METRO 100: More & More
| By Chuck Terhark , Erin Madsen , Chris Clayton |
ShareThis(95) Curb Media's "Natural Advertising"
While it’s hardly the most environmentally guilty industry out there, the advertising business is responsible for its fair share of blame in the global climate crisis. Billboards are made of toxic PVC and 100 million trees turn into junk mail every year—but CURB, a British media company that opened its first stateside office in Minneapolis this summer, wants no part of it. Instead, they put their creative imprint on the natural world itself, often in whimsical and even stunning ways. Want your business’s logo transformed into a 500-foot crop circle? Want your product replicated as a sand castle? Interested in a guerilla campaign that stamps your message into snow banks around the city? The world itself is CURB’s canvas, and it—and your business—are better for it.
(96) Excelsior Girls Night Out
A night out with the girls is a time-honored tradition. Mix in a little gossip with shopping and cocktailing (maybe even a little dancing) and you’ve got a bona fide night out. Lucky for us, local cities and neighborhoods have been paying attention and now offer exclusive nights out just for the ladies, featuring deals and discounts at area shops, salons and restaurants. While Edina and Uptown have stand-up versions, Excelsior Girls Night Out really takes the cake when it comes to creating a see-and-be-seen night (Thursdays throughout the summer) for the entire metro. Every other week the citywide street party takes on a new theme—think Cowgirl Night—and new in 2009, a focus on philanthropy that did everything from raise funds for the Lake Minnetonka Relay for Life to collect art supplies for Free Arts Minnesota.
(97) Business Ethics
Believe it or not, business ethics, a subject more famous for being lampooned than for having any actual merit—see Eric’s undoing at the end of Billy Madison; when asked to define “business ethics,” he becomes so flustered that he resorts to brandishing a gun to get his way—has finally found its place in civil society. As it turns out, in the era of Bernie Madoff, Tom Petters and, yes, Denny Hecker, the topic of business ethics is no longer the oxymoron in the corner. In fact, 2009 marks the most notable year for business ethics since that Billy Madison shout-out in 1995. And it’s all because of Minnesotans.
Whether it be the St. Paul-based global ethics organization Caux Round Table, the MBA Oath—think Hippocratic, but for budding MBAs—being championed by former Medtronic CEO and current Harvard Business School professor Bill George, or the countless local MBA programs that are spearheading increased classroom focus on how to perpetuate ethical business, business ethics is riding its first-ever wave of legitimate popularity. Dare we dream of a future where ethics are the norm and the last scene of Billy Madison becomes largely misunderstood?
(98) Bill Green
The job of a big-city school superintendent is hard, but not so hard as that of analyzing the success of one’s tenure. By most measures, Green—who will leave in 2010 after four years helming Minneapolis public schools—was a success. The even-keeled Augsburg professor has brought stability to a district torn asunder following the short but divisive term of Thandiwe Peebles. Green’s longevity in the lightning-rod position, when it is done, will have been more than twice the national average. By giving more than a year’s notice of his departure, he gives the city ample time to recruit a quality replacement—still no easy task, considering Green’s popularity. Schools are closing, yes, and test scores and graduation rates are never as high as they should be, but take it from those who worked closest to Green: He will be missed.
(99) The Emily Program
This fall, six women moved into a three-bedroom, two-story house on a quiet street in Minneapolis’s Bryn Mawr neighborhood. From the street, it may not look exceptional, but the home is one of a kind in Minnesota: It’s the first transitional living space for people with eating disorders. Specializing in the outpatient treatment of eating disorders, the Emily Program, which owns the property, has seen tremendous growth in recent years. The program had just 300 clients in 2000; by last year, that number had risen to 2,500. Next year, the Anna Westin House—Minnesota’s first residential treatment center for eating disorders—will move from Chaska to a former monastery on Cleveland Ave. in St. Paul. The new space will double the treatment capacity from eight to 16 beds and quadruple their square footage, creating more space for the program’s holistic approach to healing, from yoga classes to massage, acupuncture to music and art therapy. Both spaces are good news for both individuals in need of live-in treatment and those seeking a less-bumpy transition back into everyday, healthy living.
(100) Joe Mauer
Stats (as of 09.15.09)
Age 26
Batting Average .371 (highest in MLB)
On-base Percentage .436 (highest in American League)
Slugging Percentage .607 (highest in American League)
Batting Titles 3* (more than any other catcher in baseball history)
Reasons to bay attention to the Twins anymore 1
* Assuming he wins this year. Which he will.
While it’s hardly the most environmentally guilty industry out there, the advertising business is responsible for its fair share of blame in the global climate crisis. Billboards are made of toxic PVC and 100 million trees turn into junk mail every year—but CURB, a British media company that opened its first stateside office in Minneapolis this summer, wants no part of it. Instead, they put their creative imprint on the natural world itself, often in whimsical and even stunning ways. Want your business’s logo transformed into a 500-foot crop circle? Want your product replicated as a sand castle? Interested in a guerilla campaign that stamps your message into snow banks around the city? The world itself is CURB’s canvas, and it—and your business—are better for it.
(96) Excelsior Girls Night OutA night out with the girls is a time-honored tradition. Mix in a little gossip with shopping and cocktailing (maybe even a little dancing) and you’ve got a bona fide night out. Lucky for us, local cities and neighborhoods have been paying attention and now offer exclusive nights out just for the ladies, featuring deals and discounts at area shops, salons and restaurants. While Edina and Uptown have stand-up versions, Excelsior Girls Night Out really takes the cake when it comes to creating a see-and-be-seen night (Thursdays throughout the summer) for the entire metro. Every other week the citywide street party takes on a new theme—think Cowgirl Night—and new in 2009, a focus on philanthropy that did everything from raise funds for the Lake Minnetonka Relay for Life to collect art supplies for Free Arts Minnesota.
(97) Business Ethics
Believe it or not, business ethics, a subject more famous for being lampooned than for having any actual merit—see Eric’s undoing at the end of Billy Madison; when asked to define “business ethics,” he becomes so flustered that he resorts to brandishing a gun to get his way—has finally found its place in civil society. As it turns out, in the era of Bernie Madoff, Tom Petters and, yes, Denny Hecker, the topic of business ethics is no longer the oxymoron in the corner. In fact, 2009 marks the most notable year for business ethics since that Billy Madison shout-out in 1995. And it’s all because of Minnesotans.
Whether it be the St. Paul-based global ethics organization Caux Round Table, the MBA Oath—think Hippocratic, but for budding MBAs—being championed by former Medtronic CEO and current Harvard Business School professor Bill George, or the countless local MBA programs that are spearheading increased classroom focus on how to perpetuate ethical business, business ethics is riding its first-ever wave of legitimate popularity. Dare we dream of a future where ethics are the norm and the last scene of Billy Madison becomes largely misunderstood?
(98) Bill Green
The job of a big-city school superintendent is hard, but not so hard as that of analyzing the success of one’s tenure. By most measures, Green—who will leave in 2010 after four years helming Minneapolis public schools—was a success. The even-keeled Augsburg professor has brought stability to a district torn asunder following the short but divisive term of Thandiwe Peebles. Green’s longevity in the lightning-rod position, when it is done, will have been more than twice the national average. By giving more than a year’s notice of his departure, he gives the city ample time to recruit a quality replacement—still no easy task, considering Green’s popularity. Schools are closing, yes, and test scores and graduation rates are never as high as they should be, but take it from those who worked closest to Green: He will be missed.
(99) The Emily Program
This fall, six women moved into a three-bedroom, two-story house on a quiet street in Minneapolis’s Bryn Mawr neighborhood. From the street, it may not look exceptional, but the home is one of a kind in Minnesota: It’s the first transitional living space for people with eating disorders. Specializing in the outpatient treatment of eating disorders, the Emily Program, which owns the property, has seen tremendous growth in recent years. The program had just 300 clients in 2000; by last year, that number had risen to 2,500. Next year, the Anna Westin House—Minnesota’s first residential treatment center for eating disorders—will move from Chaska to a former monastery on Cleveland Ave. in St. Paul. The new space will double the treatment capacity from eight to 16 beds and quadruple their square footage, creating more space for the program’s holistic approach to healing, from yoga classes to massage, acupuncture to music and art therapy. Both spaces are good news for both individuals in need of live-in treatment and those seeking a less-bumpy transition back into everyday, healthy living.
(100) Joe Mauer Stats (as of 09.15.09)
Age 26
Batting Average .371 (highest in MLB)
On-base Percentage .436 (highest in American League)
Slugging Percentage .607 (highest in American League)
Batting Titles 3* (more than any other catcher in baseball history)
Reasons to bay attention to the Twins anymore 1
* Assuming he wins this year. Which he will.
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