Talking Cities with Matt Enstice And Friends

This week's #TalkingCities guest is Marnie LaVigne, CEO of @LaunchNY, one of the most active seed funds in the country. @menstice and @MarnieLaVigne2 talk about the importance of "small but mighty dollars" to help companies and attract other investors, the need to help everyone build their networks, and teaching entrepreneurship at a younger age.

Michael Murphy is the president of Shea's Performing Arts Center, the only Tiffany-designed theater left in the U.S. He talks with Matt about knowing from the age of five that he wanted to be in the theater business. They also talk about how shows like "Hamilton" are helping to build a more inclusive theater community; how technology is changing the industry; and what it means to be launching show...

Paul Taylor is the Executive Director of FoodShare Toronto, a non-profit organization that works with communities and schools to deliver healthy food and food education. Paul believes that "food is not the answer to food insecurity," in fact, there is "more than enough food in Canada to feed all of its inhabitants." Hear his thoughts on food equity and how Canada is shifting the conversation away...

Product Specialist may be the title on Pablo Pinto's business card, but his impact extends far beyond his role at tech startup and 43North winner, TARA.ai. Car-less since 2012, Pablo credits Buffalo as a great place for cyclists, and believes cities should stop thinking about streets in terms of vehicles, but rather people. A holistic thinker with a passion for giving back, he talks about his trav...

Hear from Dottie Gallagher , President & CEO of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership , the regional chamber of commerce. They talk about the worldwide competition for talent, and the importance of the need for skilled immigration reform and policies around border issues; using Buffalo Niagara's location as an asset to be globally competitive; tying the talent attraction approach to regional tourism; an...

In this episode of #TalkingCities, Matt sits down with Holly Gagnon, President and CEO of Seneca Gaming Corporation. They speak on characteristics of a successful team, the gaming industry's development and what it means to be a female leader in a traditionally male dominated industry. As a founding member of Global Gaming Women, Holly expresses her passion for encouraging and empowering the growt...

Will you answer his call at 3am? If so, you might be the kind of person Raj Suchak is looking for. A self-described "technical geek who likes to tinker," after working at Salesforce for several years Raj started Cloud62, later acquired by Huron Consulting , to help companies get the most out of their investment in Salesforce. As he built his team, he got more and more interested in finding top tal...

Hear from Luis Taveras, CIO of the City of Buffalo on today's #TalkingCities podcast. Luis talks about his transition into government after spending his entire career working in the private sector; how he's transforming city hall from a reactive organization to one that's "operationally excellent"; and his thoughts on Open Data Buffalo and how a new Data 101 course will teach the public how to use...

This week on #TalkingCities we are joined by Patrick Kaler, chief Buffalo booster. Patrick moved to Buffalo several years ago to head up Visit Buffalo Niagara after spending time in Chicago, Lake Tahoe, and Loudon County (or "DC's wine country"). He talks about becoming the youngest executive director of a destination marketing organization in the state of Illinois, and how he reacted when a headh...

This week, Matt talks with Lorenz Gan, Chief Information Officer at New Era Cap . Lorenz is responsible for the strategy and execution behind the digital revolution at the iconic 98 year old global brand.  They talk about his move from Australia in search of the "Big Smoke" - first London and then New York City. He played a leading role at luxury fashion house Burberry when its goal was to become...

Hear from Warren Colville, President of The Buffalo News, and self-described family man, army brat and wine connoisseur. Warren talks about the changing media landscape in the world of #fakenews; how to navigate the tides of technology by innovating and diversifying revenue streams; and his thoughts on the future of the newspaper business.

In this episode, Matt talks with JoAnn Falletta, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra Music Director, about falling in love with music as a little girl and what it felt like to play her first guitar; her travels around the country and world as a Conductor, and the role music plays in cities; and music's powerful affect on the brain and our lives.

In this episode, Matt sits down with Bethany Deshpande, CEO and Co-Founder of SomaDetect, 2017 43North $1M winner. They discuss cows, the new wave of tech in farming, and life for Bethany growing up in Ontario. Bethany discusses the importance of data, consumer-focused design, and how her father discovered SomaDetect's technology almost by accident.

Jeremy M. Jacobs, Chairman of Delaware North and Owner/Governor of the Boston Bruins, joined Matt for a wide-ranging Talking Cities this week. He spoke about taking over the family-owned company, started by his father, at age 28, and how his children and grandchildren are now leading the company into the future. He purchased the Boston Bruins and Boston Gardens in 1975, joking, "ignorance helped"...

Dr. Gale Burstein, Commissioner of Public Health for Erie County @ecdoh, talks about Buffalo's approach to combatting the national opioid epidemic by developing a task force of unlikely bedfellows; the unique opportunities of having such a large refugee population in Buffalo and Erie County; and her public health training in South Africa.   

"Libraries aren't quiet places anymore" says Mary Jean Jakubowski, Director of the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library. In this episode, Mary Jean talks about how libraries are reinventing themselves as dynamic public spaces that engage the community through a variety of programming and activities; her thoughts on the library of the future and why there will always be books; and the constant need...

Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples Stokes is all things Buffalo. Crystal is a proud graduate of the Buffalo Public Schools and Buffalo State College and a former educator at B.U.I.L.D Academy. In this episode, Matt and Crystal talk about her passions for health care and education, the successes she's had in government fighting for diversity and MWBE contracts, and the ways in which Buffalo's Community...

Matt Enstice, president and CEO of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus & host of "Talking Cities," stops by Bell Ringer to talk cities-- Buffalo to be exact. Hear an update from Matt on how the BNMC continues to drive innovation and job creation in our region. Bell Ringer is a podcast by Invest Buffalo Niagara, our region's economic development agency charged with supporting business attraction, ex...

Matt talks with Bill Maggio, a health care, medical diagnostics, and business development executive from Buffalo, New York. They talk about the Jacobs Institute 's recently released landmark report on The Future of Medicine , and the role of health care systems in transforming how care is delivered. Bill highlights his role as an investor as well as a leader in the local start-up community as past...

In this episode, Matt talks with Eric Reich, co-founder of Campus Labs, an integrated software and cloud-based assessment tool that helps its nearly 1,400 higher education Member Campuses make informed decisions though strategic data and insights. Eric shares his thoughts on the future of higher education and how real change occurs when leadership isn't afraid to take risks and pivot when provided...

Hear from Megan McNally, executive director of the Foundry, a not-for-profit small business incubator and makerspace in Buffalo, NY. Megan talks about how being a woman in a male-dominated field of woodworking inspired her to help others pursue their dreams and celebrate their differences. Her work at the Foundry has helped grow countless businesses, build community, and provide opportunity and ac...

In this episode, Matt talks with Nic Perez, Chief Technologist at Booz Allen Hamilton, about his journey with crowdsourcing and how he's seen technology develop over the years with companies like Netscape Communications, Charles Schwab and America Online; his passion for using technology for the greater good and the lives he's impacted working as the web technical architect for American Red Cross;...

In this week's #TalkingCities, hear from Holberton School cofounders Julien Barbier, Sylvain Kalache, and Julien Cyr, pioneers changing the way education is delivered. Just named one of Business Insiders 19 Hottest San Francisco Startups to Watch in 2018, Holberton is a project-based college alternative for the next generation of software engineers seeking to diversify the tech industry.

Matt talks with Asi Burak, CEO of Power Play NYC, about the growing popularity of e-sports over traditional sports among millennials and women; Asi's role as the producer for the largest industry-facing gaming festival in NYC, the Games for Change Festival and how games impact education, healthcare, research, civics, and social issues;  and new research on neurogaming and the ways in which it can...

Matt talks with New York State Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul about how humble beginnings with her very socially-conscious family pulled her toward public service at a very young age; her start in politics working with legendary Buffalonian Tim Russert and longtime Senator of New York Daniel Patrick Moynahan; her enthusiasm around Buffalo's burgeoning tech scene as seen on the BNMC ; and her pri...