy)
  • BIG IDEA?  Improving on this resource and doing it better than any other state's coverage.
• 21st Century Lab of Invention (Molly)
  
  • A center with tools to promote innovation
  • A tactile environment:  physical tools, materials, science materials
  • A place for bouncing ideas and networking
  • BIG IDEA? Hands on research and development vs business incubator
• Rebirth of NJ Governor's School of the Arts/Science/Policy
  • A desire to bring back the Gov School as a model for encouraging innovation and investing in the talents of our youth.
  • Look at Virginia's nonprofit model for the Governor's School http://www.gsarts.net/
• Barter Services Network (Allison)
  
  • A form of time banking
  • Captures skills and needs of local people (also help disabled)
  • Connects for creative problem solving
  • Unit of measurement is time
  • "Trust Level" metrics and ratings exchange- reliability & skill; appreciate of help
• NJ Downtown Center (Heather)
  
  • Growing & replicating the Main Street NJ program of providing hands on assistance to NJ stakeholders. Really being a capacity builder and technical assistance provider for all downtowns in NJ.  25 MSNJ communities as well as 83+ Improvement Districts, and UEZ communities. 
  • Restructure state and local economic incentives to include small grants to help make our existing infrastructure "retail ready"- not just external facade work, interior improvement funds, tax credits and additional incentives to support operations of downtown management entities based on the phenomenal existing return on investment for state dollars that our downtown organizations provide.

REALLY CRAZY BIG IDEA:

• "NJ invented the microwave, why don't we brand/invent/capitalize on a MACROWAVE?"  Coastal resources, innovation, etc.  (Regan)

Don't keep banging your head against the wall, beat the drum & march to your creative beat. Keep our idea conversation going by commenting below!