Enlarge Former N.C. Gov. Jim Martin spoke about "Faith and the Community" at "i.e." on Nov. 10.

Posted: November 11th, 2009 Greg Lacour

The Foundation For The Carolinas Center for Civic Leadership on Nov. 10 hosted a principal who spoke about the challenges of rejuvenating a low-performing school; a biology professor talking about the possibility of programmable bacteria and an arts firm manager who discussed, among other things, the artistic potential of water purification plants.

This was, you may have surmised, not an ordinary event. It was the center’s inaugural Information Exchange (“i.e.”), a two-hour session featuring a series of community “thought leaders” talking about whatever they happened to be thinking about.

The session, held before about 120 people in the new Wells Fargo Auditorium on the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus uptown, is designed to be an annual event and an opportunity to get people in a position to make public decisions thinking broadly about an array of subjects, said David Julian, the foundation’s vice president for development.

“We see this as an opportunity to bring together a broad spectrum of speakers … talking about wide variety of issues,” Julian said. “We want to spark thoughts in people’s minds, be provocative and have some fun.”

Here's a look at the evening's six speakers and what they had on their minds:

1. John Silvia, Wells Fargo’s chief economist.

His main point: Increasingly, the economy of the future will favor skilled, computer-literate labor even in manufacturing jobs – not good news for a state having difficulty graduating students from high school.

2. June Lambla, who manages Lambla artworks LLC, a Charlotte arts firm.

She said public art, such as the new "Firebird" sculpture outside the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, is a key factor in making a city attractive to residents and tourists. (The water-purification plant is in Washington state, where stone mosaics frame retention ponds.)

3. Todd Mansfield, chairman and CEO of Crosland, the real estate development company.

“All too often, we seem to pave Paradise,” Mansfield said, referencing Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi.” The so-called “creative class” of young, energetic workers so coveted by cities are attracted to green space, transit and authentic urban environments.

4. Former N.C. Gov. Jim Martin. His topic was “Faith and the Community.”

His focus was on the tension between faith and science in American history, which ranged from the 1925 Scopes monkey trial and the structure of amino acid molecules in relation to religion in public life.

5. Denise Watts, the new principal of Bishop Spaugh Community Academy, one of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ lowest-performing schools.

She’s trying to encourage students to think ahead to college through field trips and other forms of inspiration, emphasizing that being poor and black doesn’t have to mean academic failure.

6. Malcolm Campbell, a biology professor at Davidson College, who related stories of student successes in synthetic biology research.
“Don’t just get by,” he said, echoing his message to his students. “You need to aim for the top.”

Click here for more information about the Foundation For The Carolinas and the Center for Civic Leadership.

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