Ten at the Top schedules Upstate Summit

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Ten at the Top has scheduled the 2022 Upstate Summit from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 10 at the Greenville Convention Center.

The biannual summit was among the first major events affected at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, postponed, rescheduled and eventually canceled in 2020 and 2021.

While the Upstate Summit typically brings together between 800-1,000 stakeholders from across the Upstate, to ensure a safe and meaningful event for attendees, Ten at the Top plans to limit on-site attendance to 500 people, according to a news release.

“As the world continues to address the health, economic and quality of life issues impacted by the pandemic, people are especially curious about what the short and long-term future holds for communities, businesses, and residents,” the news release said.

The summit will include a series of speakers and breakout sessions. The summit’s keynote speaker will be author Richard Florida, who has written several best-selling books and has also penned several recent articles looking at the impacts of the pandemic.

“We are very pleased to finally be able to have our summit as an in-person event” Dean Hybl, executive director of Ten at the Top, said in the release. “We have been looking forward to having Richard Florida as our keynote speaker since 2019, so I am glad we are finally able to bring him here to the Upstate.”

“This event is always a great time for discussing current and future issues within our 10-county region and with everything that has changed over the last two years this event will serve as a perfect opportunity to reconnect with others from across the region and to discuss how we continue moving forward together,” Hybl said in the release.

The Upstate Summit opening session will feature a panel discussion on “Focus on the Future: Where Do We Go from Here?” with an emphasis on wage gap/per capita income; mobility and transportation; gentrification and polarization; community safety; and sustainable development.

Panelists for the opening session will include:

• Katherine O’Neill, OneSpartanburg Inc.
• Mayor Terence Roberts, city of Anderson
• President Elizabeth Davis, Furman University
• Nika White, Nika White Consulting

Breakout Sessions will incorporate the following topics: affordable housing challenges for urban and rural communities; role of education and skilled training in providing opportunities for all residents; weaving inclusion and diversity into the fabric of our community; how entrepreneurship can be a bridge out of economic hardship; and connections corners topics: construction and development, utilities infrastructure, community health, senior needs, addressing the K-12 teacher shortage, and the role of foundations in impacting change.

A limited number of general admission tickets will go on sale beginning on April 1.