The Craneway Pavilion hosts an eclectic array of events from rollerblading to weed expositions to ballet, but the 10th Anniversary Meeting of the Minds is perhaps the premier assemblage of brainpower the venue has ever seen. It is sold out.

Now in its 10th year, the Meeting of the Minds annual summit brings together 400+ opinion-shapers, policy-makers, leading thinkers and innovators from 25+ countries for two and half days of intensive exchange in thought leadership and cross-sector alliance building. Gathered together, you will have unique opportunities to think critically, ask questions, share tools, identify new best practices, and build lasting partnerships — which make smarter and more sustainable cities possible.

Click here for the agenda.

The focus of Meeting of the Minds is the ‘innovator’, whether you sit inside a large firm, an influential organization, or a start-up. The 400+ participants are scaling up practical urban solutions, shaping new policies, deploying new technologies, embedding new innovations into mainstream institutions, and blazing new trails where partnerships can flourish.

Yesterday, we heard Tom Steyer talk about climate change and how a coalition of business, labor, and environmentalists was making California a leader in addressing climate change. He said the politics of environmentalism is changing, with the Latino, black and Asian communities being the most politically committed, much of it based on environmental justice issues.

We spent the afternoon with about 60 attendees touring Point Molate, talking about its history, challenges and opportunities, then reconvened at the Craneway to discuss how best to proceed with the development of Point Molate.





There were several Richmond City staff members in attendance, including the mayor’s staff, Sue Hartman, Adam Lentz, Tim Higares and others I may not have seen. One of the Workshop Tours, “Breaking the Cycle of Blight and Creating Opportunities for Home Ownership,” featured the unique social impact bond program of the Richmond Community Foundation. Presenters included Tim Higares, John Knox and Jim Becker.



Meeting of the Minds reconvenes today and end with a reception at 5:00 PM.