The City of Neighborhoods 2012 conference, set for Saturday, will take aim at community and economic development with a ground-up, neighborhood-centric approach. Founded by Go Local and Local Life Tacoma, City of Neighborhoods is a nudge - a way to get the ball rolling so to speak - to kick-start the beginning of a beautiful friendship between Tacoma and its diverse neighborhoods.

City of Neighborhoods has not set out to change or improve any one thing, but rather to strengthen the city by strengthening the ties between Tacoma's people.

Neighborhood-centric means exactly what it sounds like - starting small, with discussions between community members. Inspired by about 1,000 cities the world over that are using this approach, City of Neighborhoods hopes to bring Tacoma into the ranks.

"The most important message from the City of Neighborhoods is that both community and economic development happen at the neighborhood level," said Derrick Rhayn, board president of Go Local. "And citizens can be a part of creating the community and economic drivers that make neighborhoods appealing places to live and work."

The conference will feature keynote speakers and about 20 workshops highlighting current issues in Tacoma. The more than 45 speakers and workshop presenters will range from nonprofits to grassroots groups to local businesses owners. Topics of discussion range from intersection repair to the arts; community gardens to local investing; churches as community centers to economic localization.

"One of the major themes of the conference is asset-based community development," said Rhayn, "which focuses on the assets that are embedded within a community and how those assets can be used to foster community connectivity and the right environment for businesses to thrive."

There will be two keynote speakers - Jim Diers, the former director of Seattle's Department of Neighborhoods, and Milenko Matanovic, director of the Pomegranate Center. Diers has become one of the top speakers in the world on bottom-up community development. Matanovic is both a leader in community development as well as a visual artist.

"Overall, the event aims to catalyze connections between the local thought leaders and activists that are working on a range of issues right here in Tacoma," Rhayn added. "These individuals and organizations are working on creating a sustainable, healthy, thriving, and vibrant city. Bringing these groups together will foster connections and collaborations that will directly benefit neighborhoods throughout Tacoma."

The event runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Phillip Hall at University of Washington Tacoma. Tickets are available online or at the door. At the door, prices are $20 per person, or $10 per person for students. For those looking for a bit of a discount, purchase via BrownPaperTickets.com and use coupon code volcano15 for a 15 percent discount.

Registration Info: http://www.cityofneighborhoods2012.com/register/