U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar Praises Pioneering Tech Start-Ups at Midwest Innovation Summit at FaegreBD

United States Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota gave remarks at the opening reception for the 2014 Midwest Innovation Summit this week, organized by the Midwest Cleantech Open and hosted by Faegre Baker Daniels in Minneapolis.

The Midwest Innovation Summit was created to provide a forum for a diverse group of stakeholders to connect, learn and do business together on an annual basis.

Senator Klobuchar addressed the group of innovative start-up companies and representatives from organizations such as Ecolab, Pentair, Dow Water and Argonne National Laboratory on the vital importance of science and innovation for a healthy economy. She commended the courage of those who are developing new technologies and stepping out in an uncertain financial climate, and also affirmed her commitment to do all she can in Washington to support these efforts.

A key topic at this year's summit was the intersection of water and energy. With an eye toward a world where water is becoming a driving economic force, FaegreBD's water team advises water-related companies, project and financial sponsors, governments and industry service providers in all aspects of their businesses, including in matters involving water quantity and quality.

FaegreBD is a long-time sponsor of the Midwest Cleantech Open in alignment with its focus on energy and natural resources. The Cleantech Open is a non-profit organization that accelerates start-ups who address today's most urgent energy, environmental and economic challenges. Since 2006, the Cleantech Open has fostered over 900 emerging businesses, and these alumni have since raised over $900 million.

Each year, finalists are selected from the national five-month long Midwest Cleantech Open Accelerator. These finalists go on to represent the Midwest region at the Cleantech Open Global Forum. The 2014 Accelerator finalists include Igor, 75F, SurClean, Neuvokas and Black Pine Engineering.