FRI AM News: WisBusiness: the Podcast with Laura Strong, Forward Festival; Evers urges EPA to keep solar power grants while Zeldin dismisses program as ‘grift’

August 8, 2025

— This week’s episode of “WisBusiness: the Podcast” is with returning guest Laura Strong, board member for Forward Festival and founder and CEO of Valency Fund.

The show previews the upcoming event series, which organizers tout as the state’s largest celebration of technology and entrepreneurship.

It’s being held Aug. 18-22 in Madison, with more than 60 events taking place across the city that week.

“It’s really driven by entrepreneurs, but it’s really inclusive of everyone in the community, even people that are just curious about entrepreneurship and maybe don’t have any plans to be entrepreneurs themselves,” she said. “We as the festival provide an umbrella that allows people to plan their events during this week … every year we’re excited to see what people have come up with.”

This year’s Forward Festival will have more individual events than ever before, and more than two-thirds of those are new to the festival, Strong notes.

Along with the longstanding Badger Startup Summit, Forward Festival features the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce’s Pressure Chamber pitch competition, seminars on growing a business and other topics, social gatherings, as well as numerous programs focused on AI, cybersecurity and much more.

“There are some more creative, innovator-type events,” she said. “So one of those that I’m particularly interested in is exploring tech-driven music innovation … there’s certainly a lot of AI out there, you can’t get away from it these days, which I think is not a bad thing.”

Strong says the event topics being explored this year reflect “the grassroots interest in innovation” and entrepreneurship happening in Wisconsin. She’s also encouraging attendees to consider what they would like to see highlighted in future events.

“This is a pretty collaborative environment, and so we start, I would say probably in February of every year, talking to folks that might be interested in planning events,” she said. “Trying to get them on the right path to not only think about it, but end up planning and hosting an event.”

Listen to the podcast and see the full list of WisBusiness.com podcasts.

See the calendar of events and register for Forward Festival here.

— Dem Gov. Tony Evers is urging the Trump administration to drop plans to eliminate federal grants supporting solar power efforts, saying the effort “has no legitimate purpose or justification.”

Evers’ letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin cited a New York Times report that the agency was seeking to terminate “Solar for All” grants.

In April, Wisconsin was awarded $62.4 million to fund solar systems for low-and moderate-income households. Since then, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. has been developing program guidelines to dole out the funds, which would also go to community solar projects.

According to the guv’s letter, the program could serve more than 7,400 Wisconsin households, saving each up to $500 a year.

“At a time when energy demand continues to increase, it is unfathomable for the Trump Administration to unnecessarily—and potentially illegally—terminate funding for a program designed to deploy affordable, renewable energy systems,” Evers wrote.

An EPA spokesperson said the agency was reviewing Evers’ letter.

Zeldin yesterday posted a video on social media touting the effort to end the program, saying one of the more “shocking aspects” of Solar for All is the pass throughs the money was set to go through with middle men “taking their own cut” and calling it a “grift.”’

He said the One Big Beautiful Bill provided clear language for the EPA to end the program.

“The bottom line again is this: EPA no longer has the statutory authority to administer the program or the appropriated funds to keep this boondoggle alive,” Zeldin said.

See the release.

— The Kelmann Cares Foundation has now raised about $300,000 for first responders and community organizations since 2020, following its latest successful golf outing fundraiser in Sussex.

The foundation was created by Kelmann Restoration, a Wauwatosa-based insurance restoration business that was founded in 1973. In a recent interview, company President Tom Kelly said the foundation aims to support local law enforcement and fire departments by helping to fill budget gaps.

“When something really bad has happened, they’re there saving lives or protecting property or those types of things, and we’ve gotten to know them and their needs, and causes that are close to their heart,” he said.

The foundation’s fifth golf outing was held Aug. 1 with more than 220 golfers, with a focus on the mental health needs of first responders. Organizers raised about $80,000 for donation based on an early estimate, largely going toward efforts of the Professional Firefighers of Wisconsin Charitable Foundation.

In prior years, the outing has been focused on raising funds for cancer awareness, he said, noting firefighers are often exposed to carcinogens in the line of duty. This year, the event’s focus was chosen after organizers were hearing more about the mental health challenges that first responders face.

“As we’ve learned and as we’ve gotten to know a lot of these people, they see a lot and there’s a huge stress on them,” Kelly said. “So we go to them and say, ‘what do you need?’ … we specifically are giving them money for some programming and training and peer support groups.”

He also highlighted the firefighter foundation’s Burn Camp for Injured Youth program that has gotten funding from Kelmann.

“I went to Burn Camp a few years ago … Just to see that space for these kids that have been affected in some way, in a fire or an accident and have been burned, just an amazing camp and for them to be with other children in the same safe space,” he said. “It was emotional to be there and just to see the good work that a lot of those counselors and family members and volunteers are doing.”

See more here.

— Exact Sciences is acquiring exclusive rights in the U.S. for a blood-based colorectal cancer test to complement its existing screening portfolio.

The Madison-based diagnostics company this week announced it has entered an agreement with cancer detection biotech firm Freenome for exclusive domestic rights to current and future versions of its cancer test.

Kevin Conroy, chairman and CEO of Exact Sciences, says the license “expands our leadership” in cancer screening by adding blood-based options. The company earlier this year launched its Cologuard Plus test, offering an upgraded version of its colorectal screening tool.

“We’re now able to offer a complementary blood-based option to the over 50 million unscreened Americans, supported by our broad commercial reach, ExactNexus technology platform, and deep relationships with health systems and payers,” Conroy said in a statement.

Freenome, based in California, will receive $75 million in cash by November under the agreement, along with up to $700 million in other potential payouts over time linked to milestones for the test. Those include various FDA hurdles as well as achieving specified ratings in the United States Preventive Services Taskforce, among other requirements.

Exact Sciences says it’s also committed $20 million annually over the next three years in joint research and development efforts around the testing technology.

Aaron Elliott, Freenome’s CEO, says Exact Sciences “brings the scale, reach, and proven track record to maximize its impact and deliver this technology to patients faster and with greater certainty.”

Freenome recently submitted the last part of the pre-market application to the FDA, and plans to offer a supplementary submission for its next version of the test when more clinical results are available, the release shows.

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TOPICS

AGRIBUSINESS

– Senator Baldwin secures 2026 funds for Wisconsin Farmers

BIOTECH

– Exact Sciences cuts 200 jobs in Wisconsin, including 80 in Madison

CONSTRUCTION

– Madison adult students get construction basic training for free

– The Boldt Co. names former Microsoft leader as its director of data centers

ENVIRONMENT