Detroit Innovation is a series highlighting community-led projects that are improving the vitality of neighborhoods in Detroit, while recognizing the potential of residents to work with partners to solve the most pressing challenges facing their communities.
The series is supported by the New Economy Initiative, a project of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan that's working to create an inclusive, innovative regional culture.
Juan Shannon is in the process of turning the grounds of Thompson Elementary School — abandoned for two decades — into Parker Village, a $5 million smart neighborhood and urban farming operation.
For the past year, 96.7 WNUC, a low power FM radio station located in Detroit's North End, has been designing programs by and for Detroit residents.
At Street Outreach Court Detroit, around 20 homeless or at-risk-of homelessness individuals get civil infractions and misdemeanors resolved, as well as waiving most fines and fees associated with those charges.
As part of our effort to profile neighborhood innovators, we created a map of where these people do the majority of their work to show how amazing individuals can be found in every corner of the city.
Tammy Black is working to build a 400-square-foot, ADA-compliant treehouse for occupational therapy, counseling, and education in her Jefferson-Chalmers neighborhood.
Tom Nardone, who earlier started the Detroit Mower Gang to cut grass in parks around the city, has now been helping to clean up the Detroit River by fishing for trash with a team of volunteers.
Samantha Magdaleno has been an activist for almost her entire life. Today she's a director at One Michigan, which provides resources to immigrant communities and supports those involved in deportation cases.
Lee Gaddis was just trying to develop a tool to make board gaming easier. But the TableTopper, a modular gaming table, has become much bigger and more significant than he anticipated.
Raphael Wright and Megan Burritt founded Neighborhood Grocery, a small-scale grocery with a hyper-local focus, which they hope will create jobs and contribute to community wealth.
The New Economy Initiative's recently announced Detroit Innovation Fellowship will provide 12 Detroiters involved with nine projects a $10,000 stipend and professional development. We spoke with NEI's director to learn more about it.
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