Wow

Wow - breathtaking book I bought today - "What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains" Really deep insights by Nicholas Carr - who wrote the eye-opening article in Atlantic Monthly "Is Google Making Us Stoopid?" Here is one sentence from the first page of the Prologue - "Understanding Media by Marshall McLuhan was at heart a prophecy, and what it prophesied was the dissolution of the linear mind."

DC, NYC, Chicago

I am in DC - went to the announcement last Thurs of "RIC's" - Regional Innovation Clusters - by Sec of Commerce Gary Locke. Six centers received grants. SBA also gave out ten other grants for new clusters. Google it for more info.

I was in nyc last sun, mon, tues - for the focus on MDG's and the UN - read Bono's editorial in the NY Times last Sunday 9/19 -
and I was also at some of the Climate Week meetings - I went to part of the Carbon War Room's gathering. The former President of Costa Rica talked about initiatives he did - included a gas tax in Costa Rica. He said wryly, "Presidents can not run for re-election in Costa Rica - which made it easier when I wanted to implement a gas tax."

Off to Chicago Tues for Water Innovations Alliance conference

update

Guys
a- I had a fascinating trip to China the first half of June. I will be posting a few things from that trip over the next few weeks.

b- Very interesting to see the WSJ blog about the sale of Verenium's celluosic ethanol division to BP for $98 million - a firesale price perhaps?
http://blogs.wsj.com/bankruptcy/2010/07/16/verenium-engineers-more-favorable-finances/

c- Also - be sure to look at Vinod Khosla's analysis of the future of thin film solar -
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/what-really-matters-in-thin-film-solar-startups/

Have a great day.
Jim

A must read new article 4/21/10 by Eric Wesoff

A must-read new article 4/21/10 by Eric Wesoff of Greentech Media - the title says it all -
states well some things I have been thinking about lately -

http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/these-arent-the-greentech-ipos-were-looking-for

wonderful ARPA-E Conference finished yesterday in DC - on the future of cleantech - David Leeds wrote a great summary at Greentechmedia -
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/arpa-empty-fantastic-program-not-enough-money/

lively week in DC next week for leaders in renewable energy

Very lively week next week - Feb 1-5 - in Washington, DC

ACORE is doing their RETECH Conference - amazing group of speakers
Go to www.acore.org and click on RETECH

Also a good Facebook Page - for Renewable Energy Week at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Clean-Energy-Week-February-1-5-2010/312351658031
Jim

The annual IBF Cleantech Investor Summit is coming up next Wed. and Thurs in Palm Springs - I'll be there - I always enjoy it - with a number of the leading investors in renewable energy, Matt Rogers of DOE, Reed Hundt, Peter Schwartz and Amory Lovins.
http://www.cleantechsummit.com/agenda_2010.htm

Felix Kramer is amazing. The Founder of Cal-Cars.org and leader of the original group that converted the first Toyota Prius to a plug-in hybrid in the U.S. Keep up with www.calcars.org. Felix says "Welcome to 2010: The Year of the Plug-In Car... For CalCars, it's been eight years. Some people we know have been on a two-to-four-decade-long quest. Soon we'll be driving safe, affordable, highway-capable plug-in hybrids and all-electric vehicles from the world's major carmakers and some brash startups. We'll be spending two weeks at the end of the month on the East Coast. In addition to some private events and meetings in Boston and New York to promote the Big Fix, we'll first be attending the Electric Drive Transportation's broad industry Conference and Annual Meeting, January 26-28, held in conjunction with the Washington DC Auto Show. See the full program and sign up at http://electricdrive.org . The following week, again in DC, I'm speaking on gas-guzzler conversions at the Renewable Energy Technology Conference & Exhibition http://www.retech2010.com/ - RETECH2010 includes 250 leaders from industry and the administration, including presentations by key officials in the Department of Energy, to over 5,000 attendees. We're on the "Advanced Vehicles and Batteries" panel http://www.retech2010.com/business-conference#B7 ."

To read the rest of Felix's post, go to http://www.calcars.org/calcars-news/1086.html

Now this is a cool invention - the Yike Bike - in New Zealand - an electric bike that goes up to 12 mph - and folds up so you can sling it over your shoulder and take it inside! Check out the video at www.yikebike.com . Time Magazine listed it as one of the top Inventions of the Year.

Read about the founder - "Grant Ryan is an addicted inventor and entrepreneur. He has founded a number of companies including GlobalBrain.net (sold to NBCi), RealContacts, SLI Systems (profitable fast growing SaaS search company) and Eurekster (North America Red Herring 100 in 2006)." A classic entrepreneur.

Important column in today, Sunday's New York Times by the amazing Tom Friedman, written in Hong Kong, titled "Who's Sleeping Now?" - http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/opinion/10friedman.html

Friedman says, "We are either going to put in place a price on carbon and the right regulatory incentives to ensure that America is China’s main competitor/partner in the E.T. (Energy Technology) revolution, or we are going to gradually cede this industry to Beijing and the good jobs and energy security that would go with it."

He finishes the column with "We can’t afford to be asleep with an invigorated China wide awake."

Don't be fooled by the world not signing a clear agreed-upon mandate at Copenhagen.

Look at the work being done by Branson's Carbon War Room, and at the dynamic Artic Council looking to invest huge amounts of money to mitigate carbon emissions and help to avoid the Gulf Stream's temperate effect on the Scandinavian countries.

The Green Economy is developing quickly - and it will determine who are the leading countries in the next two decades.
- Jim

Konarka - amazing how many rounds of financing they have done!

1/9/10 - Konarka raises more money! This company is going to hit a home run or be the longest running cleantech company without shipping a product - amazing to watch how many rounds of financing they have done!