What U.S. state comes to mind when you hear the words "renewable energy"?  I'm guessing your immediate thought was California and possibly Texas.

This Wednesday (a.k.a Earth Day!), as part of his Clean Energy for America campaign, President Obama will be in a town named Newton to officially anoint a third state to the elite status as a national renewable energy leader: Iowa.  That's right, Iowa.  A state that has less than ten percent of CA's population, no major league professional sports teams, and, hold your nose - where hogs outnumber people five to one, surpassed CA as the second leading state of wind power production last year.  Iowa is now only second to Texas, which got a head start under the tutelage of then Texas Governor George W. Bush during the mid '90's. 

Coordinated through it's Office of Energy Independence, Iowa is also investing more heavily in energy efficiency and other forms of renewable energy such as advanced biofuels, biomass and biogas methane capture (plenty of hogs).  

Having personal ties to the Hawkeye State through my dad's family lineage, I am quite proud to share in this great accomplishment driven by the citizens and business and government leaders of the State.  I bet if you interview a few Iowans they'll know nothing about a 'clean energy challenge' because thus far it's been all opportunity - economic and environmental alike - afforded to them through home grown renewable energy development.  I am confident that these winds of clean energy change will sweep into other states throughout the Midwest region and our nation as a whole.