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Greener Pathways
A new report from COWS puts jobs at the heart of the national conversation on the economic promise of clean energy.
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Welcome to COWS
COWS is a national policy center and field laboratory for high-road economic development — a competitive market economy of shared prosperity, environmental sustainability, and capable democratic government.
COWS work is collaborative, experimental, and evidence-driven. Working with business, government, labor, and communities, we try out new ideas, test their effectiveness, and disseminate those with promise. We believe that the best way to predict the future is to start making it, particularly in our states and metro regions.
Some areas of COWS' program focus are:
- Economic and workforce development
- Sectoral strategies and career pathways
- Clean energy and energy efficiency
- Labor markets and job improvement
- Strategies for improving low-wage work
COWS is based at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, famous for the “Wisconsin Idea” that the University should help informed democratic experiment. Since its founding 15 years ago, COWS has often been called “the Wisconsin Idea in action.”
COWS is a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan, educational and charitable organization. Its budget comes from foundation and individual gifts and grants and technical assistance contracts.
Keeping Up with COWS
Our monthly e-newsletter, COWS Notes, is an easy way to keep informed about what's going on at COWS.
The State of Working Wisconsin
The State of Working Wisconsin tells a compelling story about the status of jobs and workers in Wisconsin: job growth and rising incomes, along with sharp inequalities along economic and racial lines. Download the most recent reports here:
new at COWSMind the Gap! Women, Wages and the Pay Gap in Wisconsin finds that Wisconsin women of all ages and education continue to experience a substantial and persistent gender wage gap.
- read more - Skilled Workers, Quality Jobs: Meeting the Needs of Wisconsin’s Workers and Businesses addresses demographic and workforce challenges facing the state and makes a series of policy recommendations to address them. -read more- Pulling Apart: Wisconsin's Growing Income Inequality finds that the income disparity between Wisconsin's richest and poorest families continues to widen. -read more- Greener Pathways: Jobs and Workforce Development in the Clean Energy Economy explores current economic and workforce development opportunities in the clean energy economy, focusing on three leading industries: energy efficiency, wind, and biofuels. -read more- featured newsBuilding a local movement toward a green economy6/13/2008- More than 150 people, ranging from elected officials to neighborhood activists, business leaders and union members, filled the Carpenters hall recently for a breakfast roundtable on "blue-gree... What will Janesville do with the plant? Analysts say it won't be used to make cars6/4/2008- It's unlikely that another automaker will take over the General Motors factory in Janesville when it shuts down sometime in the next two years, industry analysts said Wednesday. Sport u... 'Green Jobs' could employ 14 million, report says6/3/2008- A 'green' economy could provide new, improved opportunities for 14 million workers, according to a report released Tuesday by progressive environmental and labor groups. For now, a ... |