This year’s Mackinac Policy Conference theme − Equation for Impact − is a powerful phrase.
It is designed to be a rallying point to set a vision for Michigan so our state can grow and prosper.
As Michigan’s business, education, government, and philanthropic leaders converge at Grand Hotel, we live in uncertain times and face diverse and divisive issues with the highest of stakes. Fortunately, there is no better place to discuss these challenges than Michigan’s Center Stage.
Tammy J. Carnrike
As the conference agenda reflects: Michigan is experiencing disproportionate risk from federal policies that will have a major economic impact around the world and country all the way down to
the state and local levels. Perhaps, we should have seen this coming.
Heading into the 2024 election, the Chamber’s polling partner Richard Czuba of Glengariff Group said that Michigan was the “center of the political universe” amid a hotly contested presidential race that had candidates and their delegates barnstorming the state weekly.
Six months later, Czuba’s observation feels like an understatement as the Trump administration sets its agenda on trade, immigration, education, and EVs – any of which could present an inflection point for Michigan.
Every Economic Pillar Faces Unprecedented Uncertainty
Michigan finds itself at a pivot point as it manages issues like tariffs, because it impacts every aspect of spending and commerce, and everyone involved from citizens to manufacturers and suppliers who must grapple with the threat of increased costs. It also has an outsized impact on our signature automotive industry as well as manufacturing and logistics.
Then, there is our friendship with Canada – we find ourselves in an uncomfortable and precarious situation with our lucrative trade relationship now in question. That’s not to mention potential federal funding clawbacks that are impacting economic development and government at all levels.
For our universities, loss of research investment and highly skilled immigrant students and faculty would affect efforts to innovate and create new opportunities in Michigan’s economy through sectors such as defense, aerospace, and space. Healthcare systems also face funding cuts that threaten the quality of care and qualified healthcare professionals, when healthcare talent recruitment is so important to our reputation as a destination for leading healthcare innovation.
Talent’s Importance Grows Daily in the Innovation Economy
Having national policy in flux raises the stakes for our actions as a state. There is no more important issue to driving innovation than talent, and it holds the key to emerging from uncertain times in a position of economic power.
EV talent is necessary to keep our competitive automotive advantage.
The need for high-tech talent in nearly every industry will only increase as technologies like AI evolve.
Providing resources to those adults who did not complete their postsecondary education and to underrepresented communities is essential to reaching educational attainment levels to meet employers’ needs.
The Most Important Challenge: Rally Around Our ‘Equation for Impact’
Conversations during the conference will provide us the opportunity to come together in a bipartisan way to set the trajectory for Michigan to overcome the challenges of this unique time.
Now more than ever, we need to identify an Equation for Impact and work collaboratively to put it in place. If we do, there’s no holding Michigan back. And perhaps the rest of the country will follow our lead – they after all, are used to us being the center of attention and emerging stronger from difficult times