Environment DEC
From the July 2005 issue
Governor Attends Groundbreaking for Syracuse Center of Excellence
Governor Pataki speaks during the dedication of the Syracuse Center of Excellence
Governor George E. Pataki joined federal, state, local officials and local business and academic leaders in dedicating the site for the new headquarters of the Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems. This facility will transform central New York into a worldwide leader in environmental and energy technologies. The state has committed $25.5 million to the construction of the new facility and approximately $44 million overall to the entire center of excellence project in Syracuse.
The construction of the new facility will allow the Syracuse Center, which already is involved with ongoing research efforts to improve "indoor environments" in the areas of air quality, comfort, lighting, acoustics and intelligent controls, to expand its core mission to include research and development in renewable and clean energy sources.
Governor Pataki said, "The state, together with our private sector and academic partners, has made a critical investment in the future of Syracuse that will transform the region's economy and provide thousands of new high-tech job opportunities for New Yorkers. I can think of no better way to demonstrate our commitment to a cleaner, healthier environment than to transform and restore a now vacant brownfield site into the future site where new innovations and breakthroughs will be made to improve the quality of our natural environment,"Current Center
The Syracuse Center of Excellence is a collaborative effort led by Syracuse University in conjunction with the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Cornell University, Clarkson University and other public and private colleges across the state. It also coordinates and works with several private industries and other academic and research partners.
The original mission of the center was to focus on research to improve "indoor environments" in areas such as air quality, comfort, lighting, acoustics and intelligent controls. In his 2004 State-of-the-State Address, the Governor called for an expansion of their core mission to include research and development in renewable and clean energy sources. As part of the effort to develop clean and renewable energy sources, the Governor also directed NYSERDA to create a partnership among the Syracuse Center of Excellence, state government and the private sector to make New York's bio-fuels industry one of the strongest in the nation.
Future Center
The new Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems will create innovations to improve health, productivity, security and sustainability in constructed and urban environments. Its focus area includes air quality, thermal comfort, lighting, sound, water quality and renewable and clean energy.
In total, nearly $190 million in private and public funds have been invested in the Syracuse Center. This includes a state commitment of $44 million, $28.6 million in federal resources secured by Congressman Jim Walsh and more than $96 million in private and foundation investments.
In Good Company
The Syracuse Center is one of several centers of excellence statewide that are focusing on critical, emerging high-tech fields, including the Albany Center of Excellence in Nanoelectronics, the Rochester Center of Excellence in Photonics and Microsystems, the Buffalo Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences, and the Long Island Center of Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology.
