About The Innovation District

Where Chattanooga’s entrepreneurs, academics, and creatives collide. 

Events Calendar

Discover activities and events in the area.

Resiliency Checklist

Everything you need to prepare your organization for a crisis.

Small Business Supports

Helping small business owners across the region.

The Edney Innovation Center

The front door to the Innovation District of Chattanooga.

Tech Goes Home

Expanding access to technology and teaching digital literacy.

Digital Access Committee

Bringing together partners to close the digital divide, together.

HCS EdConnect

Home internet at no cost to thousands of families.

Connected Communities: Orchard Knob

The OKC leverages the collective support of partner organizations to tackle the whole picture of health and wellness in the historically underserved neighborhood.

Chattamatters

Answering the most basic and most complex questions about life in Chattanooga

EMPACT Program

Preparing residents for the jobs of tomorrow, and today. 

Chattanooga Smart Communities Collaborative

Working together to identify our region’s challenges and create solutions.

Environmental Sensors

Collecting and analyzing air quality data from across our region with US Ignite.

Education (4K Microscope & Lola)

High-tech tools in Hamilton County’s classrooms.

Community Connectivity

Expanding access to the internet in homes and neighborhoods.

Creatives of all experience levels gather in Chattanooga for TopCon

Seven people sit at a table at The Edney for the TopCon creative conference.

By Michael Mahaffey

What is TopCon and how did it get started?

TopCon is a two-day creative conference in Chattanooga, TN, that took place this year in early November and held sessions at The Edney Innovation Center. Speakers come each year from around the country, drawing attendees locally and regionally who work as artists, photographers, designers, writers, developers, entrepreneurs, teachers, and students.

The conference was born in 2013, after a group of Chattanooga designers were inspired by attending a creative conference in Columbus, GA. Our mission is to educate, inform, and inspire others with the intent focus of fostering a creative community.

Can you give some examples of some of the programs at the event?

This year, Bob Ewing (Designer / Letterer from Indianapolis, IN) hosted a workshop that taught attendees how to transform their hand-drawn work into functional digital artwork.

In another workshop, Caleb Ludwick (Copywriter / Brand Strategist) of 26 Tools taught attendees the process of articulating their own brand. In this workshop, he walked through realizing your business’ vision, connecting with the right audiences and finding your brand’s personality.

How does the conference give opportunities to young and underrepresented designers?

For attendees: The cost to attend creative conferences is generally a barrier to entry for most students and young professionals. From day one, we have strived to keep our ticket prices at about a third of the cost of comparable conferences, and we’ve offered scholarships as well. We rely heavily on partnerships and sponsorships to make this happen.

For speakers: Our speakers range from all walks of life and experience levels, but they are passionate about their craft and want to share their experiences getting to where they are at the moment.

How is TopCon different from other design conferences?

At TopCon, we cap the attendee number so that everyone has the chance to connect and interact with speakers, vendors, and workshop leaders. In 2018, Orlando Arocena spoke at TopCon one week after speaking in front of thousands of attendees at a very notable and widely attended conference in Los Angeles, CA. He is very used to speaking in front of large audiences and told us after speaking at TopCon that he LOVED the intimacy of TopCon, calling it the “MTV Unplugged of Creative Conferences.”

Michael Mahaffey is the CoFounder and Creative Director of Tiny Giant and Top Conference in Chattanooga, Tennessee.