March 3rd, 2011

Why should Mass cleantech companies take a vacation to Costa Rica?

BOSTON -

I sat in on a webinar recently where the U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica spoke at length about the amazing opportunities for US clean-tech companies to exploit. Given how gorgeous Costa Rica is and their ongoing strides to create an eco-tourism economy, why the hell not?! It is the perfect spot for expansion, plus a great employee perk.

Kidding/vacation fun aside, the country is attempting to make itself investment friendly and currently has a lot of backing from the US government. Costa Rica is attempting to double the per-capita income of its citizens and in order to do that, the government needs to create jobs and slash spending.

The country has no fossil fuels of its own, so there has been a large focus on renewables, particularly hydro. The government is looking to add more than 2,000 MGW of energy production over the next ten years. This provides a great opportunity for US companies involved with hydro, geothermal and wind production to tap into a market for which their services are a necessity. Solar is being entertained but is generally considered too expensive. Here to is an opportunity for a US business to experiment with new business models that defray the cost of investment in solar. Similarly, Costa Rica is a good market for those exporting equipment for clean energy projects, involved in construction and installation, and/or engineering services.

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Tagged alternative energy, clean tech, Costa Rica, Investment, Sustainable Business |

July 27th, 2010

Green Marketing or Green Washing?

BOSTON -

So last month I spouted off about labels on food and the enforcement behind them.  The topic is a confusing once since there is very little regulation, which leads to consumer confusion.  There are however, guidelines with the FTC that prevent green washing in marketing under the banner of Truth in Advertising. Unfortunately most businesses have very little knowledge of these guidelines, due to their lack of enforcement, and therefore even the most sustainably-minded companies are often guilty of green washing.  But the Obama administration has stated that enforcement of these guidelines is a priority going forward, so consumers are about to get some clarity!

To check out the green guides for yourself you can read them at the FTC website.  Or you can keep reading for a snarky summary. Continue Reading >

Tagged advertising, FTC, green business, green guides, green marketing, green washing, Marketing, Obama, Sustainable Business |

May 24th, 2010

Last Month at the IERG – International Executive Resources Group

BOSTON -

Last Month the IERG (International Executive Resources Group) held a panel on International Clean Tech. This was the follow up to their, equally good, presentation on Sustainable Operations practices in an International Business. Normally, I don’t write about panels, but several of the panelists brought up new issues that I wanted to share.

First off, Francesco Fragasso the CFO of Nuvera Fuel Cells, located in Billerica, Mass and Milan, Italy made the business case for sustainability. When asked if there was a market capable of sustaining investment in clean tech (haha, pun totally intended), he responded by saying that there is a “real market because there is a real need.”

He then went on to say that loving mother earth is not the only or predominant reason for making these investments.
He listed three main points:
1. CO2 reduction/operational savings
2. Source Securitization (the big motivator)
3. Competitive advantage held by technology leaders.

So yeah, preaching to the choir, duh, not telling you anything new. Still, it always makes me smile when I hear a seasoned business person talk about sustainability and clean tech, from an ‘it just makes business sense on every level, get with the program perspective,’ as opposed to the sustainability=hippie-tree hugger talk that generally gets thrown around.

Next up was Eva Thorne a professor at Brandeis University. She brought up Brazil as an international super power when it comes to clean tech, a fact of which I had little knowledge. Brazil produces 89% of the world’s ethanol. What’s more, Brazil produces sugar cane ethanol as opposed to the questionable corn variety. Sugar Ethanol is the most advanced biofuel to date (claims the EPA) with a 61% reduction in total life cycle green house gas emissions. One of the cool attributes is that leftover cane waste can be used to power the plant that is creating the ethanol. Woohoo! Brazil is also a leading user of hydro power and has great potential for wind energy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel_in_Brazil

The gist of it was, that Brazil has become a global power because of their energy self sufficiency and effective government policy. Their place in the export market has catapulted the country forward. Much of this technology development was due to their Military government seeking fuel sufficiency, ordering the research and allocating the funds accordingly. Dictators don’t have red tape. So there is the silver lining of the military dictatorship—They get shit done. (please hold the hate mail. Yay Democrocy! Happy?)

Finally, there was a lively discussion between the panelists and the audience surrounding hybrid vehicles. The question posed was, if hybrids are so great, then why are they not sweeping the EU market. The panelists focused mostly on the fact that they use Diesel, which can be a very clean fuel. They also brought up that the efficiency of our hybrids is comparable to the efficiency of their diesel vehicles and mentioned that due to government policy their price per gallon has been around $9.00 for years now. The audience seemed to walk away unsatisfied with the general consensus being, ‘why should we bother with a hybrid if the Europeans haven’t gone crazy over them?’

The panel didn’t connect the dots really. The point is that hybrids seem amazing here, but they are still incredibly inefficient. We could do so much better. Most of our hybrids are less efficient on a life cycle basis than a really compact diesel vehicle. Yes, Europe has been living with high taxes, equaling high gas prices for years. As a result, everything including their SUVs and tractor trailers are tiny in comparison to ours. We just can’t beat the efficiency they have had established for years. It is always a little culture shock when I visit France. I feel like a giant for the first few days.

So, that’s all for now. It was really a good conversation and I was happy to have attended. Gotta love it when international executives are having constructive conversations about what they can be doing to develop more clean tech!

Tagged clean tech, ethanol, hybrid, international, international business, Sustainable Business, wind energy |

March 10th, 2010

Truly Green Beers for St. Patrick’s Day

BOSTON -

For those of you who actually needed a reason to drink beer, it has arrived.

Given the rise in consumer awareness when it comes to organic foods and the environment generally, there has been a surge in innovation from food and beverage producers to meet that demand. Beer crafters have actually been somewhat ahead of the curve. Microbreweries have been particularly active espousing both the “buy organic” and “buy local” movements.

By now, most people know about Peak Organic, a great organic brewery born here in Massachusetts in 1998 (now in Portland Maine). The founder, Jon Codoux had a passion for beer brewing and a sustainability ethic, realizing that if you combine both, you can make some kick ass beer and support your local economy. There are a range of organic and fair trade beers to suit just about everyone’s taste, featured on a fun website that shows just how local and funky this brewery gets. The Espresso Amber Ale for instance, is made with organic fair trade coffee beans from an indie coffee shop located down the street from Peak. The Maple Oat Ale is made through a collaboration of organic farmers located in Maine and Vermont. The Pomegranate Wheat Ale with a touch of organic coriander….well I am just bringing that one up because it sounds really good.

Wolaver’s Certified Organic Ales since 1997 is located in Vermont. Wolaver’s was one of the first USDA certified organic breweries and they don’t stop at just organic ingredients. They bring a four prong philosophy to their entire brewing and distribution process. 1. They have four different organic certifications for their brews; 2. They employ energy reduction techniques to their brewing process including, a biodiesel boiler, heat recovery, an energy efficient lighting system, and using local ingredients to minimize green house gases in transportation; 3. Depleted ingredients like hops, grains, and petals are sold to local farmers as cattle feed, they have an in-house waste water treatment system, and they use all recycled and bleach free materials for their packaging; 4. Finally they try to source everything the brewery needs locally to support their community. With Ales, Stouts, and a nice collection of Seasonals, Wolaver’s beer is definitely something you can feel good about drinking.

Kona Brewing Company in Hawaii has also been sustainably focused since its founding in 1994. Besides, organic beer, selling depleted ingredients to local farmers (and pizza/bread dough makers, hmm), recycling programs, and heat reclamation use, they are going solar. Kona received quite a bit of press recently when they announced their plans to install a 229kW solar energy generating system at their brewery and pub location. The PV system is estimated to produce an average of 900 KWh of electricity each day, allowing Kona to offset nearly 60 percent of its current electricity usage and save around $100,000 per year. When guests visit the brewery they will get to view a real-time monitor showing how much energy is being generated while they sip on their beer. So everyone, next time you are in Hawaii…..
Of course, Kona is not the first, nor the only brewery to go down the solar path. Other locally and sustainably focused crafters are moving in the same direction, including: Anderson Valley Brewing Company and Sierra Nevada in California, Lucky Labrador Brewing Company in Portland; and New Belgium Brewing in Colorado.

So there you have it! Reasons or more reasons to drink beer and support small producing craft breweries as well as your local economy.

As always kids, DRINK RESPONSIBLY!

Side note: If you are not familiar with Microbreweries in your area, I suggest you start looking into them or you will be missing out on some great brews. Matt Webster from Drink A Better Brew, here in Massachusetts, has an informative blog packed with the latest beer news you should know.

Peak Organic Beer: http://www.peakbrewing.com/
Wolaver’s Organic Ales: http://www.ottercreekbrewing.com/wolavers.html
Kona Brewing Company: http://www.konabrewingco.com/
Dogfish Head in Delaware (not organic as far as I know, but they are my favorite and therefore must be included): http://www.dogfish.com/

This post was authored by Jessica R. Manganello, Esq. of New Leaf Legal, LLC. Check out more at http://www.newleaflegal.com and @Mangojess.

Tagged Alcohol, Beer, Breweries, green, Local, Organic, solar, Sustainability, Sustainable Business |

February 18th, 2010

Clean Tech Law: Pros and Cons of the B Corp – For Serious Triple-Bottom-Line Business

BOSTON -

This post comes from our newest industry insider, Jessica Manganello, who will be giving us a great legal perspective of the clean tech and green industry. You can find here at New Leaf Legal, or on twitter @mangojess

For those of you who are unfamiliar with B Corporations (B Corp), B Corp is a certification designed by B Lab, a non-profit third party auditor.

According to B Corporation:

“B Corporations are a new type of corporation which uses the power of business to solve social and environmental problems. B Corporations are unlike traditional responsible businesses because they:
· Meet comprehensive and transparent social and environmental performance standards.
· Institutionalize stakeholder interests.
· Build collective voice through the power of a unifying brand.”

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Tagged B Corp, Branding, Business, green, LOHAS, Sustainable Business |