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BAD AXE, Mich. — Michigan’s Forgotten Coast has won a 2026 Gold Award for Excellence in Economic Development from the International Economic Development Council, the Huron County Economic Development Corp. announced Oct. 27.
The state-funded talent attraction campaign encouraged former Thumb residents to return. It ran March 17-April 14, 2025, using university-area billboards, social media, streaming video and a relocation website, according to the county agency’s announcement.
For former residents of Bad Axe, Harbor Beach, Port Austin and Caseville, the campaign offers a look at returning to Michigan’s Thumb. All four Huron County communities appear in its online directory, alongside communities across the broader region.
Michigan’s Forgotten Coast campaign targets a homecoming
The Michigan Economic Development Corp. funded the effort, which targeted people who had left the region for college or early career opportunities. A relocation help desk connected interested residents with communities and employers.
The agency reported 1.32 million digital impressions, more than 9,000 new website users and 13 relocation inquiries. Other reported results included more than 243,000 people reached on Facebook and Instagram, 9,500 link clicks and 310,000 YouTube views.
Those figures measure audience activity and inquiries. The announcement did not give a count of completed moves, resulting hires or the campaign’s cost.
What the international Gold Award recognizes
IEDC’s Excellence in Economic Development Awards span 26 categories. The program accepts entries from U.S. and international organizations serving rural, suburban and urban communities.
Entries undergo individual review followed by group judging, according to the council. Judges assess submissions within population groups and may select up to one gold, one silver and one bronze winner in each category for each population group.
The council’s 2026 calendar scheduled recognition of winners at its annual conference Oct. 25-28. The county’s announcement identifies the Gold Award but does not specify its competition category or population division.
Bad Axe, Harbor Beach, Port Austin and other Thumb towns highlighted
The Michigan’s Forgotten Coast website presents the Thumb as a place to settle, work and start a business. Its featured communities include Huron County’s Bad Axe, Harbor Beach, Port Austin, Caseville, Port Hope and Sebewaing. The regional directory also features Sandusky, Croswell, Port Sanilac and Lexington in neighboring Sanilac County.
Visitors can explore communities by characteristics such as lakefront, agricultural or county seat. Separate sections address remote workers, entrepreneurs, parents and people seeking employment. The site also features accounts of returning residents and information about local culture and family activities.
The state’s Michigan Life overview of the Thumb lists the campaign among regional resources for prospective residents. It points readers toward careers in health care, agriculture, tourism and manufacturing and notes the availability of relocation guidance.
For people weighing a return, the campaign website offers a starting point to compare communities and explore employment resources. The Gold Award recognizes the outreach effort; its longer-term effect on the region’s population remains unreported in the county’s announcement.
