by Todd Shelton, Director, Athens County Economic Development Council
I was very excited when it was announced that Athens would host the 2009 Appalachian Regional Commission Conference. The conference took place on Oct. 26-28 on the campus of Ohio University and was a great success! With over 350 participants, individuals from across the 13 state appalachian region witnessed first hand what Athens County has to offer.
With the theme of the conference being New Energy, New Jobs, I knew this would be a wonderful opportunity for our Alternative Energy Companies here in Athens County to show the wonderful things they are working on. It was a great honor to have Governor Strickland personally visit and see first hand the tremendous work that Third Sun, Sunpower, Global Cooling, and Dovetail are accomplishing. These companies are great examples of how Athens County is becoming a leader in the Alternative Energy Industry.
Day one of the conference kicked off with the option of touring sites around Athens County. These sites included:
Nelsonville Community Revitalization Tour, which included stops at Stuarts Opera House, Nelsonville Historic Square Arts District, and Hocking Colleges- Robbins Crossing Living History Site.
Athens County Arts Loop Tour, which included stops at The Dairy Barn Arts Center, Several Historic Quilt Barns, The Kennedy Museum of Art, Arts/West, and the Passion Works Studio.
Locavore Tour, which included stops at all things food in Athens. These stops included ACNET Facility in Athens, Eclipse Company Town, and King Family Farm in Albany.
I went on the Nelsonville Community Revitalization Tour and I was excited to see all the participants experiencing the great shops and stores around the square!
On day two, Governor Strickland kicked off the start of the conference by promoting all that Ohio has accomplished in regards to energy and green jobs. Expert speakers participated from all walks of the Alternative Energy field. They shared their expertise to help participants better understand where these technologies are heading, and how their communities can take advantage of it. Participants also had the opportunity to tour Alternative Energy sites around Athens County. These sites included:
Alternative Fuels Sites (Logan, Ohio): Hocking College Energy Institute and Chieftain Biofuels, LLC.
Business Innovation Center and Energy Sites (Athens, Ohio): Third Sun Solar and Wind Power, Ltd.; Sunpower, Inc.; and the Innovation Center, Ohio Universitys business incubator.
Alternative Energy Project Sites (Athens, Ohio): Ohio Universitys solid oxide fuel cell research facility, biomass gasification research facility, and electrostatic precipitation research facility; and the university’s Ohio Ecohouse.
I toured the alternative energy project sites in Athens. I was amazed at the work and research being done in regards to Fuel Cells, Biomass, and Clean Coal technology by Ohio University!
The third and final day provided everyone with more information from expert speakers, and allowed the participants to reflect and digest all the information they gathered. We all gathered for lunch and discussed next steps for our communities and how to keep the momentum going!
For Athens County and Ohio University, the momentum really did continue as Gov. Ted Strickland announced on Oct. 28 that Ohio University has been named a Center of Excellence in Energy and the Environment. The designation recognizes the institutions state and national reputation for energy and pollution research, as well as its potential to create jobs in the field. For more information you can read the full article on the Ohio University’s Website.
