Phil Power

Although Phil, a Michigan native, technically retired when he sold his chain of 64 HomeTown Communications newspapers in 2005, he is still vice chair of the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC), chair of the state chapter of The Nature Conservancy and president of the Power Foundation. However, his true passion is the Center for Michigan, the nonpartisan, nonprofit “think-and-do tank” he founded in January 2006. His modest goal is to corral 10,000 citizens by 2010 to bust through partisanship and inexperience in Lansing and change how the Wolverine State does business.

More relevant to his participation in this year’s IAS Annual Meeting, Phil learned his love Inuit art from his father, Eugene, who was the founder of Eskimo Arts, Inc. This organization, in collaboration with James Houston, was responsible for the first traveling exhibition of Inuit art in the U.S. which began in the state of Michigan and included stops at Cranbrook and the University of Michigan.