Bowling Green State University Provost John Folkins speaks during a news conference at the University of Toledo where a new alliance of university researchers, local government, non-profit agencies and businesses was announced Oct. 25. The coalition, which includes BGSU, UT and Owens Community College, will search for energy alternatives to fossil fuels with the help of a $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation. (Photo courtesy of the University of Toledo)

Search for alternative energy systems gains federal support

TOLEDO, O.—A new coalition has been formed in northwest Ohio to help the nation move away from its reliance on fossil fuels.

Bowling Green State University, the University of Toledo, Owens Community College, the Edison Industrial Systems Center, government agencies and business have formed the Northwest Ohio Partnership on Alternative Energy Systems with funding from the National Science Foundation’s Partnership for Innovation Program.

Creation of the alternative energy collaborative with the $600,000 federal grant was made public during a news conference Oct. 25 with U.S. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-9th District) at UT, the lead institution on the grant-funded project. The NSF’s Partnership for Innovation Program supports research and regional economic development activities.

“I am very encouraged about the high-tech job prospects for our region that will flow from this new energy independence partnership,” Kaptur said. “A key focus of the initiative is to extend research results into the commercial sector by stimulating additional entrepreneurial activity and job creation.

“This announcement makes a new commitment by our region to advance alternative energy technologies, building new enterprises locally, and moving America toward a new day of energy independence,” Kaptur said, adding, “My dream is that Toledo and northern Ohio will be the first totally green, renewable energy community in America.”

“What a wonderful way to demonstrate the power of community it is to be part of this coalition,” said BGSU Provost John Folkins, who participated in the news conference. “Part of the strength of northwest Ohio is its understanding of the need for collaboration on such fundamental issues as energy development. I can’t think of any other area that is more fundamental than energy independence, which is really the core issue here in terms of doing something for your community.”

The coalition will build upon the region’s strong, existing academic research base by partnering with innovative manufacturers in the photovoltaic, glass and automotive industries. The award builds upon previous awards from the NSF, Department of Energy, and the Air Force in photovoltaic systems and related research that has created a national center of research and development on this new energy technology in northwest Ohio.

New discoveries at BGSU and UT in photovoltaics, PV hydrogen generation, on-demand delivery of hydrogen for fuel cells, and battery management and energy storage with PV and transportation will be the cornerstones of the coalition’s activities.

The collaboration also will strive to enhance the economy of northwest Ohio by:

• Helping to make improvements in the technical skills of the work force by the design of technical programs at Owens Community College to support both local industry and the installation of new alternative energy systems;

• Encouraging participation of African-American and Hispanic students from the Toledo EXCEL program in alternative energy initiatives;

• Promoting related industrial and business development through the Regional Growth Partnership and the Regional Technology Alliance;

• Increasing public awareness of alternative energy systems through COSI-Toledo, the Toledo Zoo and the Foundation for Environmental Education; and

• Developing statewide support for alternative energy research, manufacturing and technology initiatives through the Ohio Alternative Energy Development Council.


(Posted October 30, 2002)