Apr 11 2008
Rev Up Those Clean and Green Ideas!
The Clean Tech Open launched its California competition this week, in the fabulous Rotunda of the new San Jose City Hall. San Jose is the hosting city, and Mayor Chuck Reed was on hand to kick off the event. He threw a challenge to the assembled group of entrepreneurs, investors and business leaders. “Bring us a way to make it possible for the people of San Jose to install solar on their residences at no cost!—and do it in 60 days!”, he said. The time constraint elicited laughter, but it underscored the commitment that Mayor Reed and the city have made to clean technology, both for the city’s use and to foster the innovation needed to make the new technologies a viable part of San Jose’s community.
Mayor Reed reiterated that the city has definitive goals to reduce its electricity consumption by 50%, move towards 100% renewable sources, and add 25,000 jobs in clean technologies. This is great news for fledgling cleantech companies, and was validated further by the city’s meetings with seven of the CTO “alumni” finalist companies from the last two years, where they discussed opportunities within the city for their products and services. This competition is a great way for entrepreneurs with a good idea to get started. The goal is to foster innovation in clean technology in six categories: renewable energy, smart power, green building, energy efficiency, and air, water and waste management. And it’s easy to enter—all you need is an idea, $150, and a three page executive summary. Then the fun starts. (And I mean that—it’s an amazing group of people and lots of fun.) If you’re selected as a finalist, good things happen to you—you’ll basically get a business makeover through a series of mentoring events, business workshops (how to write a business plan, how to do a VC pitch), and hands-on advice on legal, financial and business issues. The winners are announced in October, at the “Academy Awards of Cleantech”. The winners of each category will receive a prize package worth $100,000. The visibility and networking that ensue from participating in this event open doors and create opportunities that are worth at least as much as the prizes themselves. To date, alumni from the past two years have raised more than $45 million in financing. That’s worth thinking about if you have a great idea! For more info, go to www.cacleantech.com.