Concentrate

From biofuels to batteries, the Ann Arbor area is ground zero for alternative energy research and implementation. Not only are Ypsi's residents pushing for solar energy on their municipal buildings but Ann Arbor was named by the U.S. Department of Energy as one of their 13 "Solar Cities."

But the quest for renewable power doesn't stop there. A2's Danotek is an innovator in wind turbine technology. Adaptive Materials has developed battery technology that lasts 10 times as long as conventional energy cells. And Milan is now home to a biodiesel cooperative. All these efforts may be the key to weaning the US off fossil fuels ...and Michigan's economic success.

Startups and upstarts. Whether its biotech, Internet, alternative energy or nanotech, the Ann Arbor area is an innovative engine to be reckoned with.

From Ypsi airport designers Jacobsen/Daniels to Jolly Pumpkin microbrewery in Dexter to Pure Visibility's embrace of all things Web 2.0 to the entertainment tastemakers at Quack! Media and Ghostly International, local economic pioneers are reshaping Michigan's business landscape. You can't stop 'em, so why not join them?

From cineastes to camera jockeys, the Ann Arbor area has caught the Hollywood bug. Beyond the renown Ann Arbor Film Festival, fests like CinemaSlam and Miller's Creek are popping up like dandelions. CUT TO: laptop auteurs busily working on their next YouTube masterpiece as local  production companies like Odd Angle and Quack! Media generate cutting edge video. CLOSE ON: U-M's film program, where the next generation of Steven Spielbergs and Martin Scorcese are learning their craft. FADE ON: Michigan's state legislature as it approves an ambitious new Film Production Incentive Package. It's only a matter of time before Washtenaw County says, "We're ready for our close up, Mr. DeMille!"

"The foundation of every state is the education of its youth."
-Diogenes Laertius.

Higher learning is Washtenaw County's main industry, with the University Of Michigan (U-M) and Eastern Michigan University (EMU) acting as the region's two towers of innovation and inspiration. With combined student populations of nearly 64,000 and funding that approaches $1 billion each year, it is impossible to under sell the importance of these two great institutions.

Eastern Michigan University is renown for its College of Education, producing entire generations of teachers and educators to every state in the country. The university's budget was nearly $265 million last year, providing 23, 000 students with a first rate education.

Since its founding in 1849, EMU has produced 130, 000 alumni, many of whom remain in Michigan. Its College of Business was designated by Princeton Review as one of the nation’s 143 most outstanding business schools and the universty, in general, has been lauded for its commitment to diversity and multiculturalism. EMU is also ranked as one of the 100 best schools for the Lesbian/Gay/B-Sexual/Transgender community.

The University of Michigan tops nearly every ranking there is with regard to academic achievement, excellence, and influence. Sitting on a $5.65 billion endowment and research funded to the tune of $823 million last year, it is an academic and economic powerhouse. The university's nearly 41, 000 students (and 420, 000 living alumni) have landed it third and among the nation's public universities, according to USNews And World Report. The list of notable and influential people who have attended UiM is both vast and wide, covering everything from theater and literature to engineering and life sciences. It's sports teams are renown and its pioneering impact on technology is recognized the world over.

Economically, U-M's technology transfer office has been vital conduit between laboratory research and corporate commercialization interests, inspiring both important technological innovations and ground-breaking start-ups.

The University of Michigan's Health System is considered one of the nation’s leading medical and research institutions, consitently ranking among the best in the world in nearly every category, attracting the tenth highest total in research funding from the National Institutes of Health ($265 million, annually) and producing world class researchers and physicians.

And, finally, let's not forget Washtenaw Community College which serves almost 20,000 credit students and 8,000 non-credit students annually. It's well-respected for its continuing education courses as well as the nearly 1,400 degrees it hands out each year and is a vital extended choice educational institution, attracting a surprisingly ambitious and impressive faculty.

Whether it's Google Adwords opening in downtown Ann Arbor, Healthmedia leading the way with online health resources, Hass MS&L storming the web with innovative ad campaigns, the sturm und drang of local bloggers or the community-based efforts of Wireless Ypsi, Washtenaw County understands that the Internet is a heckuva lot more than a bunch of tubes; it is our cultural and economic future.

It takes good DNA to establish a healthy bioscience industry and Washtenaw County's gene pool is deep and wide. Along with the academic and research power of the University Of Michigan, there's also the relentless advocacy of SPARK and Michbio, Michigan's life sciences trade association.

You can play connect-the-dots with the successful life science startups that have popped up around Ann Arbor: Nanobio, Cerenis Therapeutics, QuatRx, Compendia Bioscience, Oxford Biomedical, Velesco, the list goes on and on and on. Washtenaw County's biosciences are truly the shape of things to come --for Michigan and the world!

When it comes to 1s and 0s, Washtenaw County can code with the best of them. We are both a virtual and literal hub for software design. Whether it's the logistics simulations of Llamasoft , the game-inspired creations of Reactor Zero, the consumer index algorithms of CFI Group, new kids on the block Procuit and Boomdash, or the customer-catered innovations of Menlo Innovations, the virtual world is our oyster.

If innovation is the engine, investment is the fuel. For Michigan to transform its economy and nurture homegrown high-tech companies, it must develop a robust venture capital community. Ann Arbor understands this better than most.

In conjunction with the University Of Michigan, SPARK, the MEDC and the Michigan Growth Capital Symposium (held in Ypsilanti every year), entrepreneurs are starting to see a change in attitude about local investment. Ardesta, EDF, Arboretum Ventures, Plymouth Venture Partners and the University's Wolverine Fund are just some of the firms trying to change Michigan's economic landscape.

The revolution has begun! Create. Share. Collaborate. Optimize. The Internet has become a business platform unto itself, giving rise to a whole new generation of high-tech start-ups in the Ann Arbor area. Whether it's Internet juggernaut Google Ad Words, locally-based Pure Visibility, recently transplanted MyBuys or new kids on the block like Fluency Media and Ur.Turn the next evolution in web development has arrived. Are you connected?