Southfield, Michigan–“Leading Michigan into the 21st Century Economy,” a panel presentation on the growth industries of renewable energy, biotech and defense, will be held at Lawrence Technological University on Thursday, May 27, from 6-8:30 p.m.

The Center for Global Leadership and Understanding in Lawrence Tech’s College of Management will host the free program in room M218 of the Buell Management Building at 21000 West Ten Mile Road in Southfield.

A panel will address the challenges and opportunities for transitioning from Michigan’s dependence on the automotive industry to three industries that are growing in the state. The three panelists  and their topics are:

• Jim Saber, vice president for business development at NextEnergy, “Opportunities in Advanced and Renewable Energy Systems.”
• Nancy Cappola,  director of International Soft Landing Program at TechTown, “Opportunities and Resources in Michigan in Biotech.”
• Philip Frederick of Intelligent Ground Systems, U.S. Army RDECOM TARDEC, “Opportunities in Homeland Security and National Defense.”

The program is free, but registration is required. To access the online registration form, go to ltu.edu/management. For more information, email globalleaders@ltu.edu or call (248) 204-3050.

Lawrence Technological University, ltu.edu, offers more than 100 undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degree programs in Colleges of Architecture and Design, Arts and Sciences, Engineering and Management. Founded in 1932, the 4,500-student, private university pioneered evening classes and today has a growing number of weekend and online programs. Lawrence Tech’s 102-acre campus is in Southfield, and programs are also offered in Detroit, Lansing, Petoskey and Traverse City. Lawrence Tech also offers programs with partner universities in Canada, Mexico, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.