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V O L . X X I I N O. X M AY 1 6 , 2 0 1 6 18 4. How do we integrate immigrants, refugees, asylees and foreign-born into our communities and workforce? "Maine has serious challenges, but challenges create opportunities for fresh thinking and new strategies," Dickstein writes. Among the report's recommendations: Establish and support a public institution procurement policy that mandates a minimum percent (e.g., 10% by 2015 and 20% by 2020) of local food purchases and increases state reimbursement for school nutrition programs that buy local food. Encourage advanced biofuels research and development and innovation in value-added secondary wood products and wood as a building mater. Focus the state's rural tourism eff orts on a "sector cluster" in nature-based tourism and priori tize support for existing business development and innovative human capital develop- ment programs, like Welcome ME, for front-line tourism workers and business owners. Experiment with a targeted strategy to attract talented young people and entrepreneurs and build on existing pockets of in-migration — includ- ing "creative professionals drawn to the growing arts and design com- munities," new Americans, appren- tice farmers and "people seeking authenticity, quality of life and community involvement." True to CEI roots Transforming policy goals into reality takes capital, and that's where CEI has made its mark by off ering a continuum of fi nancing tools ranging from tax credits, to venture capital and loans leveraged by a variety of federal and state programs. e recent award of a two-year Seed Fund Support Grant of $250,000 from the U.S. Economic Development Administration has the potential of adding another fi nancing tool: e grant will be used to assess the feasibility of, and demonstrate market demand for, a Natural Resource Business Seed Capital Fund. "CEI's roots are certainly in the natu- ral resource industries of Maine," Bisson says, noting that the award will help identify ways of bridging the critical fi nancing gap for new and expanding businesses. "We're still very focused on those sectors. e local food movement is very exciting for the state, whether it's on land or fi sheries and aquaculture, sea vegetables and shellfi sh. I think there's still a lot of opportunities there." Both Biemann and Bisson bring to their new roles personal experiences and philosophies that are very much in harmony with their predecessor's vision for CEI that had been guided by one of the Civil Rights era's goals: Creating economic opportunity for people living in poverty. For Bisson, who grew up in Brunswick, a speech the late Martin Luther King Jr. delivered at Bowdoin College in 1965 epitomizes the kind of "pragmatic realism" underlying CEI's lending and business development programs: "He was talking about two types of people: ere's the extreme optimist and the extreme pessimist. Both of them agree that they should do nothing. For one it's because everything's been solved, and for the other it's because it can't be solved. He was characterizing himself as a pragmatic realist," Bisson says. "I feel like that's often where we are. ere's the world as it is, but we want to make the world a better place through our work. And so, even though you could always name a million things that are worri- some, we're trying to make it better. So that means we're not extreme pessimists, but we're also not blind optimists." » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E www.mainebiz.biz/OTRhallowell www.mainebiz.biz/OTRhallowell www.mainebiz.biz/OTRhallowell www.mainebiz.biz/OTRhallowell www.mainebiz.biz/OTRhallowell 207.761.8379 x341 R E G I S T E R T O DAY HALLOWELL May 19 | 5–7pm | Joyce's in Hallowell Joyce's in Hallowell Joyce's in Hallowell Break away from your desk to meet and mingle Break away from your desk to meet and mingle Break away from your desk to meet and mingle Break away from your desk to meet and mingle Break away from your desk to meet and mingle Break away from your desk to meet and mingle with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and with other members of the Hallowell region and surrounding business community at our third stop surrounding business community at our third stop surrounding business community at our third stop surrounding business community at our third stop surrounding business community at our third stop surrounding business community at our third stop surrounding business community at our third stop surrounding business community at our third stop in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! in the 2016 On the Road with Mainebiz series! This is a great forum to put a face with a name This is a great forum to put a face with a name This is a great forum to put a face with a name This is a great forum to put a face with a name This is a great forum to put a face with a name This is a great forum to put a face with a name This is a great forum to put a face with a name plus make new business connections. plus make new business connections. plus make new business connections. plus make new business connections. plus make new business connections. u admission is free u complimentary hors d'oeuvres complimentary hors d'oeuvres complimentary hors d'oeuvres u cash bar P R E S E N T I N G S P O N S O R R E G I O N A L S P O N S O R FOLLOW US @MBEVENTS #OTRHallowell16 NICKERSON & O'DAY, INC. Constructors - Since 1952 (207)989-7400 nickoday.com https://www.facebook.com/NickersonODay/ Gracie Theatre, Husson Campus Brewer Community School Maine Maritime Academy Dover Foxcroft Academy NICKERSON & O'DAY, INC. Constructors - Since 1952 (207)989-7400 nickoday.com Gracie Theatre, Husson Campus Brewer Community School Maine Maritime Academy Dover Foxcroft Academy WE'RE NOT JUST A PART OF THE COMMUNITY... WE BUILT IT! By the numbers: CEI's cumulative impact 1977–2015 Capital under management/committed: $770 million Business financed: 2,555 Amount financed: $1.194 billion Amount leveraged: $2.43 billion Businesses/people advised: 49,786 Full-time jobs at loan closing: 33,103 Affordable housing units created/preserved: 1,882 Child care slots created/preserved: 5,806 S O U R C E : CEI 2015 annual report

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