As vacant factories, schools and homes are torn down or remodeled, Rustbelt Reclamation is saving materials that would otherwise be thrown out and using them to build sleek, new furniture.

Since 2009, Explorys has leveraged big data in the healthcare field to form one of the largest healthcare databases in the world, helping medical professionals provide better patient care and diagnoses. Formed out of the Cleveland Clinic in October 2009 by Charlie Lougheed and Stephen McHale, Explorys has become one of the world’s largest data platforms.

Last Monday, McHale announced to 38,000 attendees of the HIMSS conference in Chicago that Explorys has been acquired by IBM. The news was announced by Lougheed in Cleveland. The company will be a part of IBM’s Watson Health Unit.
 
The deal was a natural fit, says Lougheed. “It was one of those things,” he says. “Explorys and IBM are both leaders in the space. We’ve bumped into each other and we’ve even collaborated from time to time with our joint customers. We really see each other as pioneers in the industry”
 
Lougheed said there were three components to the decision to join IBM: Industry growth, customers, and Explorys’ employees. “We really believe in this mission and we want to see the mission continue and accelerate,” he explains. “We asked, is it good for our customers, does it make sense? Because they subscribe to our systems for a reason, so it had to matter to them.”
 
Most importantly, Lougheed said they considered their employees. “We asked, is this good for our employees, because they deserve something great as well,” he explains. “This a great thing for our employees to grow their careers.”
 
Explorys will remain in Cleveland, and all employees will retain their jobs. “There are some of the best and the brightest data software engineers in the world here,” Lougheed says. “Cleveland is a great place to keep Explorys moving. We’re going to continue to expand as expected.”

Each year, CIA's annual Spring Design Show showcases up-and-coming ingenuity in our own backyard. Outside of these four walls, CIA students are helping to transform Cleveland through their creative products and innovations.

This weekend, celebrate creative women at Women to Watch — Ohio, show your mother some love at EarthFest2015, get carried away with Cleveland Ballet, rock out at Record Store Day and more. 

"Cleveland has become the San Francisco of craft beer with small batch startups dominating the scene. Check out local offerings from Nano, Market Garden and Platform to make the most of your Cleveland stay."

Read the full story here.

You may have read that the rise of the creative entrepreneur is leading to the death of the artist. That’s not our experience. We’ve had the pleasure of meeting and working with people in communities all across the United States, and there are artists everywhere.

As the first city in the world to legalize the sale of recreational marijuana, Denver is facing a rush of entrepreneurialism, gentrification, and -- in some sectors -- controversy. An in-depth look into how the budding pot industry is affecting the city's economic and social landscape.

There are great food markets all over America these days, but few are as ingrained in the community (it’s 100+ years old) or as representative of it (some of the same vendors have been there 60 years or more). Cleveland native Phoebe Connell explains in this quote we had to excerpt the bejesus out of because she gave us two pages of loving notes:

“The West Side Market, THE JEWEL OF CLEVELAND. This isn't a farmers market -- it’s a place where everyone's grandmother used to come to get cabbage and a roast for Sunday dinner. Think of it as being in Williamsburg before Williamsburg was fancy: still in the city, but in an actual neighborhood with working class homes."

Read the full story here.

Gear up for an action-packed weekend! Shop the Cleveland Flea’s April Market, enjoy Danceworks at Cleveland Public Theatre, run a 5K to benefit colon cancer, learn tips for maintaining a beautiful yard without chemicals and more.
 

For years, the bold and the bearded poured into Portland, Ore., embracing craft spirits, farm-to-table fare and all things artisanal. Is Cleveland next? Local chefs like Michael Symon say yes, taking advantage of low rents and the Midwestern bounty like Iowa prosciutto at casually brilliant restaurants and urban breweries, including Great Lakes Brewing Company and Buckeye Brewing. At Lola Bistro, owner Michael Symon celebrates butcher cuts like calves hearts with preserved lemon. Jonathon Sawyer, whose Greenhouse Tavern is one of Symon’s favorite haunts, recently opened an opulent Italian spot called Trentina, where the bread course includes an edible beef candle (not a typo) made from aged beef tallow.

Read the full story here.

"The rust belt city offers some old-fashioned, even old-world, charms. Readers ranked it at No. 5 for its rich food halls, like West Side Market—with spices, baked goods and delis—which dates back to 1912, when it catered primarily to the city’s immigrants."

Read the full story here.

"It's cheap, their museum is on point, and they have excellent taste in beer." So says Buzzfeed.

Check out what other cities made the list. Read the full story here.