Maker Faire Milwaukee producers announced that this year’s free admission event will be held on September 23 and 24 at Wisconsin State Fair Park.
Called the Greatest Show and Tell on Earth, Maker Faires take place in more than 40 countries around the world. They are part science fair, part county fair, and part something entirely new. Maker Faire Milwaukee joins a small group of other world-class cities, including Berlin, Detroit, Rome, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Cairo, Singapore, Istanbul, Paris, Barcelona, and others that are designated in 2017 as a larger-scale, regional Featured Faire.
Maker Faire Milwaukee, which is the largest free event of its kind in the nation, is locally produced by the Betty Brinn Children’s Museum under a license from Maker Media, Inc., and is co-hosted by the Museum and Milwaukee Makerspace. The 2016 event welcomed more than 300 exhibitors and 50,000 visitors.
Online registration for this year’s Call for Makers will be available to individuals of all ages, schools, groups and organizations who would like to share projects and skills. There are also opportunities for commercial makers to exhibit. The Call for Makers opens on May 15 at milwaukee.makerfaire.com.
The Maker Movement for Education, Workforce Development and Economic Growth
Technology and the Internet continue to transform everything we do, and the global Maker Movement is harnessing these resources to change how we will live, work and learn in the future. Maker Faires provide unique opportunities to highlight innovative projects in a broad range of fields, new products and manufacturing methods, and to teach, inform and engage visitors of all ages.
In education, the project-based learning required for making involves using tools, technology and materials, and development of new skills, like 3D design and printing, soldering, electronics, sewing and others. Making is motivating and inspiring students at all levels to explore the critical STEAM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math). It promotes a do-it-yourself attitude, problem-solving, creativity, conceptual thinking and collaboration. Colleges and universities across the nation now invite prospective undergraduates to submit a Maker Portfolio as part of their application process, making is also revitalizing interest in vocational education.
Last year’s Maker Faire Milwaukee featured hands-on workshops and demonstrations provided by Brady Corporation, Forth, Miller Electric, Weld Specialty, GE Healthcare, Tormach, Coex3D and 3DomFuel, start- ups, the NASA Glenn Research Center, college and university robotics, rocketry and engineering programs, and individual and group exhibitors presenting metalwork, crafts, art, music, gaming and more.
The Betty Brinn Children’s Museum’s Maker Initiative
Maker Faire Milwaukee is part of the Betty Brinn Children’s Museum Maker Initiative. The Initiative was established in 2013 and expands our core “learning by doing” mission to the larger community through year-round maker programs at the Museum, outreach and other activities. The Maker Initiative represents a critical investment in education, and in Milwaukee’s long-term economic and workforce development.
Maker Initiatives go beyond the State Fair event
The Milwaukee Makerspace is a 16,000-square-foot collaborative workshop in Milwaukee’s Bay View neighborhood where members, professionals, hobbyists, artists, crafters and students, share their tools, knowledge and their passion for making.
Maker Faire is the Greatest Show and Tell on Earth — a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity, and resourcefulness, and celebration of the Maker Movement. It is a place where people of all ages and backgrounds gather together to show what they are making and share what they are learning. Maker Faire celebrated 191 Faires in 2016 in 38 countries, reaching 1.45 million people around the world. The 11th annual Maker Faire Bay Area welcomed some 1,300 Makers and 150,000 attendees.
MAKE is the first magazine devoted entirely to Do-It-Yourself (DIY) technology projects. MAKE unites, inspires, informs, and entertains a growing community of resourceful people who undertake amazing projects in their backyards, basements, and garages.
