Early Friday morning, gardeners with the Grand Hotel were busy in the large flower bed at the entrance. They pulled up the massive display of tulips that greeted Mackinac Policy Conference attendees who arrived on Tuesday and Wednesday and installed new plants in time for this weekend’s Lilac Festival on the island. The lilacs on the Grand Hotel grounds have emerged in full force this week...

I get it all the time. From friends and colleagues in Brooklyn, Los Angeles and as far away as Milan, Italy. “I hear Detroit’s really coming back.” During his opening remarks yesterday at the Mackinac Policy Conference, the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Sandy Baruah called Detroit “the hippest city in the country.”...

In his opening remarks at The Mackinac Policy Conference, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder called for Michiganders to shift their focus from the “depressing” past to focus on solutions. He said that lately, talking to the media was “like talking to Eeyore”. I can relate. When it comes to Flint, it’s hard to have a positive outlook...

A year after proposing an overhaul of the system of schools in Detroit, the Skillman Foundation has formally kicked off the public policy debates at the Mackinac Policy Conference. In a morning session, the issues of governance and a financial rescue for the Detroit Public Schools were debated by John Rakolta, who co-chaired the coalition that made the recommendations, and Dan Quisenberry

Starting tomorrow through Friday, Detroit Public Television (DPTV) will provide viewers with unprecedented access to the 2016 Mackinac Policy Conference through live online and on-air coverage of almost all the sessions along with one-on-one interviews with key presenters. Why is access to a conference that is taking place on the other side of the state so important? Learn more

Detroit Regional Chamber and Detroit Public Television partner to provide coverage of the 2016 Mackinac Policy Conference.

Mike Rowe has done a lot of jobs - including Opera Singer.  Check out our web exclusive!

Nate Silver, founder of FiveThirtyEight.com, outlined "Things We Know and Don’t Know About the Presidential Election" in 2016 for the Mackinac Policy Conference...

Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson said he remembers Detroit as the most glamourous, cosmopolitan city he had ever seen...

Doris Kearns Goodwin, speaking at the Mackinac Policy Conference, said public-private partnerships have been the key to American success.   

Rowe, Daldin has collaborated with the Michigan Talent Investment Agency to produce six videos designed to engage middle and high school students and show them opportunities within the following industries...

Mike Rowe says the last time he was on Mackinac, he was working with a guy named George to pick up "horse exhaust" and to visit the composting facility on the island...

Finances, transportation, and a lack of respect for parents and concern for student achievement were key issues raised by members of the Coalition for the Future of Detroit Schoolchildren at a breakfast at the Mackinac Policy Conference.

Leaders at the Mackinac Policy Conference announced the creation of a new collaborative entity to coordinate and promote mobility research in the state...