A few days ago, I watched a vision become reality.

The vision is one of a Michigan that ties its legacy as a manufacturing powerhouse to the needs of today’s economy – clean energy and cutting-edge technology – and of government working together with manufacturers to create new opportunities for Michigan workers.

That vision is taking shape across our state, but on the day in question, it was in Midland, where Dow Kokam, Dow Chemical Co.’s advanced battery unit, held the groundbreaking ceremony for a $600 million, 800,000-square-foot manufacturing facility.

When the final phase of construction is completed in 2015, this facility will produce the battery packs and cells that will power the next generation of green-technology vehicles we’ll design and build in Michigan. I attended the ceremony along with Vice President Joe Biden, Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Sen. Debbie Stabenow and other state and local leaders.

At full capacity, the plant will employ about 800 Michigan workers; another 1,000 or so will work on its construction.

And these are jobs that look to the future. As transportation is increasingly powered by cleaner, more advanced hybrid electric technology, companies like Dow Kokam are perfectly positioned to put Michigan at the forefront of the transformation.

And it’s not just Dow. A123 Systems is expanding high-tech facilities in Livonia and Romulus. Battery packs for GM’s revolutionary Volt plug-in hybrid are rolling off an assembly line in Brownstown Township. And the vision extends beyond vehicle batteries: Michigan companies are at the forefront of developing equipment to generate wind energy, produce biofuels and advance solar energy technology.

An important part of this vision is a partnership between government and private industry.

Too often, our nation has failed to recognize that when American companies compete around the world, they’re not just competing against companies from other countries; they’re competing against the countries themselves, which provide a wide range of support to their own firms.

But we’re taking steps to catch up. Among the things that made the Dow facility possible is a $161 million grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – more commonly known as the stimulus bill. Dow’s groundbreaking is another piece of evidence that the Recovery Act is creating jobs today that will have staying power in the green economy.

The project also is getting support from Michigan’s advanced battery grant program, as well as state tax credits that are part of Gov. Granholm’s comprehensive effort to position Michigan’s economy for success in high-growth industries.

Federal and state support such as the grants and credits that helped make Dow’s groundbreaking possible is vital to our nation’s economic future. Countries such as South Korea and India are making strategic investments in key industries for the future. To secure a future for American workers, we have to do the same, and we’ve begun to do so.

The vice president was right when he called the Midland facility “the beginning of a revolution in the production of energy in this country.” And it’s a revolution that is beginning right here in Michigan. That’s one of the reasons why, for all the tough times our state has been through, I am optimistic about its future.