Kloepfer and Kauneckis presented a paper titled, "How do Great Lakes Cities Compare?  Patterns of climate resilience in regional water policy."  Conference participants included local, state and federal agencies, consulting firms and community groups. 

Attendees participated in workshops on the economics of water, climate resiliency planning, water and the built environment, water-scapes and the city, governing the water commons, and policy tools to deals with algae blooms in the Great Lakes.  They also discussed the use of biomimicry, "one water" management, future proofing infrastructure, and transitions from the rustbelt to the bluebelt. 

Kloepfer said she attended the conference because of its unique emphasis on the Great Lakes. "It was really interesting to get a 'boots-on-the-ground' perspective of adaptation and management strategies in key sectors of water like water infrastructure systems and water as the basis of economic prosperity," Kloepfer said. "I learned how the region relies heavily on the lakes and how climate change is affecting not only the health of the economy, but the health of the lakes and the people who reside there."

Major speakers included Hillary Brown, American Institute of Architects fellow; Elizabeth Gibbons, Climate Center director at the University of Michigan; and John Austin, director of the Great Lakes Economic Initiative. 

The broad disciplines of the speakers and attendees gave Kloepfer hope for the future in her field. "I left the conference feeling inspired and optimistic about the industries, municipalities, planners, and researchers across the Great Lakes watershed," she said. "They're thinking about, planning for, and attempting to manage, the effects of climate change in a region containing 21 percent of the world's fresh water."

 
Lumos Pharma, a biotechnology company focused on developing therapeutics for orphan diseases, announced the successful completion of a $34 million Series B financing.  Lumos will use the proceeds for clinical trials and commercialization of its lead compound, LUM-001, for the treatment of Creatine Transporter Deficiency (CTD). Funding will also be used to further develop other therapeutics in the company's pipeline. Deerfield Management Company led the financing, and is joined by new investors Clarus Ventures and Roche Venture Fund, as well as existing investors New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Sante Ventures and Belgian pharmaceutical company, UCB.

LUM-001 is a disease-modifying therapeutic targeting CTD, the second leading cause of X-linked mental retardation in males after Fragile X Syndrome. Patients with this recently-discovered defect can synthesize creatine but cannot actively transport it across the blood-brain barrier. They have severe delays in expressive speech and mental development, and also experience behavioral abnormalities, epilepsy and seizures. Due to the clinical presentation, they are often misdiagnosed with autism. This disease is severely debilitating and patients require lifelong care.

"We are excited to partner with Lumos, a pioneer in the orphan disease space, to help address the significant unmet need for patients suffering from Creatine Transporter Deficiency. We believe the company has a strong team in place to develop this critical asset in a rigorous manner to reach patients and the market quickly," said Cameron Wheeler, a Principal at Deerfield Management.

"We are pleased to have the support of such a distinguished group of investors who share our enthusiasm about the opportunity to develop an effective therapeutic for Creatine Transporter Deficiency," noted Rick Hawkins, CEO of Lumos Pharma. "We believe we are uniquely qualified to tackle this challenge and develop additional therapies that will help patients with rare diseases."

Lumos is an awardee of the highly-selective National Institutes of Health Therapeutics of Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND) program. In 2015, Lumos was awarded an investment from the Translation Fund of the Wellcome Trust.

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