Stuck In The Muck

If you haven’t heard, there was no discussion—let alone utterance—of “climate change” in the presidential debates this year. First time it’s happened since 1988 and it didn’t go unnoticed throughout the blogosphere, across the Twittersphere, and in pre- and post-debate articles and discussions. A simple search will yield plenty of links to read.
 

The absence of any acknowledgement of climate change and its effect on how we live, play, and work was nothing short of stunning, not to mention irresponsible. Like many others, I was hoping the candidates would have addressed jobs, foreign policy, and healthcare within the context of climate change and our global energy crisis. What we got was a neatly siloed discourse on each issue; we were fed the same old sound bites in the same old packaging as in the past. Billions in lobbying by the fossil fuel industry and its special interests can have this effect when the money lands in campaign coffers.  

All the while, we emitted another 14.92 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. Created 58 million barrels of waste water to produce 4.8 million barrels of oil and 66 billion cubic feet of natural gas. Handed the coal, natural gas and oil industries another $11.5 million in incentives.
 
If only U.S. political “leaders” would apply the same scale and effort they do to whining about what the other party did or didn’t do to actively combating the most critical issue staring all of us in the eye. We need bold leaders with their own ideas—not a party line—who understand that 6 billion (and growing) people’s future is inextricably linked to how aggressively, creatively and responsibly we address climate change and the global energy challenge. We need both local and large-scale solutions today, not 5, 10, or 20 years down the road.

Despite the political silence during this campaign season and the billions spent in lobbying by the fossil fuel industry, I can’t help wonder if the latter isn’t feeling a bit squeezed by the millions of real leaders found among the younger generations and communities around the globe. They are the ones leading an energy revolution and moving us toward a clean energy future faster. My money is on these leaders. U.S. politicians might do well to hitch their political future to them instead of an industry stuck in the muck.

Six to Watch: Inaugural C3E Awards Recognize Leaders in Clean Energy

The inaugural C3E Awards—each carrying a $10,000 prize—were announced at the U.S. C3E Awards & Symposium at MIT last Friday, and recognized six mid-career women for their leadership and accomplishments in cleantech.

The six areas are:
            Innovation and Technology Development
            Entrepreneurship and Innovative Business Models
            Corporate Implementation
            Policy and Advocacy
            Advancements for the Developing World
            Education and Mentorship

Innovation and Technology Development
Jing Li, Professor of Chemistry & Chemical Biology, Rutgers University
Jing developed a family of nanostructured inorganic-organic hybrid semiconductors that have fundamental importance but also hold promise for use in clean energy applications, including in white LEDs. She has also developed a new type of high-performance and low-cost porous material that may become suitable for the capture of carbon dioxide from power plant flue gases. She gives a lot of time to programs to support better teaching of science on the K-12 level and girls in STEM. 

Entrepreneurship and Innovative Business Models
Judy Dorsey, President and Principal Engineer, Brendle Group
Judy was instrumental in the creation of the Colorado Clean Energy Cluster in 2006 and served as its executive director through last year. She was a key thought leader in creating the Fort Collins net-zero energy districts (“FortZED”), one of the world’s largest. Together with women from Denmark, France, and Italy, she was a co-creator of the International Cleantech Network, a global network of cleantech clusters.

Corporate Implementation
Liz Porter, Program Director, Information Systems and Global Solutions, Lockheed Martin
Liz served as Director of Energy Initiatives for Corporate Engineering and Technology at Lockheed Martin, overseeing the development of an Energy Solutions Center in Virginia, which opened in 2010, and has since hosted 10,000 visitors. She worked on the company’s “Go Green” efforts. Within the company she has advocated for the standard leadership rotations to include one in energy. She volunteers with STEM organizations, such as the Maryland Clean Energy Center and Spark 101.

Policy and Advocacy
Maggie Downey, Administrator, Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative
Maggie has been a longstanding administrator of the Cape Light Compact, an energy aggregator helping customers save $20 million annually on electric bills through efficiency gains, but saw a need to do more to stabilize energy costs while working toward CO2 reduction goals and developed the plan for a Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative (CVEC), which now has 20 member towns and counties. Her skills as a thoughtful and clear communicator were cited.

Advancements for the Developing World
Laura Stachel, Co-Founder, Director, and Physician, We Care Solar
Laura is a public health physician who developed the “Solar Suitcase” to reduce maternal mortality by bringing clean light to clinics in developing countries where energy poverty left physicians to conduct C-sections by flashlight or kerosene lanterns. Pregnancy and childbirth complications claim the lives of 350,000 women a year. The easy-to-use portable systems have been introduced in health facilities in 19 countries.

Education and Mentorship
Tracey Holloway, Associate Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Tracey has played an instrumental role in designing and leading two key programs – first, the Global Stewards Sustainability Prize, one of the largest U.S. student innovation competitions, and second, the Earth Science Women’s Network (ESWN). She co-founded ESWN in 2002 and it has since grown to over 1700 women in more than 20 countries.