Smart Techs
Tecnologie intelligenti e futuro sostenibile nell’epoca della Green Economy
Green Charge: The Energy Storage Startup Transforming A $100 Billion Market
The energy storage industry has grown to become a $100 billion market, projected to reach $250 billion by 2040. This massive valuation is due, in part, to more than 50% of consumer energy bills being attributed to peak hour charges. Noticing the need to make energy usage more affordable and efficient, paired with a passion to improve the planet, one entrepreneur launched a company aimed at transforming the way we use energy. (altro…)
SolarCity and Other Rooftop Providers Face a Cloudier Future
ust two years ago, SolarCity and other rooftop solar providers were Wall Street darlings, and prospects for growth were flying high, as enthusiasm for solar power was seemingly boundless. After all, they had built a better mousetrap, allowing the masses to install environmentally minded solar power systems at little or no cost to them and to reduce their electricity bills at the same time. (altro…)
Agricoltura digitale 2.0: arrivano i fondi per il biotech
Investire in agricoltura digitale e biotecnologie più moderne e sostenibili per migliorare le performance del settore agroalimentare. Sono i principi che hanno ispirato nella legge di Stabilità un finanziamento di 21 milioni su un progetto di ricerca pubblica triennale che sarà gestito dal Crea, il Centro specializzato del ministero delle Politiche agricole. (altro…)
World without water: six solutions to a shortage
The World Bank is planning to devote up to $5bn a year to try to fix it. Goldman Sachs says it poses a risk to economic growth. And Matt Damon, the actor, has tipped a bucket of toilet water over his head to bring attention to it. The problem is water — a vital resource that has long been poorly managed or taken for granted in much of the world and that has rising populations driving competition for supplies. The search for solutions to uneven and inadequate water supply has already led to improvements in irrigation, desalination and wastewater recycling, and is spurring development of innovative technologies such as waterless fracking in the energy industry and more water-saving devices at home. (altro…)
New Report Identifies Major Clean-Tech Market Opportunity
A new World Bank Group report quantifies significant opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries to generate profits and create jobs by providing solutions to local climate challenges. Much of the emphasis on climate change has been on urging countries to act to avoid environmental catastrophe. This new report, “Building Competitive Green Industries: the Climate and Clean Technology Opportunity for Developing Countries,” frames responding to climate change as an extraordinary economic opportunity, particularly in developing countries.
Technology drives change in energy
The world of energy used to be fairly straightforward. Big state-owned utilities generated power and fed it through wires and pipes into customers’ houses. It was a well functioning system that seemed to be set in stone. But this centralised, “command and control” model is under pressure as never before. Energy is changing fast, as technological innovation disrupts the old paradigms. Smart grids, smart meters and smart home appliances embedded with sensors that connect them to the “internet of things” promise to revolutionise our approach to energy use. (altro…)
Revolution Lighting Technologies
Revolution Lighting Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:RVLT) (“Revolution Lighting”), a leader in advanced LED lighting solutions, today announced that SL Green Realty Corp. (NYSE: SLG), New York City’s largest commercial property owner, has selected its Seesmart brand LED tube lamps for an LED retrofit at nine commercial office properties to save $370,000 annually in operating expenses. “Revolution Lighting is excited to continue its relationship with SL Green to deliver significant energy efficiency and cost savings through our advanced LED lighting solutions,” said Charles J. Schafer, Revolution Lighting President and Chief Financial Officer. (altro…)
Un’impresa su 4 in Italia è green oriented
Un’impresa su quattro in Italia è ‘orientata’ alla sostenibilità: è ‘green oriented’. Dall’industria all’edilizia, ai trasporti, un quarto delle imprese italiane ha cioè saputo fare di innovazione e ambiente un fattore di competitività e una ricetta anticrisi. E’ quanto rileva l’Italian Council for Eco Innovation, l’Osservatorio Innovazione e Tecnologia per la green economy nato proprio per incentivare questo potenziale ‘verde’ made in Italy e darne visibilità anche verso gli investitori e i mercati internazionali. Frutto di un partenariato tra il ministero dell’Ambiente e la Fondazione per lo sviluppo sostenibile con il supporto dell’Ice-Agenzia per la promozione all’estero e l’internazionalizzazione delle imprese italiane, l’osservatorio è stato presentato a Roma. (altro…)
The Daily Startup: Clean-Tech Funds Keeping It In The Family
Clean-technology investing is on the decline. Venture capital firms put just $2.74 billion into clean-tech startups in 2013, down from a high of $6.02 billion in 2008, according to Dow Jones VentureSource. A few recent glimmers of hope haven’t caused traditional VC funds to flood back into the sector yet, but family offices have filled the void to some degree. The latest is Prelude Ventures, which has emerged in recent months as one of the more active clean-tech investors, Yuliya Chernova reports for VentureWire. (altro…)
Drones striking a high-tech blow for conservation and the environment
The use of drones has generally been synonymous with controversial globalised warfare, but falling costs and higher performance are now making them increasingly useful for conservation and environmental organisations. In the US, a non-profit group called Conservation Drones is working with manufacturers to scale up production, making drones more affordable for environmental groups and conservation scientists, with results that have already benefited Australian research groups. The founding director of Conservation Drones, Lian Pin Koh, told Guardian Australia the drones were a “game changer” that would “soon become a standard item in the toolbox”. (altro…)