The Regional Summit
The Regional Summit will provide opportunities for public, private and nonprofit leaders from the 11-county region to connect, learn and collaborate on forward-thinking solutions. Event programming will foster dialogue and strategies that address various opportunities and challenges faced by rural, urban and suburban communities, with the goal of working together to advance DSM as a top region for economic development and talent development.
The Regional Summit will take place on Thursday, Oct. 3 from 11 a.m. - 7 p.m. at the Iowa State Fairgrounds. The event will conclude with The Partnership's annual Economic Impact Awards.
Register Here
Keynote Speaker
Kat Saunders
![](/filesimages/Regional%20Summit/Team_Headshots_Kat_Saunders.jpg)
Kat Saunders is a partner at Economic Leadership, LLC, is a consultancy providing strategic planning, analysis, executive communications and counsel to hundreds of clients over the last decade. The firm is currently working in 23 states across the U.S. and has decades of experience in state and local economic development, real estate, planning, organizational management, public affairs and analytics. Saunders regularly counsels CEOs and other public and private sector leaders on creating change to improve competitiveness and reputation through location analysis, policy change and narrative. She is the lead communications and economic development strategist for Howard Hughes Holdings, the country’s largest master planned community developer, and leads stakeholder engagement and talent attraction strategy for Florida Power & Light, engaging with the utility’s partners throughout Florida. Her previous clients include the Research Triangle Regional Partnership, the Greater Houston Partnership, One Columbus in Ohio, Deloitte Real Estate, Nixon Peabody LLP and The Staubach Company. Earlier in her career, she was Director of Government Affairs for the Tampa affiliate of the National Association of Home Builders.
Additional programming details for the Regional Summit will be announced in the coming weeks.
2024 Economic Impact Awards
Regional Summit participants are invited to attend The Partnership's annual Economic Impact Awards following the Regional Summit programming. A 40-year tradition, the Economic Impact Awards recognize local companies for their contribution toward the economic and community vitality of DSM.
For more information on registering exclusively for the Economic Impact Awards, please contact Melissa Moyer.
2024 Sponsors
Platinum
![](/filesimages/Regional%20Summit/regional-summit-web-prairie-meadows.jpg)
|
Gold
![](/filesimages/Regional%20Summit/regional-summit-web-musco.jpg)
|
Bronze
NCMIC
|
Sponsorship opportunities are still available. Learn more here.