This is a special feature in honor of President Obama’s declaration that today, June 18th, is the first National Day of Making! Share your Maker Story or join in the conversation in the comments under the #NationOfMakers #Shapeways tags on Twitter. There is a palpable shift, perhaps even a paradigm shift, occurring in the product space. The rise of the collaborative economy of makers and entrepreneurs has nudged a market lead by visionaries into the mainstream. Today, we proudly stand alongside President Barack Obama, in celebrating the first ever National Day of Making. This change is visible across the entire technology landscape. Last week Elon Musk encouraged makers to use all of Tesla’s patents, potentially putting the future of electric cars around the world in the people’s hands. Three weeks ago, Intel announced an open sourced, 3D Printable robot kit, meant to “lower the barrier of entry into Robotics”. Malaysian Airlines has even released the data from Flight 370 in the hopes that people outside their organization can solve the mystery surrounding the crash. The people are showing their collective power and goodwill, and in turn large companies and elected bodies want to pitch in. Today, we celebrate you! In honor of you, dear Shapie maker, we showcased some of your peers in an infographic illustrating the awesome businesses you create and empower.

Share your ‘Maker Story’ on Twitter with us today from 2-3pm EST. Join the conversation and view the celebration by following #Shapeways and the #NationOfMakers hashtags on Twitter. Sneak Peek: We are also proud to announce the first ever Shapeways Small Business Symposium, to take place later this year (more details to come soon).

Share this Infographic with your friends and fans to show them all how you built your business and inspire them to take the plunge too! Below you can find Barack Obama’s Officially Proclamation and our Commitment to the Maker Movement.

“NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 18, 2014, as National Day of Making.” – Barack Obama

“Shapeways, the leading 3D printing marketplace and community, is committed to empowering designers and makers to bring amazing products to life by providing access to top-of-the-line industrial 3D printers. By giving anyone the ability to quickly and affordably turn ideas from digital designs into real products, Shapeways is fundamentally changing how products are made and by whom, and how businesses are started.