About seven months ago, University of Wisconsin graduate students Steve Faulkner and Michael Major started GeoHuddle, a company that develops ground-source heat pumps, as part of a clean-technology competition.

“We felt that ground-source heat pumps stood out as a great technology that was proven, easy to implement and scalable,” says Faulkner, noting that their system targets new residential subdivisions in order to reduce household energy use by 60 to 70 percent and household carbon-dioxide emissions by 15 percent.

As part of the GeoHuddle mission, they want to overcome what they believe is the largest barrier keeping this sort of technology from the average suburban household—cost.

Most people associate Wisconsin with cheese and beer, but you should think about adding startups to that list. Led by a tidal wave of mostly young entrepreneurs, Madison, Wisconsin is staking a claim as the startup capital of the Midwest. Madison was recently ranked as the 7th most innovative city in the country by Forbes magazine – just above perennial powerhouse Boston, MA.

Several key organizations are driving the growing startup community. Capital Entrepreneurs is a group of over 56 companies that meet on a regular basis to help founders network and develop connections. MERLIN Mentors provides free mentoring services to new startups. Applicants are assigned a team of experienced entrepreneurs who help founders navigate many of the challenges facing a new company. These groups, along with the University of Wisconsin, are fostering a great culture for new startups.