2018 bushCONNECT Partner Announcement

February 13, 2018

More than 30 organizations will partner with the Bush Foundation to produce bushCONNECT 2018, an event that will bring together more than 1,100 people to build and strengthen connections among leaders and leadership networks across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share the same geography.

The Foundation selected 17 organizations, representing a range of sectors and communities, to recruit attendees for its fourth bushCONNECT event, which will be held October 1, 2018, at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Recruitment partners will identify 15-25 people from their network to attend bushCON. We intentionally engage with a wide array of recruitment partners to ensure a diverse mix of attendees who can interact and learn from one another at the event. Many Bush Foundation Fellows, grantees and other partners will also have the opportunity to attend. General admission tickets for bushCON will go on sale June 12.

The Foundation also selected 14 organizations to develop workshops and presentations; programming that helps foster connections among attendees, develops valuable leadership skills, and inspires people to think bigger and differently about their work.

All partners will meet in February for a kickoff, and will begin their work for the year. The Foundation will announce additional programming partners in the coming months, as well as keynote and featured speakers.

The Foundation hosted bushCON in 2014, 2015 and 2016, then began a practice of offering it every other year, so it's returning in 2018. In off years, starting in 2017, the Foundation has started to partner with other conferences across the country to offer scholarships to cohorts from the region to connect with one another and others outside the region on a national scale.

More details about bushCON can be found at www.bushconnect.org, and the website will be updated regularly leading up to the event. Stay tuned for more details.

Programming Partners

Blood Orange
Brave New Workshop
Coalition of Asian American Leaders
Green Card Voices
Guthrie Theater
Ignite Minneapolis
jabber logic
Joi Unlimited Coaching and Consulting
Minnesota Campus Compact
Pillsbury United Communities
Public and Non-Profit Leadership Center, UMN Humphrey School of Public Affairs
Public Functionary (Fiscal sponsor Springboard for the Arts)
Racing Magpie
Sweet Potato Comfort Pie (Fiscal sponsor Golden Valley Community Foundation) 

Recruitment Partners

Aberdeen Area Diversity Coalition
Center for Technology & Business
Emerging Prairie
Green Card Voices
The Matthews Opera House and Arts Center 
Minneapolis Foundation LatinoLEAD
Minneapolis Regional Chamber Development Foundation
Minnesota Campus Compact
Native Governance Center
Northland Foundation
Northwest Minnesota Foundation
Public Functionary (Fiscal sponsor Springboard for the Arts)
Racing Magpie
Reviving the Islamic Sisterhood for Empowerment (Fiscal sponsor Propel Nonprofits) 
State of Minnesota, Department of Health
State of Minnesota, Department of Management and Budget
Strengthen ND

Additional event partners:

Events by Lady K
Greater Than The Sum