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Inside Wisconsin
with Tom Still
05/13/13Wisconsin’s long-term growth strategy at play in WEDC flapDoes the state of Wisconsin have a long-term growth strategy … or an economic development death wish? As stark as that question might seem, it’s worth asking as the political feeding frenzy continues over the performance of the state’s largest economic development agency, the quasi-public Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. |
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05/07/13Hedging our bets: Oil-and-gas boom doesn’t end need for new energy solutionsBy now, or so the experts predicted, we were all supposed to be driving electric cars and lighting our homes from energy produced on massive algae farms. That was before the “energy revolution” took an unexpected turn – toward innovation surrounding some old-school technologies. The United States is well on its way to becoming virtually energy independent within a decade, in no small part because hydraulic fracturing and other drilling technologies are unlocking supplies of oil and natural gas within our borders. |
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04/29/13Rebuilding the middle class: Ex-Wisconsin congressman offers a planA report released this month by the Brookings Institution confirmed what many observers already suspected: Metro Milwaukee lost almost twice as many private-sector jobs in the decade of 2000-10 as the average for the nation’s 100 largest metro areas. Not only was metro Milwaukee’s 6.8% job loss well above the national average of 3.9%, but many of the vanished jobs were good jobs – with decent wages, benefits, and some sense of security and opportunity. In short, they were middle-class jobs that appear increasingly difficult to replace in today’s jobless recovery. Posted at 08:57 AM | Permalink | Comments: 1 |
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04/22/13Across UW System, undergraduate research is emerging tool for growthA young crowd outfitted with posters, placards, and a zeal for reaching out to state legislators crowded into the Capitol Rotunda last Wednesday and wouldn’t budge for hours. A fresh crop of political protesters? On the contrary, it was more than 100 of the best and brightest researchers from University of Wisconsin System campuses who, along with their faculty advisers, took part in the 10th annual “Posters in the Rotunda” event. |
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04/15/13Business Plan Contest finalists symbolize growth targets for state investment planNow in its 10th year, the Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest has always been a canary in a high-tech coal mine. It provides an annual overview of the kinds of businesses emerging in the state’s tech sectors – as well as areas of relative decline. The list of 21 finalists for the 2013 competition, which will grow to two dozen when top collegiate contests feed into the mix, is no exception to the rule. For state policymakers who are weighing how to best target a $25 million early-stage fund envisioned by Gov. Scott Walker, the list is a harbinger of emerging opportunities. |
Tom Still is president of the 
