At times it seems like everybody living in this town was born in this town. After all, who would choose to settle here unless they had deep family roots? We introduce four transplants who moved to Cleveland and never looked back. Not only have they made the most of it; they've made a life of it.

Has Silicon Valley jumped the shark? Ask many keen observers of technology hubs from coast to coast and they'll tell you that 2013 is prime time for startups to bloom in unexpected cities like Detroit and Cleveland. Dubbed the "Rise of the Rest," the burgeoning trend documents the blossoming of entrepreneurialism in unexpected places.

Since the Cleveland Metroparks was established in 1917, conservation, education and recreation have been the park system's three primary objectives. Those goals are promoted through the park's Outdoor Recreation program, which helps park consumers better connect with nature through dozens of fun and educational activities.

Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski documents the entire Lottery League experience -- from draft night through debut performance. Through a complex process, some 200 musicians are assembled into 42 bands, which then write music, practice, and perform before a live audience. Enjoy the show!

Meet Andi Kornak, the new General Curator at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. After two decades working at the Binder Park Zoo in Battle Creek Michigan, Kornak moved here to accept a new position. "I feel very settled here," says the recent transplant.

Think you know Cleveland? Well, thanks to $4 billion in new downtown development, you just might not recognize it anymore. Soon-to-be-completed projects like the Global Health Innovation Center, Convention Center, Ernst and Young Tower, Aloft Hotel and those in PlayhouseSquare have pushed the city to a tipping point in its evolution.

If phrases like "circuit board" and "stereo inspection microscope" sound daunting, you're not alone. The tools of the high-tech maker trade can be über intimidating -- unless you live in Cleveland, where user-friendly places like TechCentral and Think[box] help normal folks to create.

A waterfall swing developed by Cleveland creatives has amassed over 2.7 million hits on YouTube, garnering the makers international recognition and business opportunities. Created by local engineers and artists, the waterfall swing has been featured at tech festivals from New York to California, hi-profile TV ads, and the Today Show.

Since its modest beginnings 36 years ago at the Cedar Lee Theatre, the Cleveland International Film Festival has blossomed into a premiere local, regional and national event. Over the years the festival’s attendance has grown by over 600 percent to last year's record of 85,018. Here are four films with a Cleveland connection.

For those who don't already know, Cleveland is a place where culture, education, creativity and innovation flourishes affordably. At least, that's the message city boosters are trying to sell to mobile young professionals. According to who you ask, that strategy is either working, working slowly, or not working well at all.

As brewmaster for Market Garden Brewery and Nano Brew, Andy Tveekrem has the enviable job of devising, testing and brewing the luscious suds that bubble up from those popular Ohio City watering holes. We decided to see what a day in the life a big-time brewer is all about. 

In its heyday, downtown's Short Vincent was an entertainment mecca, with big-name spots like the Roxy, known as one of the most successful vaudeville and burlesque theaters in the Midwest. On February 23, Roxy Remembered took over the Beachland, staging a burlesque show in honor of the old club. Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski had a front row seat to the action.

As TEDxCLE blazes into its fourth year beneath the banner "Bonfire//Ignite," Clevelanders once again have responded with unfettered enthusiasm. This year's event, which will be held Thursday, March 21 at the Cleveland Museum of Art, sold all 700 tickets in 24 minutes. Here's a preview of the action.

Imagine having an online resource with the information needed to custom design your own career path. That’s what the UNCOMN.TV does. This project identifies what employers need in employees, what educators need to be teaching students, and what students need to be doing to snag jobs -- thus helping to turn brain drain into brain gain.

“Cities are back, downtowns are back, and the places that we call anchor districts are leveraging growth in cities,” says Chris Ronayne of UCI. In Cleveland and beyond, stakeholders like universities, hospitals and museums ('eds and meds') are leading the way in reshaping cities into vibrant, livable places.

As new VP of operations for the Lake Erie Energy Development Corp (LEEDCo), Dave Karpinski will guide the organization through the next phase in the process of building the nation’s first freshwater offshore wind project. With its first round of financing in tow, LEEDCo must now compete for a critical second infusion of funds against six other projects across the country.

As part of the city's 10-year initiative Sustainable Cleveland 2019, 2013 is being called the Year of Advanced and Renewable Energy. Evidenced by measures big and small -- both civic and private -- Cleveland continues to inch toward becoming a "Green City on a Blue Lake."

Cleveland is quietly transforming from a meat-and-potatoes to a beets-and-tomatoes kind of town -- at least at the edges. Not only are there more meat-free diners in Cleveland. But vegans are finding more meat-free dinners thanks to progressive new eateries and chefs, who are more than eager to please this growing faction of foodies.

Thanks to a new breed of bandleader, polka music is enjoying (yet another) Cleveland revival. While some of the acts might appear more shtick than substance, the motivation behind them comes from love and respect – and in the process are giving rise to a new generation of polka fan.