ANN ARBOR ? Diane Durance, the former president of the Ann Arbor IT Zone, is the new executive director of Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest, a business-plan writing contest that has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Michigan entrepreneurs for nearly a decade. Durance was approved on Tuesday by the GLEQ board of directors. She
BRIGHTON - Venture investment in North American and European cleantech companies for the first three quarters jumped 28 percent from a year ago, a whopping $3.6 billion, cites a research report from Cleantech Group. Cleantech estimates that venture investments in China, another hotbed of cleantech innovation, will reach $580 million for all of 2007, up
LANSING - A new Michigan energy plan is developing in the House, which could result in a bill by the end of the year. What the house is trying to do is keep alternative energy providers in the mix and not return the state to the monopoly control of Consumers? Energy and DTE Energy. Terry
DETROIT ? The U.S.-Dutch Mass Spectrometry Consortium for advanced biological structure and imaging applications, led by Wayne State University Professor Mary Rodgers, has been awarded a $2.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation. This five-year grant is a unique multicultural collaboration, which includes ten U.S. researchers from nine universities and researchers from two Netherlands-based
ANN ARBOR ? NEW's npServe program, which helps non profits improve operating efficiencies, has been awarded a $150,000 grant over three years by the Lloyd and Mabel Johnson Foundation. NEW will use the money to continue development of npServ and recruit additional staff. NEW offers a portfolio of services to nonprofit organizations in Southeast Michigan
TROY - ConnecTech replaced the GLIMA Network throughout Michigan in December. Danielle DeLonge, the former GLIMA Network Manager, now heads up the ConnecTech chapters statewide. In this special edition of News Maker Interview, DeLonge talks about why the change was made and what new features it offers to former GLIMA members. To listen, click on
LANSING - Teri Takai, Michigan chief information officer, will leave her post on Jan. 1 to take the same job in California. Takai in this News Maker Interview talks about her five years in the Granholm Administration, what is left undone, and what challenges await her successor, the state deputy CIO Ken Theis, who will
LANSING - A package of bills now before the Michigan House Energy and Technology Committee would mean higher electric rates for residents and businesses, a group representing those customers and alternative electric suppliers said Monday. Members of the Customer Choice Coalition said at a press conference that the package (HB 5520 , HB 5521 ,
LANSING - As opponents to Michigan's 1996 law granting broad-based immunity to drug manufacturers continue efforts to win passage of HB 4044 , HB 4045 and HB 4046 in the Senate, the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee said Monday he did not see any conditions right now under which he would hold hearings on
GRAND RAPIDS - Cynergy Systems, which operates a field office in Grand Rapids, was named a winner last week of the Microsoft PhizzPop Design Challenge for rich Internet application design and development. Cynergy was one of seven regional entrants. Cynergy won by unanimous decision of a panel of judges from Yahoo!, Netflix, IDEO and Experience