MEMPHIS, Tenn. (March 16, 2011) – Gwyn R. Fisher, the Executive Director of MPACT Memphis, has been selected to participate in the Brussels Forum March 25-27, 2011 and to represent the British Council Transatlantic Network 2020 (TN2020) at the Young Professionals Summit in Brussels, Belgium on March 26, 2011 at the Conrad Hotel.
The Young Professionals Summit is a part of the internationally recognized, Brussels Forum – a meeting of the most influential political, corporate and intellectual leaders in the United States and Europe to address the challenges facing both sides of the Atlantic. The goal of the 2011 Young Professionals Summit is to listen to the perspective of a younger generation and involve them in finding solutions.
Ms. Fisher was invited to participate based upon her dedication to developing talent in the city of Memphis and her grassroots approach to connecting young professionals.
“We are intrigued by Gwyn’s innovative work. It is inspirational and engaging, and we are delighted that Gwyn is able to come from Memphis and represent the British Council at this very high profile international event in the very heart of Europe,” said Robin Davies, the Head of the EU Team at the British Council Office in Brussels.
Ms. Fisher has discussed her opportunity with Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr., Shelby County Mayor Mark H. Luttrell Jr. and other city officials and top-level leaders to confirm the best way for Memphis to receive representation and acknowledgment at the summit.
“I’ve known Gwyn for some time now, and I know she will represent Memphis and Shelby County proudly in Brussels. I appreciate all the work she does with our young professional community, and I look forward to finding out what more we can do to make their lives here more prosperous,” Luttrell said.
“I’m honored to be selected,” said Fisher, “and I look forward to sharing my knowledge and passion for Memphis with my European and North American colleagues. Our approach to engaging young professionals can be easily translated on an international scale and the Young Professionals Summit is the perfect forum.”
To find out more about the Brussels Forum and Young Professionals Summit, visit the website at www.brusselsforum.org.
About Gwyn Fisher
Ms. Fisher is the Executive Director of MPACT Memphis, a nationally and internationally recognized organization dedicated to engaging and supporting Memphis’ diverse young professionals. She is a former attorney and served as Law Clerk to a federal judge for four years. Gwyn received a Bachelor of Arts in French from Scripps College and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Memphis. She has published in legal journals and is currently a contributing author for Smart City Memphis. Gwyn is a recipient of the 2010 Memphis Business Journal’s “Top 40 Under 40” award. She has also been recognized as one of Memphis’ “Power Players” by Memphis Business Quarterly and listed in Memphis Magazine’s 2010 list of “Who’s Who.” Gwyn is also a participant in the British Council Transatlantic Network (TN2020), and invitation-only consortium of the top young professionals from Europe and North America. She currently lives in Midtown with her ugly pug MoMo.
About MPACT Memphis
MPACT Memphis is a nonprofit organization founded in 2001 that above all, connects Memphis’ diverse, creative generation of young professionals to each other and to the community. It is also a national model for other unaffiliated young professional organizations. To learn more about MPACT Memphis, visit their website at www.mpactmemphis.org
the original poster mmakes it sound like or infer that MPact Memphis, actually is an invitee to attend the pretigious Brussels Forum 2011 !
I don’t think an insigificant 501 3c local memphis tn group, or for that matter the city mayor of a small tn city is likely to get that invitation lol I think more important cities or groups might be ahead of memphis ??
the group that was invited was the English council, and Luttrell saying this executive director of Mpact will represent Memphis and shelby county, TN “proudly” is strange and really wrong, since the director will be in Brussels to actually “represent” a British group as stated, and not represent Mpact memphis.
that would be a real joke for that memphis group to receive an invitation to be a particpant to come to Belgium – not going to happen
the whole coverage is sort of misleading
As we understand it, the German Marshall Fund is paying for all expenses for the best and brightest to travel to this important conference.
And as for us, we think that getting a broader view – including a worldview – is crucial to addressing Memphis problems. It eliminates the parochialism that thwarts so many of our efforts.
By the way, the notion that Memphis isn’t good enough to get this kind of attention is belied by previous German Marshall Fund in Memphis, by a French livability group, and by the French economic development minister.
As is the case in these kinds of international opportunities, members – including some of us here – have traveled under the umbrella of an international organization but the intent and interest is purely Memphis-focused.
Congratulations Gwyn!
Your hard work and dedication to the city and its evolution are definetly praiseworthy. There are few others that can represent Memphis and the importance of creating a community that appeals to young professionals as well as you.
Anon-
Actually, quite a few physicians and other members of the medical community are actively involved with MPACT. I also happen to know that members of both the MPD and MFD have attended and supported MPACT events, having attended a few myself. They have as much at stake as any other. In order for the medical and bio-industrial community to thrive in Memphis, these organizations, just as any other in the city, need to be able to attract talented and educated individuals to this area. This includes retaining the local citizenry that have attained advanced education in an incredible variety of fields. You seem confused as to the definition of “young professionals”. MPACT is but a piece of a much larger puzzle that defines a path forward for the Memphis and this region.
Once again, the myopic viewpoint expressed in your post reflects a lack of understanding of how real cities function and evolve. There is absolutely no reason for every one of us who is civically engaged to focus only on the issues you present as being paramount. There are in fact numerous organizations that focus on the issues you have pronounced as demanding nothing less than single focus time and again. Organizations such as the Urban Child Institute, Healthy Start, HUG, Stand for Children, Memphis Child Advocacy Center, New Teacher Project, TEI, BRIDGES, The Community Forum, Hands on Memphis, Memphis CAN, Volunteer Memphis, Yo! Memphis, Lifeline to Success, Prison Fellowship, and many more are all working to solve those issues that you show such devotion towards. I am sure you are already aware of their existence and the programs they offer in light of you comments.
So once again, the call for anyone leading or involved in any of these organizations to attend an event on the national stage based on their efforts and talents is deserving of a well earned congratulations.
Anon- please reread. I am not trying to thwart your opinion, I am simply stating my own. Your opinion is noted and can still be read above, thus no one is being denied access to your viewpoints. You will notice there was nothing personal in my comment. My response “…the myopic viewpoint expressed in your post reflects a lack of understanding of how real cities function and evolve” was clearly aimed at your post and not at you personally. Just as you are entitled to an opinion, I am entitled to a response. So just as you have been critical of the main post located here and other opinions, anyone here is free to disagree with your opinions as I have done. I will continue to post opinions and respond to comments as part of a public dialogue encouraged on this site.
I do not know everything that is required to create a great city, not did I suggest otherwise. However, as noted above, I did find your opinion regarding a required very narrow focus on the issues to be uninformed of the true nature of the work and efforts being led by so many in the community. I hope you will take time to research those organizations and the many others that share your focus and interest on many of the city’s underlying issues such as health, education and safety. Does it mean that those concerns and issues can simply be brushed aside? The answer is a definite no. However, it does illustrate that a great multitude of issues can be addressed concurrently where civic engagement is actively pursued by many individuals with a variety of interests and talents.
Your comments reflect not so much an interest in dialogue or discussion, but simply a desire to state an opinion unopposed and yet so many of your comments are directly in response to comments made by other. It appears that your expectations of conduct at this blog should apply only to others and not yourself. No doubt being aware of how blogs function, it is unreasonable to assume that one can post any opinion they like on any topic and not expect a response in turn. If that is an author’s expectation, they should endeavor to create their own blog where they can set their own guidelines and rules of conduct.
Anons: what would you do different? I LOVE picking apart people and organizations that hold the responsibility of representing the public or spending charity money. But, that part has been covered. How would you better rep Memphis? What would ask this group if given the chance? What about Mpact would you improve?
Where has Gwynn Fisher misrepresented her cause? If you are an Mpact member or contributor, please speak up, pitch in and lay it on about all the things that organization is doing wrong in it’s efforts to provide networking/business/education opportunities for young talent in Memphis. If you aren’t, this is rapidly becoming none of your business.
This is a forum for opinion about solutions, advancements and challenges in our community. I think this trip reflects her success related to that. You guys don’t. We heard ya. Please elaborate constructively or let it rest.
Doesn’t MPACT get city and/or county tax dollars to support its mission of networking? If so, why? If so, are the members of MPACT not able to support their own organization? Do other networking organizations–Rotary, Toastmasters, Bellevue Baptist Church, etc.–routinely get tax funding?
If I’m off-base on the MPACT receiving tax dollars thing, please, please let me know.
If there’s ever an example needed for a tempest in a teapot, I’ll submit this post. She is representing Memphis and MPACT just as surely as when Memphis mayors “represent” the German Marshall Fund, they are representing Memphis.
This is good for Memphis to be recognized and for the work of MPACT to be spotlighted. We’re hard-pressed to find anything problematic with this.
She – and anyone else in Memphis – who is able to join an international think tank or participate in an international conference and bring the lessons of Memphis and bring new ideas back to Memphis should be applauded. We need a broader perspective to solving our problems and those of us here have found many great ideas in participating in events and study tours not unlike this one.
And, anonymous, you are wrong. MPACT doesn’t get any city/county tax dollars. But it should.
First, I, the first ‘anon’ never suggested that MPACT gets city tax dollars, that was clearly some other poster…but that doesn’t matter…lol….anyone can be “Anonymous”, right ?
btw, I don’t find to ‘applaud’ unknown results from Ms Fisher representing a foreign British charity.
It seems to escape some of you, she is not representing Memphis, TN, or MPact Memphis…she was not ‘selected’ in any other capacity than to represent the British CHARITY.
that should not be hard to understand..
and another thing : Memphis is not being “RECOGNIZED” by any foreign group. What ‘recognition’ did it receive ?
where do get this notion that MPACT MEMPHIS is beingg “SPOTLIGHTED” LOL
That’s nuts, and there is no evidence that MPACT MEMPHIS is being ‘spotlighted’ …lol
that’s silly hyperbole my dear..and quite BOGUS and intentionally mislesding.
From the Memphis Daily News:
In a reference to Gwyn’s work as executive director of MPACT:
In a statement, Robin Davies, the head of the EU Team at the British Council Office in Brussels, called Fisher’s work “innovative, inspirational and engaging.”
It seems to escape at least one here that she was selected by the British Council Transatlantic Network 2020 because of her work at MPACT. To think that this will not be carried with her to the Young Professionals Summit ignores the obvious.
Hmmm. I thought for sure that I recalled a dust-up sometime back about SCM’s good buddy the Greater Memphis Chamber directing county funds to MPACT and New Path. And considering that I have an article from the usually-trustworthy Memphis Business Journal (dated 10/24/07) open on another browser window here in front of me, I’ll have to go with what it says over what SCM has to say.
That is interesting Anon. I just did a search through the MBJ archives back to 2001 and there is no mention of MPACT in an article sharing that date. Perhaps you will provide a link to the article referenced for all to see.
Mpact Memphis looks like it has an incestuous relationship with New Path, et al.
New Path endorses political candidates.. which is against federal law for Mpact Memphis…lol
Mpact Memphis does not receive funding from the city and certainly not the chamber. Some of the original founders did also start New Path. That’s about as much of a relationship the two share. Also, please stop quoting IRS info from 2009 and calling it valid. I’m extremely interested to hear what any of you have done since 2009 that would rival Gwyn’s accomplishments. Since you’ve (and we alllllll know which poster im addressing) already devoted so much of your time to bashing this post, I’m sure you’ll have a second to respond.
As for Gwyn and MPACT-congrats and good luck. I hope you learn from other leaders and share with the city upon your return.
Dumb City: Once again, you live up to your name. Mpact is a totally separate group from New Path. Mpact does not endorse candidates nor was it the parent of New Path. If you think this is the case, you are willingly misinformed and just enjoy muddying the water with your regular dose of fictions.
As with your comment about the Greater Memphis Chamber, you have the tendency to decide on your opinion and then think that you have the facts to back it up.
Again, anytime a young Memphis professional is invited to participate in an international meeting, it is a good thing for Memphis. The fact that it is MPACT is more the better.
SCM
what’s with the personal attack ? again and again and again ??
Since when is my OPINION required to be ‘backed’ up by things YOU think are “FACTS” ??
It’s OPINION , pal . Or do you believe that no one in Memphis should have an OPINION about anything, unless they obtain “permission” and an “okay” from YOU, or any other POSTER ?
Sorry pal, we still live in a democracy, with freedom of thought, and freedom of speech.
Clearly you must enjoy sycophants, or an oligarchy full of Memphis good ole boy serfs.
Newsflash ! I don’t have anyone as my overlord, so stop attempting to silence divergent opinion…it’s pretty small-minded, but that’s Memphis for ya
shalom !
Darn those pesky facts interfering with an “opinion”. I think there is some basic misunderstanding regarding the nature of this blog and others. It might be opinion, but this is a privately owned or operated blog site meaning that individual authors do require the permission to post and see that the posts are maintained. SmartCity, as operator even has the right to suspend all comments currently encouraged following each new post. No one has the right to demand anything. One will find that other private blogs are maintained and operated in similar fashion. It serves to prove that there are those who not only desire a life defined by entrenched ignorance, but actively defend viewpoints that run contrary to the facts. When one voices opinions that cannot be supported by reliable information or facts on a public forum, they should realize that their opinions will be subject to questions, critique and censorship. In this case, there were numerous posts that included a wide range of incorrect information. That is another point where general knowledge is lacking. Stating incorrect information is not the same as stating an opinion. If I state that the Sun revolves about the Earth, that is not an opinion- it is false information easily disproven with fact. Depending on the intent of the author, it could be considered an attempt to purposely misinform others and cloud the issue. Either way, the statement does not contribute to any discussion and thus is simply a waste of space deserving swift removal.
If one is not comfortable with such operational guidelines then perhaps they should not post at said site. True motivation could even inspire them to create their own blog where certain authors can define operational guidelines as they see fit instead of relying on the benevolence of others.
Dumb City: Grow up.
Guidelines ? I don’t even see any posted guidelines whatsoever. Where are the guidelines ?
BTW, why is one poster,( assuming he is not the owner of the blog), attempting to chastise another poster anyway ? Why is the urbanut even caring what another person posts in the first place ??
It sounds like you people want everybody in Memphis to think and react the same. Now that’s screwed up in my opinion, but I have no facts to back up my opinion either. Memphis is quite the informed and tolerant city we see.
Jerseysnob- a.k.a DumbCity, shekel, Carolinian, etc… never has facts to back up much of anything they post and is never taken seriously beyond a quick post to point out all their flaws. It sounds like you want everyone to live in your backwards world of stereotypes and paranoia, but you see most people are not that irrational. Obviously this annoys the author, yet not enough that they actually provide any real information to the discussion.