DATE: April 14-15

EVENT: “Roads to Renewal: A Summit on the Changing Automotive Industry?How Communities Can Thrive” will help traditional automotive communities identify and utilize federal, state and nonprofit resources to work toward long-term successful recovery from economic and social dislocation.

The overall state of the economy, the automotive industry’s future, its impact on communities, and lessons learned from the development of the auto industry in the southern United States will be addressed.

The U-M’s Institute for Research on Labor, Employment and the Economy (IRLEE) will focus an afternoon session on ways automotive communities can receive short-term assistance and plan for a future that transitions them away from a traditional automotive industry.

“Given the state of the U.S. economy and its current economic and social impact on traditional communities, this session will encourage communities to consider what their critical needs are and to determine what resources from federal and state agencies exist to assist with a transition,” said Lawrence Molnar, session moderator and associate director for Community and Economic Development Programs at IRLEE. “Communities need to consider their assets and plan thoughtfully for their future.”

Among the panelists will be U-M economist George Fulton and Stephen Forrest, U-M vice president for research.

PLACE: Renaissance Chicago Hotel

SPONSORS: The University of Michigan’s Institute for Research on Labor, Employment and the Economy; Center for Automotive Research; Automotive Communities Program; and the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration

INFORMATION: http://regionalsummit.cargroup.org