Growing the Cleantech Workforce

Around 100 students are expected to enroll this year in EDGE (Educating and Developing Workers for the Green Economy), a public-private partnership that offers industrial and technical certificate programs in biofuels and biotech production, analysis and processing. EDGE’s first certificate course began in March at MiraCosta community college in northern San Diego County, and a … Read more

Algae Fuels — From Drops to Gallons

In Australia, Aurora Algae opened its demonstration facility in Karratha, Western Australia, where the Company’s algae-based biomass is being harvested for products in the nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, aquaculture and renewable energy markets. “This would not have been possible with a U.S.-based production facility,” said Greg Bafalis, CEO of Aurora Algae, “where we believe the climatic conditions … Read more

Yes, food is going to be as precious as gold.

World food prices rose to a record in December 2010 on higher sugar, grain and oilseed costs. In the coming decades, there are going to be many more hungry mouths to feed, and as food crop prices rise dramatically, agriculture will become a more lucrative business, encouraging countries to switch economic focus. Kurdistan has the … Read more

The 3.0 Phase of U.S. Biofuels

With projects like Sapphire Energy’s drive to put a huge algae-fuel production facility in the Mexican desert, you’re seeing the first building blocks of world-scale capability for these fuels. Margaret McCormick, the co-founder and CEO of Seattle-based Matrix Genetics said, “I think that microorganisms can solve most of the problems of the world. If you … Read more

Senate Testimony of Oil and Gas Executives on Ending Subsidies

Oil and gas industry executives testified on ending tax breaks for the largest multinational oil and gas companies. Senate Democrats and the Obama administration had proposed ending $21 billion in subsidies for oil companies as a budget deficit reduction measure. The executives said the plan would do little to reduce gas prices and hurt their … Read more

Senate Testimony on the Proposed Merger of AT&T and T-Mobile

The CEOs of AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint Nextel, and consumer and worker advocates testified on the proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile. AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson argued that the merger will “drive innovation and competitive prices and give customers fewer dropped calls, faster speeds and better broadband Internet service.” Sprint Nextel CEO Daniel Hess spoke against … Read more