The motto for the City of Detroit - Speramus Meliora Resurget Cineribus - means, "we hope for better things, it will rise from the ashes." This motto was coined after a June 1805 fire burned the city to the ground. Now, curiously enough, the motto fits the precarious predicament that the City is in as well as the undying optimism of its residents.
Detroit is on the leading edge of the social and economic shifts that will disrupt our country and perhaps our world. It is a city being rebuilt in a new mold - it uses a blueprint without powerful central institutions, a pioneering new industry, or social homogeneity. In my humble opinion, it’s the first city being rebuilt in a new world of constant disruption.
For that reason, I think it's an incredible opportunity to visit Detroit, a metropolis in flux, to learn about the deep shifts occurring here and how they are manifesting in the lives of everyday people. By visiting Detroit, one can get an intimate look at an amazing and interesting city, but also get a glimpse of what's to come elsewhere.
I firmly believe that when America looks in the mirror, it sees its reflection as Detroit. Consequently, I think Detroit's story is one that is frighteningly important, not just because the City's revitalization is critical to residents for its own sake, but because our collective fates are tied up in what Detroit represents: a new world where shi[f]t has already happened.
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