THE DALLAS FESTIVAL OF Section M The Dallas Morning News Sunday, February 22, 2015 INSPIRE. DISCOVER. ENGAGE. to help make Dallas ACT the city you want it to be. Michael Hogue/Staff Illustration ESSAY INNOVATIVE Sharing vital information quickly is key. Dallas, always in a state of Pages 4-5 becoming, is attracting creative PHYSICAL talents — and keeping them here Big cities need big ideas to fight urban sprawl. Pages 6-7 By CHRIS VOGNAR Culture Critic POLITICAL [email protected] Tackling issues of race hen I decided to move from San Francisco with candor and insight. Pages 10-11 to Dallas, I planned to stick around for a W summer internship. Then it became a part- EDUCATED time job. A year, I thought. Max. Putting the spotlight That was about 19 years ago. That was definitely not the plan. on teachers. Pages 14-15 “Dallas is a city of transplants.” If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, I’d own a Preston Hollow mansion. The city might not CULTURAL draw the hoards of college graduates that flock to hipster havens Reading gives kids a like Austin or Portland, Ore., but it keeps pulling in people who foothold in the world. Pages 16-17 come here to work, realize they like the place and stay put. Take a look at my fellow Cultural City panelists for the Dallas GET THERE Festival of Ideas. Teresa Coleman Wash, executive artistic direc- Full-day schedule and tor and founder of TeCo Theatrical Productions in Oak Cliff, hails details on free activities. Map, ticket info from Albany, Ga. George Getschow, writer in residence at the and other visitor tips. University of North Texas and director of the university’s May- Pages 26, 28 born Literary Nonfiction Conference, is a Chicago boy. Visual artist and arts advocate Jin-Ya Huang is from Taiwan. She was a FOR MORE I thedallasfestival.com See CITY’S Page 18M I dallasnews.com/dallasideas ........ M1 02-22-2015 Set: 17:20:28 Sent by: [email protected] Festival of IdeasCMYBELLOWYANLACKAGENTA 2M Sunday, February 22, 2015 dallasnews.com The Dallas Morning News to community to jobs to compassion At Bank of America, we’re connecting our resources and people to the things that make life better in communities across the United States. From working with local businesses that create jobs and supporting nonprofits that address critical needs to revitalizing neighborhoods and funding safe and affordable housing. Our mission is simple: to help Dallas thrive. Learn more about how we’re helping to each other at bankofamerica.com/Dallas Bank of America, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender. ©2015 Bank of America Corporation. ARHMSJB3 M2 02-22-2015 Set: 19:02:48 Sent by: [email protected] Festival ofCMYB IdeasELLOWYANLACKAGENTA THE DALLAS FESTIVAL OF IDEAS Come join us Photos by Louis DeLuca/Staff Photographer elcome to “For the City: The that will begin turning ideas into action two Dallas Festival of Ideas.” Our days after the festival ends. aim in this inaugural event is to Anticipating great things for Dallas’ future, enlighten and entertain — and then, we invite you to this groundbreaking first W Dallas Festival of Ideas. to shape our city for the future. This will be an annual festival worthy of And when we say it’s “For the City,” we mean the name, with the creative imagination at it. All who attend will have opportunities to get work up and down the Dallas Arts District involved and have their voices heard. On Feb. generating not only ideas but also music, 27 and 28 — first at Dallas City Performance visual art, drama, dance and other artistic Hall on Friday night and the next day at venues forms. There’ll be something for every Dallas from Booker T. Washington High School to the resident. Dallas Museum of Art — the Dallas Arts Dis- We all know about the power of ideas — trict will become imagination’s home in North how the best ones end up changing our lives, Texas. once someone or something bridges the gap Join us and add your own big idea. between idea and action. Sincerely, Our guarantee is that this festival will be different from any other because it will not Dr. Larry Allums only bring to life the ideas — big, bold ones — Executive Director but it also comes with a follow-through plan Dallas Institute of Humanities and Culture DN-1385598-01 Our new mobile site puts ny self-respecting city must dream any Dallas Institute program, the audience will THE HEART OF THE CITY beyond the here and now. be active participants. Great metropolises plan 40 or 50 “We are bringing in a diverse group of high- years ahead, and even then, they profile global keynotes and matching them not IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND A only with carefully selected Dallas visionaries, wonder if the world might pass them by. This futuristic sense is at the heart of the but also with the public,” notes Dr. Larry Al- latest collaboration between the Dallas In- lums, Dallas Institute executive director. “Our stitute of Humanities and Culture and The goal is to ignite and challenge the people of Dallas Morning News. Dallas to think about what they want their city What we’ve cooked up, in my humble opin- to be.” ion, is a pretty special two-day conference on The festival will unfold at several venues in Feb. 27 and 28 called “For the City: The Dallas the Dallas Arts District. To learn more, go to Festival of Ideas.” thedallasfestival.com. I trust readers will find this special section a Sincerely, fine primer for the upcoming conference. After all, this inaugural ideas festival will Bob Mong bring local and global thinkers together to help Editor Emeritus visualize what this region can become. As with The Dallas Morning News COMING UP JOIN THE CONVERSATION Friday in Guide: More on the free activities at Follow the festival on Twitter at Saturday’s event and the artistic performances @dallasideas and tweet from the event with #dallasideas. Saturday and Sunday: Coverage of the festival in The Dallas Morning News and at dallasnews.com STAFF Project editors: Leslie Snyder ONLINE and Tom Huang Reporters: Jasmine Aguilera, Full festival David Flick, Elizabeth Hamilton, details at Mark Lamster, James Ragland, thedallas Chris Vognar, Jeffrey Weiss, festival.com. Seema Yasmin Editors: Jerry Bokamper, Arnessa Garrett, Steve Harris, Ann Pinson, Nancy Visser Designer: Lisa Veigel Copy editor: Becky Williams m.DowntownDallas.com Photographer: Louis DeLuca Read Photo editor: Guy Reynolds Now, Downtown is right at your fingertips. previously Graphic artist: Layne Smith Explore Downtown with our new mobile site. published Graphics editor: Michael Hogue Browse by district or discover what’s nearby. profiles of Digital editor: John Hancock local Search for restaurants, learn about upcoming events, panelists, Community engagement editor: explore museums, and even find the perfect place Christy Robinson Q&As with to call home, all with the tap of a finger. keynote Event: Alison Draper, speakers and president, CrowdSource other Advertising: Nicole Young, coverage at special projects manager dallas news.com/ dallasideas. ©2015 The Dallas Morning News M3 02-22-2015 Set: 18:37:30 Sent by: [email protected] Festival ofCMYB IdeasELLOWYANLACKAGENTA 4M THE DALLAS FESTIVAL OF IDEAS Sunday, February 22, 2015 + dallasnews.com The Dallas Morning News The Innovative City The Innovative City team will explore the role of innovation in: addressing social problems; unlocking creativity; reaping the benefits of millennials’ role in innovation; retaining local talent; fostering a “leading edge” mentality while honoring traditions; navigating new forms of media and communications as they emerge; and mining and advancing the capacities of a digital culture. KEYNOTE SPEAKER RAHAF HARFOUSH BACKGROUND NAME: Rahaf Harfoush TITLE: Digital innovation and foresight strategist AGE: 30 BIRTHPLACE AND RESIDENCE: Born in Damascus, Syria; lives in Paris EDUCATION: Graduated from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario with honors in business administration AWARDS/ACHIEVEMENTS: Co-author of The New York Times best-seller The Decoded Company: Know Your Talent Better Than Your Customers FAMILY: Lives with her husband and their dog, Pixel MIT Technology Review/Flickr.com Best-selling author and digital innovation consultant Rahaf Harfoush engages audiences around the world with stories of how companies and cities are embracing digital innovation and where they are going wrong. Digital expert: Sharing vital info quickly is key to innovative cities By SEEMA YASMIN second book, The Decoded Company: Know Your Talent transit lines should be built. The collaboration fueled Staff Writer [email protected] Better Than Your Customers. creativity and innovation, Harfoush said. Her first book, Yes We Did! An Inside Look at How She lists another Canadian example of innovation. In ahaf Harfoush was in Paris when terrorists Social Media Built the Obama Brand, shares insights Calgary, Mayor Naheed Nenshi made data about the attacked Charlie Hebdo, the satirical from three months of volunteering with the Obama city’s budget available to the public and asked his con- French news magazine with offices just 10 campaign’s digital media team. stituents to help make key financial decisions. minutes from her home. As well as offering expert advice on digital foresight Data sharing lies at the heart of innovation in cities, Like many in Paris, Harfoush was glued to companies around the world, Harfoush is working on she said. But it isn’t without its challenges. Information Rto her TV, computer and phone screens as authorities her third book, which explores strategies for learning overload and archaic legal systems unable to keep up issued alerts asking residents to avoid public places.