UW-Madison Extension’s Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference will be held June 16-18 in Wisconsin Rapids.
The conference focuses on what works in small towns and addresses the distinct challenges and opportunities that these communities face in bolstering entrepreneurship.
Designed for economic developers, local government leaders, and community champions, CEC participants will take home new ideas about digital commerce, agritourism, and public-private partnerships. Participants can choose from sixteen different sessions, gathering insights on topics ranging from rural tech hubs, youth entrepreneurship, and how to redirect a local economy after economic shock.
“Across the country, there is a new movement to encourage entrepreneurship as a rural revitalization strategy,” says Maggie Cornelius, the UW-Madison Extension Rural Entrepreneurship Specialist who is organizing the event. “This conference is a way for Wisconsin’s rural communities to tap into that movement and build businesses using the resources that they already have locally. Participants will leave feeling energized and well-informed about what they can do to support entrepreneurship in their own small town.”
Now in its second year, the conference “about small towns, for small towns” will be held in Wisconsin Rapids. Once known as “The Paper City,” Wisconsin Rapids is now a hub of entrepreneurial energy, rebuilding businesses in its downtown along the scenic Wisconsin River.
