TUE AM News: Talking Trade with German Deputy Consul General in Chicago Gabriela Bennemann; UWM getting $5.7M for ‘green’ manufacturing training

August 13, 2024

— In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” German Deputy Consul General in Chicago Gabriela Bennemann discusses the close trade relationship between the Midwest and Germany.

She highlights the role of Germany’s consulate in the region, ranging from cultural work and services to promoting international trade in partnership with the German American Chamber of Commerce.

“We as a consulate are best equipped to support the activities of the chamber on a political level,” she said. “Helping with negotiations, negotiating memoranda of understanding, or any such thing. So we work hand-in-hand.”

Bennemann shares figures to illustrate Germany’s economic presence in America, noting 5,800 German businesses are located in the U.S. and German companies have invested $619 billion domestically. That’s in addition to $11 billion going into research and development in the U.S., with 75% of that figure focused on manufacturing R&D.

About half of those German companies in the U.S. are in the manufacturing industry, she notes, adding German businesses collectively represent the third-largest employer in the United States with more than 900,000 jobs.

“That is, I think, the best number that we can give you because it shows how integrated the German trade and German companies are,” she said. “If you look at the Midwest, it’s basically the main area where the German companies are located.”

Wisconsin imports about $2.6 billion in goods from Germany each year, she said, along with about $1 billion in state exports to the European country.

The podcast also explores the potential for future trade agreements at the European Union level, along with non-binding structural agreements between states that can offer a framework for economic cooperation.

Watch the show here.

“Talking Trade” is now available in audio form on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and other platforms. Subscribe and find more episodes here.

— UW-Milwaukee is getting $5.7 million in federal funding to train students and workers on technologies used in “green” manufacturing.

The university yesterday announced its College of Engineering & Applied Science is getting the funding from the U.S. Department of Energy through the Clean Energy and Manufacturing Workforce Consortia initiative. The dollars come from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and are meant to support clean energy jobs that don’t require a four-degree.

The funds will be used to add more Industrial Training Assessment Centers in the Midwest region, according to the release. These centers will help participants learn how to use heat pumps, hydrogen for power generation, biofuels, renewable energy technologies and more.

Ryo Amano, a mechanical engineering professor at UWM, will lead the university’s effort in partnership with nine community colleges in Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota. He notes UWM is getting more than a third of the $14 million in total funding.

“That isn’t surprising, however, because UWM is known for its expertise in training the next generation of energy engineers,” Amano said in the release, noting the university has hosted the state’s only DOE Industrial Assessment Center for nearly three decades.

With the addition of the new ITACs led by UWM, more than 40 will exist across the country.

See the release.

— Four Wisconsin airports are receiving more than $6 million in federal dollars for facility upgrades and new equipment, U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin announced.

The Madison Dem yesterday said the funding will “help ensure that airports of all sizes across Wisconsin can handle increased traffic and continue to serve our communities and visitors safely.” It comes from annual government funding legislation and the Airport & Airway Trust Fund, according to the release.

Milwaukee General Mitchell International Airport is getting about $2.9 million to install new lighting and restore a taxiway, while Green Bay-Austin Straubel International Airport is getting $2.1 million to replace aging snow removal equipment.

Meanwhile, the Central Wisconsin Airport in Marathon County will get $860,000 to replace a firefighting truck and La Crosse Regional Airport is getting $220,000 to update an aircraft rescue and firefighting facility.

See the release.

— Wisconsin’s 2024 cranberry crop is projected to be 4.9 million barrels, marking a decline from last year’s total of 5.47 million barrels.

That’s according to a release from the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association, which notes the state remains the world’s largest cranberry producer with about 61% of the total U.S. crop. Wisconsin has maintained the No. 1 spot for this measure for 30 years, the release shows.

The next closest state, Massachusetts, projects a crop of 2.2 million barrels for this year.

Grant Holley, the association’s executive director, says the cranberry industry has a $1 billion economic impact in the state and supports thousands of Wisconsin jobs.

“Weather has been the prominent challenge for our crop this year, and while we are down slightly from year’s past, it is the knowledge and dedication of our growers that has kept us from an even worse one,” she said in a statement.

Only 5% of the state’s crop this year will be sold as fresh fruit, while the rest goes into products such as frozen or dried berries, juices and sauces. This annual harvest typically runs from late September through mid-October.

See the release.

— The Survival Coalition is urging state leaders to create and insert into the next budget a standardized health plan and insurance fund for care workers serving Wisconsin Medicaid patients.

This is one of many policy recommendations the organization released yesterday, reflecting its focus on aging state residents and those with disabilities. The coalition includes more than a dozen member groups including Disability Rights Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Personal Services Association and the Aging and Disability Professionals Association of WI.

Patti Becker, the coalition’s co-chair, notes people with disabilities and unpaid caregivers rely on in-home services to stay in their communities.

“Ongoing investment in care infrastructure — including the care workforce — is critical to support families and people with disabilities so they can continue to participate in the Wisconsin workforce and so people with disabilities and older adults can avoid costlier nursing homes and institutional settings,” Becker said in a statement.

Recommendations include: boosting funding for Aging and Disability Resource Centers by $20 million per year; increasing funding by $1 million per year for the Department of Health Services’ Division of Quality Assurance; creating a transportation initiative to help disabled people get to work; providing $250,000 to the Department of Financial Institutions for an educational initiative for ABLE savings accounts; and much more.

The coalition is also calling for putting $1 million per year into a training program on ableism — discrimination based on physical or mental ability — and ageism for all medical professionals, as well as training for those working with patients who have intellectual and developmental disabilities.

See the full list of policy recommendations in the release.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

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