Registration is now open for the 2026 Wisconsin Economic Summit.
Day 2: Agenda
Dream is not fantasy.
It is the ability to see a different future and act on it. Day 2 turns to the innovators, entrepreneurs, and community builders converting possibility into companies, industries, places, and opportunity.
8:40 a.m. – Wisconsin Was Built by Dreamers: How Big Ideas Shaped Our Economy
Featured address:
Wisconsin’s prosperity did not simply happen. It was built by people who looked at what existed, imagined something more, and had the determination to make it real. Dr. Thomas Kemp places Determination to Dream within Wisconsin’s longer economic history, showing how agriculture, manufacturing, education, entrepreneurship and community leadership evolved because people acted before success was guaranteed. Day 2 begins with a challenge: Wisconsin has reinvented its economy before. What are we willing to imagine—and build—now?
Thomas Kemp, Ph.D.
9:10 a.m. – Building What’s Next: Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and the Courage to Start
Founder story / featured remarks:
Every successful company begins with someone seeing a problem and deciding it is worth solving. Vivek Swaminathan, founder and CEO of Cardamom Health, shares what determined dreaming looks like in modern entrepreneurship: the audacity of challenging conventional thinking, taking calculated risks, adapting when the path changes, and turning an idea into an organization capable of creating economic impact. This is a builder’s story about the courage required to start before the outcome is obvious.
Vivek Swaminathan
9:50 a.m. – Breakout sessions
Choose one of the following
Session 1 – Wisconsin’s Next Big Bets: Innovation, Industry, and the Future of Growth
New economies begin with bold bets. From fusion energy and next-generation power systems to advanced manufacturing and emerging hydrogen technologies, Wisconsin innovators are pursuing ideas with the potential to reshape industries, create new markets, and expand what’s possible for the state’s economy. These leaders aren’t simply improving what exists today. They’re building for a future that has yet to fully take shape.
Moderator: TBD
Panelists: Jon Heup, Dominick Bindl, Ignacio Bincaz
Session 2 – Regional Dreamers: Building the Communities of Tomorrow
What happens when leaders refuse to accept the obvious answer? Across the Greater Chippewa Valley, people are challenging assumptions about what existing assets and institutions can become. The 900 District is one example: a vacant 600,000-square-foot hospital being reimagined as a health, education, innovation and wellness campus connecting research, learning, entrepreneurship, workforce development and community activity. Panelists explore how bold ideas become regional realities through unlikely partnerships, shared vision, aligned resources, and the determination to sustain momentum over time.
Moderator: TBD
Panelists: Tim Nelson, Zach Halmstad, Kristie Smith
Session 3 – Reimagining Place: How Visionary Communities Create Their Next Chapter
A vacant auto plant. A shuttered paper mill. Farm fields with the potential to become something entirely new. Economic transformation does not begin the same way in every community, but it begins with the willingness to imagine a different future. From the Kenosha Innovation Neighborhood rising on the former Chrysler site, to Wisconsin Rapids redefining its future beyond its historic identity as a paper town, to Jefferson County building toward a global food and beverage manufacturing hub, panelists will explore how vision, leadership, partnership, investment and patience can create a community’s next economic chapter.
Moderator: Elmer Moore
Panelists: Aaron Towns, Kyle Kearns, Ben Wehmeier
11:10 a.m. – The Audacity to Build
Closing keynote
Deb Carey didn’t inherit a Wisconsin icon. She built one. Long before New Glarus Brewing Company became a household name, she bet on an idea, embraced uncertainty, and committed to making it real. Her journey reflects the audacity, resilience, and determination that fuel entrepreneurship and economic growth. Hear how determined dreamers transform bold ideas into enduring businesses and create lasting impact for communities, workers, and future generations, right here in Wisconsin.
Deb Carey
