On Wednesday, August 14, Congressman Paul Tonko (D-NY) and Dr. David Danielson, Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, met with leaders of local businesses, educational institutions, non-profits, and others in upstate New York to discuss opportunities through energy efficiency. They heard comments and suggestions on how the federal government, through Congress, can better work with the private sector to advance local efforts to improve energy policy. The meeting followed on a visit the previous day by the Congressman and DOE officials to General Electric’s Global Research Center in Niskayuna, where discussion focused on keeping America’s advanced manufacturing competitive globally.