Economic challenges present development opportunities
Last week the governor challenged the people of this state to recognize the opportunities in the economic meltdown that we currently find ourselves in. Although we have been beset by financial turmoil in the forms of crippling job cuts, restrictive policies on the extension of credit, and home foreclosures, Michigan is poised on the brink of greatness. In times of crisis, it’s often the vision of a leader which can encourage and muster the will of the people to triumph over their hardship.
While the economic challenge is real, so are the economic opportunities before us. Very real developments in the academic and commercial fields of photovoltaic solar energy production, wind power and biofuels are happening on an almost daily basis. Throughout the country, windpower experienced its most rapid growth in 2008. While a slow-down is to expected, stimulus in the market and technology will help leverage Michigan’s advantage as one of the best-situated wind-power regions in the midwest.
Solar technology in Michigan has been hugely successful, which is surprising given the general dearth of sunshine in Michigan. Several companies vie for regional and national prominence on a regular basis. During the committee hearings leading up to the vote on H.R. 1, the House economic stimulus bill, freshman Michigan Representative Mark Schauer invited officials from United Solar Ovonic to testify on the prospects of job creation clean energy technology could provide. Michigan’s solar energy business potential now has such prominence that it was recently featured on the nightly news.
The fact that local governments are getting in on the action is heartening at a couple of different levels. It shows the buy-in that is necessary at all levels of government and throughout society to affect a paradigmatic and behavioral shift to encompass these new policies. But, more practically and of more use to average citizens, it shows how people and corporations can save money and grow business through policy incentives. This is, and has to be, a fundamental component of Governor Granholm’s plan to save the Michigan economy. Not surprisingly, it is also a basic tenet of the rationale behind the President’s stimulus package. People and businesses cannot afford upgrades and retrofits, lest there be some direct investment and the prospect of long-term payoffs.
Although “hope and confidence” are things currently lacking in Michigan, there is evidence that the situation could be changing. In Toledo, Ohio the Port Authority recently noticed that The Port of Monroe lured a wind turbine manufacturer to the area. Speculation around plans to construct a wind-energy facility in the vicinity led to an incentive-offering skirmish between the municipalities involved to land the energy park within their borders. Such competition, and the presumed victory for LaSalle Township, bodes well for the confidence developers, entrepreneurs and municipalities need to be successful in developing and encouraging alternative energy.
Just about every day, somewhere in Michigan, people are gathering to learn more about alternative and renewable energy. Last week 500 people gathered at the Henry Ford Community College in the erstwhile capitol of Michigan’s automobile manufacturing industry to learn about alternative energy possibilities. The school itself is one of several in the state offering specialized coursework in the installation, maintenance and repair of the equipment needed to harness the power of the sun, wind and organic material with which Michigan is blessed. With the creation of the Governor’s Michigan Energy Corps, it is foreseeable that more students and recently-unemployed will avail themselves of this career opportunity. Currently, the waiting list for some alternative energy technologies is over 2 years, and swelling the ranks of those capable of delivering this talent can only bode well for Michigan’s many sectors of industry, academia and government.
The real test of leadership is the willingness to share the sacrifice and burden of the people and deliver them from their hardships. The Governor is expected to soon deliver her budget, which will have to account for the mandates outlined in her State of the State. Hopefully the Governor will provide in the budget the same vision and means for implementing her State of the State goals. But it is not only incumbent upon her to set the agenda and provide the operational funding; it is up to each of us to shoulder a larger responsibility to work harder to return the state and nation to their former greatness.
