Michael P. Claudon, Professor of Applied Economics and Director, DigitalBridges2.0
Michael Claudon is a teacher and academic entrepreneur. Having a particular passion the art of starting and growing new business concepts into successful enterprises, he has taught applied economics and competitive strategies ever since joining the Middlebury College faculty in 1970. For over three decades, he has mentored Middlebury students, entrepreneurs and emerging leaders from Vermont and beyond. Innovating strategies for extending learning beyond the classroom to the real world of live problem solving and entrepreneurial endeavors has consistently been the driving force of his career.
In 1987, Claudon co-founded the Geonomics Institute. He successfully grew it into an internationally respected, independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that helped accelerate economic and political transition, focusing on enterprise restructuring and business development in the Former Soviet Union. After serving as Geonomics’ president for eight years, and dedicating most of that time to teaching and mentoring emerging business leaders in the region, Claudon returned to his first love, teaching Middlebury College students.
In January 2000, Claudon organized a January term course that explored the emerging digital economy under the now defunct domain, www.DigitalMidd.org. Riding the excitement and momentum generated by students and alumni working and learning together, what was to be a one-time event has become a multi-faceted Middlebury College initiative. DigitalBridges2.0™ (www.digitalbridges20.net) currently creates and facilitates programs that help people transition and propel thought into action. In addition to the annual January course and conference, DigitalBridges2.0™ has expanded to include the Middlebury Solutions Group, an undergraduate venture consultancy dedicated to helping Vermont’s entrepreneurs grow ideas into viable enterprises.
The author or editor of two-dozen books and over a dozen research articles, Claudon earned his BA in economics and zoology from the University of California, Berkeley, and his PhD in economics from The Johns Hopkins University.
