Three cheers for the Valley Patriot on it's 5th Anniversary.  This upstart is creating a platform for new voices to be heard throughout the Merrimack Valley.  One of those new voices is us, writers of the Innovation Valley column.  For the past three years our column has been a regular feature and we are grateful. As readers of the Innovation Column know, it's goal is to highlight the world's leading initiatives for municipal business development and quality-of-life improvements.  Every month we report on a program that provides opportunities for the Merrimack Valley.

Wind power at Holy Name High School in Worcester is a model for the Merrimack Valley. The school will get all its power from the 600 KW turbine and will even be able to sell power back to the grid. It will be one of the most energy efficient schools in the country.

In the middle of its biggest year yet, non-profit greenGoat sets its sights on the largest waste stream it can imagine: corporate relocation.

Haverhill's own USAi.net, a business grade wireless internet service provider (ISP), is poised to recreate the telecommunications revolution in the Merrimack Valley.