Tagged: upstate economy

Most major centers for the arts, like an old theater downtown, usually don't turn a profit. They're not really expected to. But last month at a forum at downtown Syracuse's Landmark Theatre, the argument was made that grandiose theaters shouldn't be viewed as charities.

Colleges and universities are becoming an even bigger part of upstate New York's economy, according to a new report by a group that represents private institutions in the state.

The number of women graduating from computer science degrees has more than halved since the 1980s. One computer scientists recently spoke to students at the Rochester Institute of Technology and told them that women have to be included in the field to boost the economy, and to encourage equality.

The industry around the scientific fields of optics and photonics has a strong presence in upstate New York. Monroe County alone is home to around 50 companies working in the field that is behind things like lasers, smart phones, and the Internet.

The Department of Environmental Conservation recently released regulations on water withdrawals that would cover the natural gas industry in New York.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is pushing for Congress to increase the amount of money credit unions can loan businesses.

A General Motors facility in western New York has announced they are going green. The site in Lockport makes heating and air conditioning components for GM radiators and is the 103rd facility for the company to become landfill-free.

As upstate New York heads into some of the darkest days of the calendar year, researchers at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy are trying to shed some light on our individual cycle of sleeping and waking known as the circadian rhythm.

Like all across the nation, Black Friday shopping got off to its earliest start yet in in central and northern New York.  Retailers across the region hope the day will be the beginning of a strong holiday shopping season. While a Siena College poll showed that a majority of New Yorkers think stores should not open on Thanksgiving night, store managers said they had good business until the wee hours of the morning Friday.

As national retailers pull out all the stops for Black Friday shoppers, locally-owned stores are promoting Small Business Saturday for the third year in a row.  It's part of the growing "buy local" movement, and supporter are asking people to consider taking their business to independent retailers in addition to hitting the mall or the big box stores during the start of the holiday shopping season.