BURLINGTON, Vermont
Population: 42,284
Unemployment: 2.9 percent
Top University: University of Vermont
About a quarter of the city’s residents are students at the University of Vermont but despite that, or because of it, Burlington has one of the nation’s highest ratios of tech-related patents, per thousand residents. Having been the birthplace of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream, which began here in a renovated gas station, the area also produces an impressive amount of tech startups and is leading a statewide push toward running completely on renewable resources by 2050.