Detroit used to helm the automotive world, and there is little reason for it to stop doing so! Instead of attempting to redefine the roots of this great American city, one important step to take for progress is for Detroit to continue to advance up the automobile value chain and this means a bold step into anything electric-vehicle (EV) related!

The $400mil which the DOE pumped into various Michigan battery projects back in 2009 was a start, and this sunk cost should be maximized!

The idea to "electrify" Detroit is to turn the city into an electric vehicle test-bedding area. By establishing a network of public charging stations, Detroit could be the very first city for EV-companies to test out usage potential, patterns and possibilities. This infrastructure could promote usage and allow further research into areas such as user-insights and creating models to optimize inner city EV drives. What this ultimately does is to revitalize the roots of this great American auto-city by coupling test-bedding opportunities with research, and allowing successful solutions to be exported to other cities for EV systems. The multiplier effect could be tremendous; be inviting collaboration not only from industry but stakeholders active in the EV field such as MIT's Media Lab, the city will slowly be able to attract the right talent to revitalize itself.

The EV value chain does not stop there. With a robust EV infrastructure, further R&D opportunities exist for vehicle-to-grid (V2G) interactions and this could attract the likes of companies conducting research into "smart cities" , such as GE and Siemens.

From a broader perspective, cities should look to maximize their existing potential by moving up the value chain in whichever area of expertise/mastery. By turning problems into solutions, cities in decline will be able to create new opportunities. Taking reference from the city of Singapore which turned its problem of water scarcity into an opportunity to become the world's leading water management mega-city, Detroit could turn their problem of a declining auto-city to a revitalized EV-city of the future from which other cities can take reference.