This article addresses an emerging eco-system of the trades, research and development, manufacturing and workforce development that is spawning green building in our region.

Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts visited Haverhill in April to announce that the City is the first of 16 regional "growth districts" designed to be magnets for new business development. The "regional growth districts" are key to the Governor’s long-term economic development strategy for the State. The districts are targeted for older mill towns and cities near highways or other transportation.

Quincy Vale, CEO of Lawrence-based PowerHouse Enterprises and former Director of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) Green Buildings Program, is speaking about the emerging idea of a Green Mills Campaign that would provide funding for ecological restoration of mill space throughout the Merrimack Valley.

The Merrimack Valley Looks for Its Identity. Examples of local and regional efforts are provided, including those from the Merrimack Valley Planning Commissoin, Team Haverhill, MetroFuture, and Biotechnology Council's "Genetown". Of course we also look at our Innovation Valley initiative.

A first-of-its-kind event - on October 31st, 2007, Northern Essex Community College hosted the Green Chemistry Business Summit -

Turning Ideas into Dollars and Jobs: A report on the Green Chemistry Business Summit...The Summit was an unprecedented gathering of scientists, investors, industry executives, and regional planners, specifically for the purpose of harnessing the economic and workforce development potential of nontoxic manufacturing through Green Chemistry.

A first-of-its-kind summit of industrial leaders, scientists, and financiers assembled to harness the global business opportunities for nontoxic manufacturing through Green Chemistry.

In-depth Interviews with Haverhill’s Mayoral Candidates By John Michitson We challenged the candidates in Haverhill’s mayoral race to come to the table with their concrete plans and innovative ideas to address Haverhill’s most significant challenges: 1) projected long term financial deficits; 2) sub par academic performance in the Haverhill schools and 3) economic development strategies. --------

A candidate’s Innovation Quotient (IQ) should be a key factor in winning the race.

We propose a global summit orchestrated in the Merrimack Valley to match two cutting-edge trends key to the region’s future. These are, firstly, Innovation Networking, an emerging business model that promotes sharing of intellectual property amongst diverse sectors, and, secondly, Green Chemistry, a rapidly growing industrial practice that eliminates the use of hazardous materials in manufacturing.