ECONDEV
CAMP2025
presented by HUUB
#EconDevCamp2025 brings together economic developers, community leaders, and small business champions for a collaborative, conversation-driven unconference — spotlighting Detroit’s local impact and bold ideas for inclusive growth. No panels. No fluff. Just real talk & real impact!
#EconDevCamp2025
RESERVE YOUR SPOT TO
The most engaging
economic development unconference
Connect
Meet other economic developers from across the country who struggling with similar challenges and share in the struggle or share solutions.
Experience
This is not a "sit and listen to a speaker" conference. This is a "share the good, bad and ugly to develop solutions to shared problems honestly" conference.
Implement
Dig deep into details of how to implement successful programs, solutions & approaches, and walk away with tangible solutions you can take back to your community.
WHAT TO EXPECT
Unconference... what?
This is not a formal conference — rather, as an unconference, it is driven entirely by attendees’ interests and experiences.
At #EconDevCamp2025, there is no set agenda before the event, therefore we are an "unconference". Sessions are determined at the beginning of the day and are drawn from proposals and ideas that attendees submit. A session can be any format: a presentation, an open discussion, a demonstration, a panel, or even a group exercise or game. Participants from various sectors, including economic development, public policy, technology, and community advocacy, will converge to discuss how different strategies and initiatives can drive economic growth and prosperity in their communities. Expect engaging discussions and thought-provoking sessions that cover a wide array of topics, such as:
Rather than giving attendees a list of sessions to choose from, attendees program and lead the sessions together. This approach leads to higher engagement, more honest conversations, and true solution building from diverse industry leaders who are doing amazing, often underappreciated work.
Chelsea Smith
HUUB COO & Co-Founder
How it works.
Leave with real solutions to real problems you can implement today and connect with other leaders over happy hour after.
The attendees suggest session topics and activities. In addition to talks and presentations from big names in economic development, ecosystem building and technology, #EconDevCamp2025 allows every attendee to participate in shaping and leading the event. This means the most pressing and relevant topics of today's world are addressed.
Rather than giving attendees a list of sessions to choose from, attendees program and lead the sessions. "Unconferences" are popular in the tech world and because they reflect the industry's culture— a little casual but very agile, and usually really fun. You leave building life-long connections and effective solutions that come from diverse leaders.
Our goal with these "unconferences" is to leave attendees feeling rejuvenated to tackle the big problems in a very complex industry with the support of a community of peers.
PARTNER WITH PURPOSE
Support What's Next
Be part of a conference like no other—where economic development isn’t just talked about, it’s reimagined. Join us in fueling bold ideas, local impact, and authentic collaboration in Detroit. As one of our sponsors, you'll connect with forward-thinking leaders, champion inclusive innovation, and help shape the future of community-centered economic growth.
MOVING THE NEEDLE
Your Unconference Experience in Motion
Here’s how the day unfolds — unconference-style. We’ll kick things off together, open the floor for your session ideas, and spend the day diving into rich conversations, community insights, and bold ideas. We may feature a speaker or two, but the real action—that comes from you.
Then we wrap it all up with a Happy Hour that celebrates Detroit’s local flavor!
TIME | SESSION DETAILS |
|---|---|
10:30 am | Registration & Community Warm-up Grab your badge, grab a coffee, and jump into a light icebreaker to kickstart the connections. |
11:00 am | Opening Remarks Let’s set the vibe! We’ll walk through the day, the unconference format, and officially kick off the day. |
11:20 am | Topic Sharing—Unconference Style! You’ve got ideas and we want to hear them! Drop your topics and shape the day’s conversations. |
12:00 pm | Lunch Break Fuel up, mingle, and scope out the session board. |
01:00 pm | Breakout Session 1 Facilitated peer-to-peer sessions based on your most-voted topics. Let’s dive in! |
01:45 pm | Gap Break Quick breather, hydrate, prep for round two. |
2:00 pm | Breakout Session 2 More hands-on convos and workshops, picked by the community. |
02:45 pm | Gap Break Stretch, snack, reset. You got this. |
03:00 pm | Breakout Session 3 Last round of discussions to keep the momentum flowing. |
03:45 pm | Gap Break Deep breath. One more moment to reflect before we close. |
04:00 pm | Event Reflections + Closing Let’s gather, reflect on key takeaways, and close the loop with intention. |
04:45 pm | HUUB Happy Hour Celebrate Detroit's local flavor and the community we built in a single day. |
BEHIND THE MAGIC
Your Co-Conspirators in Change
With more than 20+ years of combined experience in economic development and community building, the powerhouse duo behind HUUB created #EconDevCamp2025 to break down silos and build something better. With the vision that economic development should be inclusive, community-led, and collaborative—this event flips the script and brings together the doers, the thinkers, and the builders who are redefining what economic impact looks like—together.
SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT MADE SIMPLE
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