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ABOUT

What is WMCAT 20/20?

WMCAT 20/20: Exploring Intersecting Visions for the Future is a three-week, virtual series for leaders, doers, thinkers, and stakeholders focused on the foundations of community prosperity. Curated by the West Michigan Center for Arts + Technology, WMCAT 20/20 will immerse you in active learning at the intersection of Education, Health + Well-Being, Economic Prosperity, and Social Capital. 

The inaugural series launched in fall of 2020, engaging more than 200 participants in a longer-format virtual experience, and confirming the need for this intentional and intersectional space in our region. This year’s streamlined series will provide timely resources and relevant voices as we engage with content and each other.

The virtual WMCAT 20/20 series will provide opportunities to challenge assumptions, experience divergent viewpoints, and spark creativity through transformational speakers, art and music, meaningful resources, and relationship building.

See the schedule here.

Why WMCAT?

For more than 15 years, the West Michigan Center for Arts + Technology has been guided by our mission to provide a culture of opportunity for people to make social and economic progress in their lives and community. Through our work in arts and tech, workforce development, and social enterprise, we are positioned at a unique intersection of networks, sectors, and visions for the community.

We want to create a space to push our thinking, advance conversation, and make unlikely connections; we want to design the world our students will lead. WMCAT 20/20 is a manifestation of our belief in the power of voice, community building, experiential learning, and the promise of an equitable future.

What makes WMCAT 20/20 unique?

Inclusive – This experience is for varied viewpoints and lived experiences. We want to remove barriers to participation, create an open space for learning and growing, and bring together voices and perspectives that don’t typically occupy the same space.

Relational – Although a mostly virtual experience, we believe in the power of building community. During virtual community meetings there will be time for small group processing and discussion. And if you’re up for it, join us for our happy hour kickoff to connect with fellow participants before the first community meeting. 

Intersectional – If we only learn about certain things in certain contexts, we’re missing the larger story of interconnectedness. Content centered around Education, Economic Prosperity, Health + Well-Being, and Social Capital allows us to engage ideas and solutions as parts of larger systems and multiple sectors.


Pillars of Community Prosperity

WMCAT 20/20 will center on the foundations of community prosperity, and the pillars of WMCAT’s work. These content areas were generated in 2019 with the help of more than 50 diverse community leaders from business, nonprofit, government, creative, and education fields. The series will explore the intersection of these pillars in our communities, systems, and future solutions through three community meetings, engagement opportunities, and emailed resources for reflection and further learning.

Hear from Past WMCAT 20/20 Participants

“The series has exceeded expectations. I’ve been so impressed with the panelists and speakers.”

“WMCAT’s 20/20 series reminded me that we all have our place – we all have that one thing we are super passionate about and it’s important for each of us to follow that passion. For me … it’s a project that WMCAT helped inspire me to start working on in 2021 and I have big plans for it.”

“WMCAT has set us up with a toolkit to reference and many amazing presenters on which we can reflect. This allows professionals to find the passion that ignites us so we can make changes towards a more equitable and inclusive community.”

Read more in our WMCAT 20/20 Participant Reflections from the first series.