Examples of Renewable Energy Innovations in 2013

Renewable energy is one of the fastest growing and most interesting areas of innovation. The number of patents issued for renewable-energy technologies has risen sharply over the last decade. The number and size of investments in research and development, as well as in the growth of markets for these products is driving innovation. Here are some examples of renewable energy innovation from 2013.

Pyroelectricity

A new type of electronic circuit was developed in 2013 that may help to improve the performance of solar panels. Typically cooler, slower, mellower electrons don't have enough energy to produce a usable electric current. Ultrasolar has developed an electronic circuit (ideally built into an inverter) that passes a very high frequency signal backwards through the DC wires into the solar module and cells. The slower electrons catch these waves and are turned into hot and fast electrons for long enough to escape the crystal matrix and generate a useful current. This could lead to inverter efficiencies of over 100 percent.

Event - Building Climate Solutions Conference

The 14th national conference and global forum on science, policy and the environment will take place on January 28 - 30, 2014 in Washington D.C. hosted by the National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE). At this conference leading decision-makers will convene to advance climate solutions. The two central topics will be the Built Environment and Agriculture & Natural Resources.

Event - INNOVA-CON 2014 Conference

INNOVA-CON 2014 will take place on January 14-15, 2014 in Brooklyn, New York. The first conference by the International Association of Innovation Professionals (IAOIP) featuring world-class innovation experts. The INNOVA-CON is a great opportunity to meet in person and connect with luminaries in the innovation profession. Content will focus on how to use strategies and methods of innovation to create value.

IAOIP is a professional membership organization that is the world's only independent innovation certification body, providing members with the knowledge, skills and opportunities to deliver real change in their industry or field.

Event - Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Celebration

This event will take place on Friday, November 15, 2013 at
IAC HQ, 555 West 18th Street, NYC. Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Celebration in New York City will honor C2C leaders and present the winners of the Cradle to Cradle Product Innovation Challenge, sponsored by the Schmidt Family Foundation and the Dutch Postcode Lottery, with a shared cash prize of $250,000.
Aveda, Method, PUMA, Shaw, Steelcase among Innovators to be Honored.

Across the globe more than 200 companies are transforming product design and leading a new, green industrial revolution. Come see their product innovations first hand.

Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute (C2C) is celebrating manufacturers of everything from clothing and furniture to carpets and cleaning products who have committed to “remake the way they make things” - transforming product design and leading a new industrial revolution. Following the lead of the green building industry, manufacturers from fashion, beauty, home and lifestyle brands are striving to make every product that touches our lives adhere to the highest standards of environmental and human safety.

Innovation is Key for Sustainability: Best Companies are Getting Better According to Tomorrow’s Value Rating 2013

Sustainability strategy company Two Tomorrows', tenth Tomorrow’s Value Rating 2013 (TVR), shows that the best companies are getting better. The rankings recognize companies that increasingly demonstrate “clarity of vision and innovation in their pursuit of a sustainable business model,” that is likely to likely to drive sustainable value in the future. This rating assesses the performance of the 50 companies in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI).

In order of their performance here are the top ten.

Event - Nexus Conference: Innovative and Sustainable Solutions

The Nexus Conference, will take place March 4-7, 2014, in Chapel Hill, NC, USA. This event will bring together leaders in business, government, NGOs and research to discuss innovative and sustainable solutions that address the intersection of the world’s water, food, and energy needs and uses in a changing climate. The Nexus approach requires systemic thinking and a quest for integrated solutions to guide our decision-making about resource use and development and move to a more sustainable planet.

Webinar: Preparing for 2014: Trends & Best Practices in EH&S Information Management

This complimentary webinar from Environmental Leader and Enablon will take place on Wednesday October 30th, 2013 (8am PT / 10am CT / 11am ET). If you can't make the live event, all those who register will receive a link to the recorded broadcast.

Do you have a corporate environmental, health and safety (EH&S) program that is able to cope with the upcoming 2014 EH&S challenges? Do you have the right tools and processes in place? How should you take advantage of the tools and technologies available to make better, smarter decisions?

Increasingly, organizations are looking to empower their EH&S program to make better decisions by creating a line of sight within the corporate environment to break down information, data and human capital silos to drive performance. To accomplish keener goals and to support your EH&S initiatives, more and more practitioners are relying on information systems to drive these decisions.

110 Water Conservation Tips for Businesses and Homes

Water is a precious natural resource. In the US at least two-thirds of the country have recently experienced water shortages. Conserving water also saves money. The first sections offers five tips for conserving water in a business context. The next section offers five easy ways to conserve water at home and the last section offers an additional 100 water saving tips.

Five Simple Tips to Help your Business with Water Conservation Practices:

1) Make a Plan. Share your commitment to water conservation with employees. Assign an employee as water conservation manager to monitor and implement your water conservation plan.

Increasing Sustainable Innovation Demands Change

There are tremendous opportunities to develop new innovations that help to manage the environmental and social challenges we face. We need to learn from those who are using sustainability to drive new business value.  We also need to generate new ideas and build productive partnerships.

Although not everyone is currently on-board when it comes to sustainable innovation, it should be clear to thinking people that all of the brand leaders of the future will be sustainable. The combination of resource scarcity, increasing fuel costs, extreme weather related supply chain disruptions, and rising consumer awareness are among the many factors that make innovation in sustainability one of the most valuable endeavors of the modern age.

Corporate Sustainability Report: 4 Ways to Transition from 2012 to 2013

In 2012 a solid majority of North American companies indicated that they had or were creating a sustainability plan. According to SCA's Tork Report, the 2012 sustainability data was much improved compared to the year before. Their study shows that 64 percent of US companies had a sustainability plan or were planning to draft one in 2012. This is almost twice the number of American companies who indicated that they were doing so in 2011.

The survey which is titled "The Sustainability Gap," indicates strong similarities in both the American and the Canadian data. A total of 31 percent of US firms and 30 percent of Canadian firms said their sustainability plans are having a positive impact on the bottom line. Only 12 percent of US companies and 10 percent of Canadian companies said their sustainability initiatives negatively impacted their bottom line. The rest (57 percent of US companies and 60 percent of Canadian companies) indicated they saw no impact on their bottom line.

Foresight NEXT Professional Development Program (Sustainability Courses)

Foresight NEXT is a unique program that combines interactive seminars and dynamic speakers with engaging site visits. This program is designed to help professionals integrate sustainability into their companies’ operations. This approach delivers the judgment, economics, strategies and communication necessary to affect positive change.