0209727758728421/deed/assets/ourstories-solar_tcm1045-752902.jpg/deed/assets/ourstories-solar_tcm1045-752902.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-752903" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2026-06-09T05:00:00ZPost Bulletin — Rochester, Minn. — Dan Zimmer's Broadway Laundromat is now solar-powered, in part due to help with a Destination Medical Center grant.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Post Bulletin — Rochester, Minn. — Dan Zimmer's Broadway Laundromat is now solar-powered, in part due to help with a Destination Medical Center grant.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The DMC grant, awarded in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, provided $34,500, which covered about 22% to 24% of the costs, according to Zimmer.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/science/articles/broadway-laundromat-now-runs-solar-172200388.html" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on yahoo! news</a></p>7529032026-06-10T13:13:06Z727758728421ourstories-womensequality/deed/assets/ourstories-womensequality_tcm1045-727937.jpgourstories-womensequality/deed/assets/ourstories-womensequality_tcm1045-727937.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-729181" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2025-12-01T06:00:00ZBoreal — The Cook County/Grand Marais Joint Economic Development Authority (EDA) is launching a community planning effort to shape the future of Taconite Harbor, one of the region’s most historic and visible industrial sites.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Boreal — The Cook County/Grand Marais Joint Economic Development Authority (EDA) is launching a community planning effort to shape the future of Taconite Harbor, one of the region’s most historic and visible industrial sites. With support from a $200,000 Community Energy Transition Grant from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), the project will explore redevelopment opportunities to benefit Cook County and the broader region.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><strong>Why this matters:</strong></p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Built in the 1950s as part of Erie Mining Company’s iron ore operations and later home to Minnesota Power’s coal-fired energy center (retired in 2021), Taconite Harbor has long played a role in Cook County’s economy and identity. Now, the site offers an opportunity to reimagine its future for residents and businesses.  </p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://www.boreal.org/2025/09/18/545793/cook-county-eda-launches-community-based-advisory-committee-for-taconite-harbor-redevelopment-project" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on Boreal</a></p>7291812026-05-18T17:28:11Z727758728421ourstories-stpaul/deed/assets/ourstories-stpaul_tcm1045-727933.jpgourstories-stpaul/deed/assets/ourstories-stpaul_tcm1045-727933.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-729157" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2025-12-01T06:00:00ZRed Lake Nation News — The Minnesota Public Facility Authority (MPFA) today announced more than $236.4 million in loans and grants to 30 wastewater and drinking water infrastructure projects in 18 cities throughout the state.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Red Lake Nation News — The Minnesota Public Facility Authority (MPFA) today announced more than $236.4 million in loans and grants to 30 wastewater and drinking water infrastructure projects in 18 cities throughout the state. <br /> <br /> The MPFA helps cities replace aging infrastructure and make system improvements to protect public health and improve water quality. Since its inception in 1987, the MPFA has provided over $7.1 billion for public infrastructure programs statewide, impacting most every community in Minnesota. <br /> <br /> “The impact of the MPFA’s funding is felt around the state and is vital to improving not only the health of our communities, but the health of our environment and economy,” said Matt Varilek, commissioner of the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) and MPFA chair. “By prioritizing clean and accessible drinking water, we are working to ensure the wellbeing of our communities for years to come.”</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://www.redlakenationnews.com/story/2025/08/27/news/public-facilities-authority-announces-2364-million-in-awards/134067.html" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on Red Lake Nation News</a></p>7291572026-05-18T17:28:08Z727758727769728495728421University of Minnesota banner/deed/assets/ourstories-mn_tcm1045-727918.pngUniversity of Minnesota banner/deed/assets/ourstories-mn_tcm1045-727918.png<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-727766" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2025-11-24T20:23:05ZMPR News — In the past five years, only four universities have spun off 20 or more startups annually. The University of Minnesota ranks among the top four during that time frame.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">MPR News — In the past five years, only four universities have spun off 20 or more startups annually. The University of Minnesota ranks among the top four during that time frame.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The U’s Technology Commercialization Office (TechCom for short) focuses on the business prospects of ideas generated by researchers there.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">TechCom has been involved with 285 startups since 2006, and nearly half of that growth has been since 2020. Its initiatives range from protecting intellectual property to licensing the right to use an invention to backing startup companies.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/11/24/university-of-minnesota-startup-generator-boosts-local-economy" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on MPR News</a></p>7277662026-05-18T17:28:12Z727758728421ourstories-mnroads/deed/assets/ourstories-mnroads_tcm1045-727921.jpgourstories-mnroads/deed/assets/ourstories-mnroads_tcm1045-727921.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-729308" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2025-07-25T05:00:00ZMN Department of Agriculture — The Governor’s Council on Biofuels was created by Executive Order 19-35, signed by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on September 16, 2019.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">MN Department of Agriculture Newsroom — The Governor’s Council on Biofuels was created by Executive Order 19-35, signed by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on September 16, 2019. <br /> <br /> The purpose of the Council is “…to advise the Governor, and the Commissioners of the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Commerce, and the Pollution Control Agency on the role of biofuels in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and recommend policy and budget proposals to foster growth in the production and use of biofuels.”</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://www.mda.state.mn.us/environment-sustainability/governors-council-biofuels" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on MN Department of Agriculture</a></p>7293082026-05-18T17:28:07Z727758728421ourstories-pet/deed/assets/ourstories-pet_tcm1045-727928.jpgourstories-pet/deed/assets/ourstories-pet_tcm1045-727928.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-729037" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2025-07-01T05:00:00ZSite Selection — Despite high interest rates and geopolitical volatility, the transition to clean energy continues. 1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Site Selection — It could stand for South, Southwest or both. But the S-shaped footprint of SXSW Center — the building in Austin, Texas, that’s home to the legendary South by Southwest Festival headquarters and all its offshoots — could just as easily stand for sustainability. <br /> <br /> It only makes sense in a metro area and state that both find themselves once again atop the Site Selection Sustainability Rankings. Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver, the Bay Area and Silicon Valley join Greater Austin as the greenest U.S. metro areas. California, Colorado, North Carolina and Arizona fill out the top five states. The United States, Spain and Sweden top the country rankings, followed by Canada and Ireland.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://siteselection.com/the-2025-site-selection-sustainability-rankings/" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on Site Selection</a></p>7290372026-05-18T17:28:05Z727758728421/deed/assets/ourstories-quality_tcm1045-727929.jpg/deed/assets/ourstories-quality_tcm1045-727929.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-729198" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2024-09-18T05:00:00ZRed Lake Nation News — The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) today announced $5.21 million in grants to help drive economic development and community sustainability in six eligible Minnesota communities with power plants that are scheduled to close or have recently closed.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Red Lake Nation News — The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) today announced $5.21 million in grants to help drive economic development and community sustainability in six eligible Minnesota communities with power plants that are scheduled to close or have recently closed. <br /> <br /> Administered by DEED’s Energy Transition Office, the Community Energy Transition grant program provides the state’s affected communities with funds for research, planning and implementation activities to support their local economies through energy transitions. <br /> <br /> “DEED’s Energy Transition Office helps our communities maintain economic vitality as their legacy power plants close,” said DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek. “Minnesota is the second state in the country with a strategic, coordinated program to support these communities and we are proud to be a leader in energy transition planning as we move toward our goal of 100% clean electricity by 2040.”</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://www.redlakenationnews.com/story/2024/09/18/news/deed-awards-521-million-to-six-communities-transitioning-from-fossil-fuels/125518.html" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on Red Lake Nation News</a></p>7291982026-05-18T17:27:51Z727758728421startup/deed/assets/ourstories-startup_tcm1045-727931.jpgstartup/deed/assets/ourstories-startup_tcm1045-727931.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-729193" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2023-09-16T05:00:00ZCanary Media — The University of St. Thomas’ Center for Microgrid Research recently won a $7.5 million state legislative appropriation and $11 million in federal defense bill earmarks to help it expand.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Canary Media — A St. Paul, Minnesota, college’s microgrid research center is preparing to expand after securing significant new state and federal funding. <br /> <br /> The University of St. Thomas’ Center for Microgrid Research plans to triple its three-person staff and enroll more students thanks to money from a $7.5 million state legislative appropriation and $11 million in federal defense bill earmarks secured by U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum. <br /> <br /> State officials who championed the funding said they hope the center’s education and research efforts can help train future grid technicians and smooth the state’s path to 100% clean electricity by 2040.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/enn/state-federal-funding-fuels-expansion-of-minnesota-microgrid-research-center" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on Canary Media</a></p>7291932026-05-18T17:27:41Z727758728421ourstories-startup/deed/assets/ourstories-startups_tcm1045-727932.jpgourstories-startup/deed/assets/ourstories-startups_tcm1045-727932.jpg<custom:Link urlOnly="true" type="Component" destination="tcm:1045-729189" templateURI="tcm:0-0-0" origin="tcm:0-0-0" />2023-06-02T05:00:00ZDEED Developments — Launch Minnesota, a program of the Small Business Development Office at the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), collaborated with regional partners across the state to ensure every region had a pitch competition connected to MN Cup, the state's largest startup competition.1045<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">DEED Developments — Launch Minnesota, a program of the Small Business Development Office at the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), collaborated with regional partners across the state to ensure every region had a pitch competition connected to MN Cup, the state's largest startup competition. <br /> <br /> Startup founders in each region applied to participate in their local competition and, if selected, received the opportunity to give a live pitch to judges and community members. Regional winners received cash prizes and automatic entry to the MN Cup semi-final round. <br /> <br /> The Launch Minnesota Networks organized pitch competitions in every part of the state: Northwest (NoW Innovators), Northeast (Innovate 218), Southwest (Startup SW), Southeast (E1 Collaborative) and West Central (Fastlane94). This is the second year that every region in Minnesota has had an MN Cup feeder competition.</p> <p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><a href="https://mn.gov/deed/newscenter/social-media/deed-developments/?id=1045-579849" target="_blank" class="button-brand-primary">Read more on the DEED Developments blog</a></p>7291892026-05-18T17:27:41Z