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.

Four Local Businesses to Speak at 36|86 Festival

A yellow graphic image reads: Online Everywhere August 17-28, 2020, 3686 Global Community Culture Connection
A yellow graphic image reads: Online Everywhere August 17-28, 2020, 3686 Global Community Culture Connection

By Natalie Roy Martin

As an advocate of innovation and a champion of entrepreneurship in the Chattanooga area, we are proud to announce that some of our very own local innovators are being featured at this year’s 3686 Festival! Hear from Natalie Martin of Heed Public Relations to find out more about the event, as well as Heed’s panel in the conference’s Culture Track.

So, what is 3686?

3686 is an entrepreneurship conference hosted by Launch Tennessee. It invites investors, innovators, business owners, and community advocates to learn from one another, build relationships, and get excited about the entrepreneurial landscape here in the great state of Tennessee.

My husband/cofounder David and I had the opportunity to attend in person last year and had an absolute blast in Nashville. In fact, we purchased tickets for this year’s festival as soon as they went on sale — but as is the case with many events in 2020, Launch TN’s leadership decided it was best to take the event all digital. While we look forward to in-person camaraderie again in 2021, the good news here is that an all-digital event completely removes any barriers for Chattanoogans who may not have been able to travel to Nashville due to work schedules, childcare needs, etc. All you need this year is a ticket and Internet access!

Tracks and dates are provided below, and the full schedule can be found at https://launchtn.org/3686-agenda/.

HEALTH | Aug. 17-18 ENTERTAINMENT | Aug. 19-20 CULTURE | Aug. 21 + 28 BUILD | Aug. 24-25 SCALE | Aug. 26-27

About our culture-track panel discussion

After attending the event last year, David and I knew we wanted to become more involved this year — so we worked with the 3686 team to develop a panel featuring some top-notch local innovators, including:

  • Jamey Elrod, Chief Customer Officer & Cofounder, Text Request
  • Max Farrell, CEO, WorkHound
  • Chris Wilson, CEO, Smart Furniture
A graphic shows headshots of Jamey Elrod, Max Farrell and Chris Wilson.

Our panel, “Safeguarding a Healthy Work Culture in a Remote Environment,” gives each of these incredible business leaders a chance to discuss how companies can maintain and nurture strong culture, even while teams are dispersed. Topics discussed include maintaining open communication, hiring and training during the pandemic, equipping remote teams for success, and more. We hope you’ll join us at 2:15 p.m. on Friday, August 21 to hear insightful and actionable feedback that can benefit any team.

If you’ve been considering 3686 but haven’t yet purchased a ticket, we strongly encourage you to participate (click here to register). Tickets are just $40 through August 3, or $60 after August 3 (use our code 3686FEST2020 for an extra 20% discount). Hope to “see” you there!

Natalie Roy Martin is a native Chattanoogan and cofounded Heed Public Relations with her husband David in 2018. She uses her more than ten years of marketing and project management experience to enhance the public-facing personas of her clients.

A graphic image shows David and Natalie Martin.