Project Description
Inspire & be inspired! The Neighborhood Planning and Activation Workgroup (NPAW) is committed to ensuring residents, neighborhood groups, and community leaders have the tools they need to create and support strong and vibrant neighborhoods.
The Inspire Conference is designed to equip attendees with practical strategies and new ideas to do good work in their neighborhoods, and, to leave participants feeling refreshed, energized and celebrated! Panelists and speakers include both local leaders and national experts. This year's event is free and will include:
- Breakfast & Lunch
- 60-minute break-out sessions
- 90-minute workshops
- Plenary speaker focused on wellness
- Neighborhood Awards Dinner
The conference location will be annouced this Spring. Registration for attendees, volunteers, and vendors will open in June!
The 2024 Inspire Neighborhood Conference is a one-day event that energizes community leaders by providing...
- opportunities to network, build bonds and grow community,
- education & learning opportunities: where local and regional experts sharing best practices, innovations, and resources,
- encouragement and celebration of local neighborhood and grassroots leaders
Active Engagement Opportunities!
Use the links below to become a part of our 2024 Conference and Dinner! You can submit a community survey or apply to be a breakout session speaker.
When: September 13, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for the conference, with an awards dinner from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Where: Electric Works, 1690 Broadway, Fort Wayne, Indiana, 46802
The City of Fort Wayne wants to recognize its neighborhoods and their hard work! Help us celebrate outstanding members of our community by nominating a neighborhood association or resident.
Submit a nomination in using our online form in the following location- https://form.jotform.com/24092322645515- or by scanning the QR Code below.
Conference registration is free for all Fort Wayne residents, but space is limited.
if you would like to help the Neighborhood Planning & Activation team before, during or after the conference, please let us know by using the same form to register as a volunteer!
The volunteer, vendor, and attendee registration form will open in June of 2024.
Your feedback is valuable to us! Once the 2024 Conference has been completed, we would love to hear your thoughts. Please check back in after September 13th to share your thoughts about the conference- and help us make next year's event even better!
Participant Feedback
2024 Conference Overview
2024 Conference Overview
- Who: Residents and leaders of Fort Wayne, Indiana.
- What: Inspire Neighborhood Conference.
- Where: Electric Works, 1690 Broadway, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46802
- When: September 13, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for the conference, with an awards dinner from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Residents can register for both events or attend just one. At registration, you will have the opportunity to make your selection.
- Why: To energize and equip Fort Wayne's neighborhood residents and leaders.
- Food! Breakfast and lunch will be provided during the conference. Dinner will be provided for attendees of Inspire Awards Dinner.
Neighborhood Association & Leader of the Year Awards:
The City of Fort Wayne wants to recognize the outstanding contributions of neighborhoods and residents who have positively impacted our community.
Take advantage of this opportunity to showcase the great work happening in your neighborhood or shine a light on others doing great work in our community!
Submit your nomination today by using this online application: https://www.jotform.com/240923226455152.
If you need inspiration for submission, you can check out our 2023 award recipients by clicking the "2023 Conference Recap" tab on this page!
Attendees
Attendance is free of charge for participants!
Updates coming soon! Online registration will open in June and close on September 6th at 11:59 p.m. We encourage early registration to secure your preferred breakout sessions!
Attendees can look forward to engaging breakout presentations complemented by a dynamic keynote and plenary address.
Sponsors
A big thank you to all our sponsors.
We invite you to consider partnering with us for Inspire 2025!
2024 Event Documents & Photos:
Stay tuned for the release of Inspire 2024's booklet (featuring speaker bios and workshops descriptions) and photos!
2023 Conference Recap
Attendees
We were thrilled to have 150 attendees, speakers, volunteers, and vendors join us for our inaugural Inspire Conference at Electric Works in 2023. Thank you again to everyone who came and made it an Inspiring event!
Speakers & Vendors
We had over 40 speakers and 11 vendors from Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, and Baltimore. There were 15 breakout presentations as well as a keynote & plenary address. Featured Speakers included:
In her inspiring keynote speech, Bree Jones detailed how she leveraged the simple power of social capital to tackle hyper-vacancy in one of West Baltimore’s most distressed neighborhoods, where 30% of buildings are vacant. In a market that most said was unredeemable, Bree has built a groundswell of galvanized neighbors new and old, who are purchasing formerly abandoned homes alongside one another in the spirit of community building and wealth building.
Learn more about her work at http://www.parityhomes.com or by viewing her TED talk here: Bree Jones: How to revitalize a neighborhood -- without gentrification | TED Talk.
- Terry Brooks Allen & Sharon Logan of the Indianapolis Neighborhood Resource Center (INRC)
For a full list of our 2023 speakers, please check out our 2023 Conference booklet here: 2023 Inspire Neighborhood Conference by CityofFortWayne - Issuu.
Neighborhood Association & Leader of the Year Awards
Neighborhood Association of the year & Neighborhood Leader of the year were presented to recognize the accomplishments of 2 neighborhoods and 4 residents.
Sponsors
Thanks to our 5 sponsors: AARP Indiana, Premier Bank, Old National Bank, NIPSCO, and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield.
Event Documents & Photos
Check out our 2023 Conference photos program documents:
