Renewable energy workshop is set
TRAVERSE CITY -- A workshop on small-scale renewable energy systems will be offered at three northern Michigan locations through the Michigan Citizen Planner program.
The workshops are set for 6 to 9:30 p.m. and will be held Thursday at Northwestern Michigan College's Hagerty Center in Traverse City, on Dec. 7 at the Emmet County Community Building in Petoskey and Dec. 9 at Manistee's City Hall.
Sign-up information is available through Michigan State University's Land Policy Institute at landpolicy.msu.edu.
Attorney honored with Thomas award
TRAVERSE CITY -- The Grand Traverse-Leelanau-Antrim Bar Association honored local attorney Patrick J. Wilson with its 2009 Madeleine Thomas Award for community service.
Wilson, of the Smith Haughey Rice & Rogge office in Traverse City, was recognized for his volunteer work with several area organizations, including Rotary Charities, the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce, the Grand Traverse Bay YMCA Board of Directors, Munson Medical Center and the Traverse City Ski Club.
The award is presented annually by the local bar to honor the memory of Madeleine Thomas, a Traverse City attorney who was instrumental in helping form the Women's Resource Center.
The 3-county bar also presented a proclamation honoring Leelanau County Probate Judge Joseph Deegan, who died in July. It was given to his son, Jack, at the association's fall dinner meeting this month.
MIOSHA seminars set for December
TRAVERSE CITY -- The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (MIOSHA) training division will offer a series of local seminars in December.
A daylong training session on MIOSHA Construction - Part 45 in fall protection will be held Dec. 10 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., while a course titled "Electricity - the Invisible Killer" will be held Dec. 17 from 1 to 4 p.m. On Dec. 18, a program on "Excavations: The Grave Danger" will be held from 9 a.m. until noon. All three seminars will be held at the Cherry Tree Inn in Traverse City.
The registration fee includes course material. Sign-up is available by contacting Adriane Truss at (517) 371-1550 or atruss@agcmichigan.org.
Hedge funds mull ditching U.K. for Asia
LONDON -- They're getting nervous in Mayfair and Belgravia, London's hedge fund heartlands.
Luxury car dealerships, designer boutiques and high-end restaurants have thrived on money from the unregulated investment funds whose discreet offices sit behind the solid wooden doors of those neighborhoods' elegant Georgian buildings.
But now some funds are considering swapping London for the less-regulated alpine air of Switzerland or the emerging markets of Asia as the European Union tightens oversight of high-flying hedge funds. Recent British tax hikes have also spurred funds to consider leaving the city that has long been Europe's undisputed financial capital.
"The mood music has gone very bad here," said Julian Adams, chief executive of London-based Adelante Asset Management Ltd. "It's quite negative for business and for U.K. PLC."
The hedge fund industry is worth $250 billion ($377 billion) in Europe, and has boomed in recent years largely free of government regulation.
The sector didn't cause the global financial crisis, but it has caught the eye of European governments and regulators looking to clamp down on the excessive risk-taking that brought many Western banks to the verge of collapse last year.
European union proposals would require hedge funds and private equity funds to register in Europe and to inform regulators about their trades and strategy.
EU lawmakers and governments also are suggesting that hedge fund managers be subject to the same kind of restrictions and bonuses currently being imposed on regular banks to limit rewards for short-term success.
The proposals have been condemned by the industry as too heavy-handed.
Hedge funds are investment funds for a small number of wealthy or large investors -- minimum investment levels are usually around $1 million -- that invest in a broad range of assets, including shares and commodities.
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