ENERGY/HIGHER ED

Western community college launches smart grid tech courses

What might well be the U.S. West's first in-depth, college-level courses to certify technicians for smart electric grids take off soon at Front Range Community College in Colorado. The first of the three technical courses, “Introduction to Smart Grid Power Technologies,” provides an overview of the elements of a smart grid, examines the critical role of information technology and telecommunications, and assesses the limitations and constraints of the existing power grid. The course instructor is Conwell Dickey, former director of Front Range’s Clean Energy Program. By Marsha Johnston

ENERGY/INVESTMENT

Promising young cleantech companies vie for a piece of the VC pie

The most promising clean technology businesses came together with investors, partners and policy makers at the 24th Annual NREL Industry Growth Forum earlier this month in hopes of getting both guidance and funds.The top three firms receive a capital infusion and business guidance from NREL and this year’s Growth Forum partner, Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich, & Rosati, a national leader in corporate governance. Since the Growth Forum’s inception in 2004, presenting startups have raised a cumulative $4 billion in growth financing. By Martha Young

ENERGY/BIOFUELS

A key player in Asia's algae industry talks about its global future

When Syed Alwi speaks about the algae industry, you get the feeling that he really has his finger on what’s going on globally. He gets around, and is a bit of a kingpin in the Asian algae world, orchestrating much of the disparate algae talent and intelligence throughout his 12-country region. Syed Isa Syed Alwi is the CEO of the Algaetech Group of companies, based in Malaysia. By David Schwartz, Algae Industry Magazine.

SUSTAINABILITY SPOTLIGHT
A Western java firm profits from its sustainability investment: Part 2

Boyer's Coffee CEO Jim McManus realized that the company’s packaging should be a major part of an effort to rebrand the company’s coffee and that its packaging processes were inefficient, using 11 different types of film for its coffee bags. Operations Manager Len Smith and Roastmaster Mark Morrison attacked these issues, and by eliminating the material-intensive 16 ounce bags and working with an outside firm to redesign the remaining bags, they reduced the number of film types from 11 to just four. By Graham Russsell