Community Foundation team connects with nonprofit leaders and policymakers at the Mackinac Policy Conference
The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan attended the 2025 Mackinac Policy Conference, hosted by the Detroit Regional Chamber, from May 27-30.
During the annual convening on Mackinac Island, our team had the opportunity to connect with some of the state’s most influential leaders, share ideas and discuss Michigan’s economic future.
The focus of this year’s conference was on “Michigan’s Equation for Impact,” where vision and tools meet action to make an impact that ensures continued progress across the state. This theme played out during panel sessions inside the Grand Hotel, conversations on the porch, and at receptions around the island about leading through uncertainty and prioritizing our state’s progress over politics.
The Community Foundation sponsored a panel discussion, titled “Community Foundations Building Civic Infrastructure,” to explore how community foundations serve as nonpartisan bridge-builders and convenors, fostering partnerships and enhancing economic opportunities through cross-sector collaboration.
Nick Khouri, former State of Michigan treasurer and current Community Foundation trustee, moderated the conversation with Community Foundation President and CEO Nicole Sherard-Freeman and Dan Kildee, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Greater Flint.
Here is one key takeaway shared by the panelists: As the nonprofits we serve grapple with federal funding cuts, our ability to bring different stakeholders to the table will help us to step up and reimagine the systems that support our community partners.
Community foundations are “the scaffolding to build bridges amongst the public and private sector,” Sherard-Freeman said during the panel. This “scaffolding” facilitates connections and enables the collective action required to address community needs, she added.
You can watch the full panel discussion here.
During a tribute to Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan during the conference, Sherard-Freeman recalled several economic and workforce development projects she worked on with him.
Here is a snippet from her comments:
“While there were dozens of programs and deals the mayor and I worked on together, there are a few that I’ll never forget:
- Getting more than 15,000 Detroit residents upskilled for high-wage manufacturing jobs in the city in just over 18 months.
- Bringing more than 10 new companies across more than three different industries to the city in just over three years.
- Ensuring that more than 25,000 young adults built hard-skills and soft-skills to last a lifetime.
“Working for the mayor and alongside some of the most mission- and metrics-driven leaders I’ve ever known, I learned that as long as a thing is based on facts, can be measured by reliable data, and is scalable so that hundreds or, better yet, thousands of lives are better because of it, practically anything is possible,” she added.
The mayor’s recognition was presented by Sandy K. Baruah, CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber, with comments from Arn Tellem, vice chairman of Detroit Pistons Sports & Entertainment and past chair of the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Board of Directors.
Other key conference topics included education, affordable housing, attracting and retaining talent, technological innovation, improving infrastructure and more.
In addition to our panel, the Community Foundation was represented throughout the four-day event in several ways:
- Leaders of the New Economy Initiative, the Michigan Justice Fund and the Detroit Regional Workforce Partnership – all managed by the Community Foundation – heard from nonprofit leaders about what they need in this moment and met with policymakers to advocate for the communities they serve.
- Community Foundation Program and Donor Service leaders met each day with community partners and other key stakeholders to build the resources, relationships and expertise required to expand access to opportunities for people throughout our region.
The philanthropy sector, as well as the nonprofits we serve, faces an undeniably challenging moment. The Mackinac Policy Conference left the Community Foundation team with an even clearer understanding of not only what’s at stake, but also what’s possible when we collaborate across differences.
We return to work this week energized and committed to helping our communities explore ideas, develop capacity, and design solutions necessary to create and sustain economic opportunities for everyone.
To view recordings from the 2025 conference sessions, click here.