Keynote Address: Michael Shuman on "Local Democracy in Action for a Greener, More Peaceful World"

We are very pleased to announce that this evening's keynote speaker is Michael Shuman. Joining Mr. Shuman in the program will be Iwao Nakanishi, survivor (hibakusha) of the Hiroshima bombing, testifying to the cost of failure in preventing war, Mayor David Cieslewicz of Madison, offering a welcome on behalf of the host city, and a response panel consisting of Jackie Cabasso and John Nichols. The Master of Ceremonies is Ben Manski.

Michael Shuman, research and public policy director for the Business Alliance for Living Local Economies, holds an A.B. with distinction in economics and international relations from Stanford University and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. An economist, attorney, author, and entrepreneur, Michael has authored, coauthored, or edited seven books, including The Small Mart Revolution: How Local Businesses Are Beating the Global Competition (Berrett-Koehler, 2006) and Going Local: Creating Self-Reliant Communities in the Global Age (Free Press, 1998). The Small-Mart Revolution was awarded a bronze medal for best business book by the Independent Publishers' Association. In recent years, Michael has led community-based economic-development efforts in St. Lawrence County (NY), Hudson Valley (NY), Katahdin Region (ME), Martha's Vineyard (MA), and Carbondale (CO), and served as a senior editor for the recently published Encyclopedia of Community. He has given an average of more than one invited talk per week for 25 years throughout the United States and the world.