The Midwest’s annual Clean Energy Challenge honors the longstanding American traditions of innovation and competition. One winner, for example, has developed a method for storing gases that is more efficient and safer than traditional compression, and less energy intensive. Learn about all of the winners and find out how they’re helping to build the clean energy economy.
Texas cotton farmer Cliff Etheredge used to pray for rain and cuss the wind. Then he helped establish a local wind turbine project that pumps $10 million a year into the community. “Now what we’ve been cussing all these years turned out to be a blessing,” he says.
The Energy Foundation’s 2013 Annual Report, “American Clean Energy Stories,” shows how families, businesses, local governments, schools, and the military are enjoying the benefits of clean energy technology born of the long tradition of American innovation. We hope you enjoy it.
Adam Reich is an Army veteran who began working in Illinois’ clean energy industry last year and is using his vocational training to help Scranton Heating and Cooling’s customers save energy and money. He’s one of several workers profiled in a new report about clean energy jobs in the state. The survey found that 96,875 people currently work in the clean energy sector of Illinois’ economy and the numbers are projected to grow by 9 percent in 2014.
Stephen Harper, Global Director of Environment and Energy Policy at Intel Corporation, has joined the Energy Foundation’s board of directors. His experience in both the U.S. and China, and in shaping strategies for companies and government agencies alike, will inform Energy Foundation strategies.
Our nation’s electricity system is undergoing a rapid and profound transformation. We are at a pivotal point in America’s energy history. America’s Power Plan is a project designed to facilitate discussion about decisions and investments that will shape the course of the power sector, the economy, national security, and the climate for decades to come.
An annual census of solar-industry jobs shows that solar employment grew 19.9 percent—faster than the national average employment rate—adding 23,682 new jobs in 2013. The industry has grown 53 percent in the past four years alone, adding nearly 50,000 jobs. The census is conducted by The Solar Foundation, an independent nonprofit solar research and education organization.
A recent solar industry report found a record level of photovoltaic installations in the U.S. in 2013, and ranks North Carolina as the number-two state in terms of solar capacity, behind California.
Eight governors whose states collectively represent nearly a quarter of the U.S. car market announced last week that they’re taking steps to put 3.3 million zero-emission vehicles on the roads in their collective states by 2025. The governors hail from California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
In a landmark agreement, China and California have committed to collaborate on efforts to combat global climate change, promote clean and efficient energy, and support low carbon development.
The “Get Smart Guide: Energy Innovation for the Consumer Electronics Industry” analyzes some of the major devices we use in our homes and offers recommendations for what we can do to move toward a more efficient future. Consumer electronics covered in the report include televisions, set-top boxes, computers, battery chargers, and more.