April Pinata: Random News and Notes

Early April Musings from the Optimist World:

More from the realm of MBA Business Plan competitions: Wake Forest's Babcock School expanded the field of its 2008 Elevator Competition to include Social Entrepreneurship after the 2007 contest featured about 30% social entrepreneur contestants. This year the field was slanted even more- 14 socially-motivated entrants and 12 strictly for-profit. Ever curious in how anyone defines "social entrepreneurship" (because my definition is at least inclusive of for-profits!) I'm wondering whether the new category was by strictly for non-profit; the WSJ suggests that criteria was entrants whose goals were "non-financial." Anyone know more about the WFU competition last weekend?

Its 2008 and Smart Cars are coming (in fact, I've already seen several on the road out here in Southern Cal and even know of a friend of a friend of a friend who rumoredly has one). Here's the Smart USA site that helps you find a dealership and even make a reservation for your own "Smart fortwo" for only $99.

March roundup of recent fundings for cellulosic ethanol biofuel start-ups from Red Herring - including $100M for Range Biofuels of Broomfield, CO.

In the ever-confusing realm of alternative transport, GoodCleanTech reports that a diesel BMW 5 Series outperformed in MPG a Prius during a 545 mile European test. Status symbol status aside, I love the Prius and was inspired to see a co-worker driving one as a rental yesterday; but is this an eye opener or just part of the backlash?

SANGONeT- a development portal for NGO's in South Africa - offers a manifesto on Social Entrepreneurs and leading change. An interesting read, if abstract. The author differentiates between "First Order Change," or "Shuffling the Deck Chairs on the Titanic" and "Second Order." But the gist is that First Order Change is changing the content of an existing system, while Second Order Changes (and real Social Entrepreneurs) transform the way people live- changing the system entirely. The point is well taken, although I don't see it so black and white; I've been convinced by enough modern change agents that there is room for (and a market for) incremental change and that even sinking Titanics can be kept afloat by what this author would call First Order Change. Then again, I'm sure the task of spurring development in South Africa tends to put one into a more dire frame of mind.

Check out this unique franchising opportunity with Enigin; the site is glossy and slick and of course doesn't cut right to the chase of what the EnergyMaps business opportunity actually is, but it appears to be a B2B energy-saving system.

Here's The Mount Airy News' preview of an apparently smash hit local TV show, Simple Living with Wanda Urbanska. Aside from the topic - and to hear the hostess' quotes, she's apparently quite passionate about showing residents creative ways to live well while being "Frugal" AND increasingly conscious consumers and environmental stewards - I think this highlights a fascinating business opportunity to produce intelligent and timely media content in a local market. I don't know what else Urbanska's production company does, but she appears to have carved out a loyal audience.

Finally, an nothing particularly Optimist about this, other than that it's always fun to revisit past prognostication: Treehugger's Wayback Machine on 1968 predictions for 2008

More March Links: ThePoint.com

And a real start-up getting some serious funding: The Point raises $4M from New Enterprise Associates. We will be watching the Chicago start-up quickly to see if they Make Something Happen.

Here's another nice emerging company- this one from a 24 year old entrepreneur from the same high school as yours truly; Beth Doane, 24, of Whitehouse, Ohio, is having some success, according to the Toledo Blade, with Andira International, her eco-friendly accessories company. Beth is launching Rain Tees, her clothing line, at the Green Initiative Humanitarian Fashion Show during the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in Los Angeles.

Nice Treehugger piece on reviving the "Rust Belt." The suggestions are appropo enough: concentrate economic activity downtown, and set up high speed transit between Chicago and Toronto (through Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, etc). For the former, I obviously love it - who wouldn't? - but easier said than done. In Detroit, Quicken co-founder Dan Gilbert is placing part of his company downtown and trying to get other companies to commit to doing the same. As for the transit idea, all the better to unify all the talent bases that still exist in the region; drive times between each of the big cities are only 2-6 hours each, so why not bridge the gap even more with some high-speed rail networks?

I have a more radical proposal, especially for the Detroit/Toledo corridor, but I'll pocket it for now.

Here's a nice press release from Transcend Equity Development out of Dallas; the capital firm is pioneering a financing method for commercial real estate energy improvements. They take over the utilities payments from the developer/owner, and then Transcend makes any improvements it can to the building and pockets the energy saved. Everyone wins! We love it and can't wait to see more..

Nice story from Econpreneurist on financing a green business. Notice some of the ideas are possible because you're socially beneficial (like partnering with non-profits), while others are

The differences between Jackpot Rewards and any other shopping rewards/prize sweepstakes program is that this one sets aside a percentage of profits to kids charities AND that this one is backed by Peter Lynch.

The Onion reminds you that you've got to start small.

A good article from MSNBC on the still-"gray" parameters of green remodeling. I continue to think, and not just because I'm becoming an HGTV and DIY junkie, that the green remodeling market will be HUGE and that at some point there will be some standards and definitions in place- but that's not really the point! The point is to do what you can do when it comes to improving your current living situation; even if you rent, you can at least change the light bulbs!

Nice store not far from my neighborhood that resells appliances in support of Habitat for Humanity. The website is simple and effectively communicates how "everybody wins."

Check out GreenOptions, a network for green-themed blogs.

Wednesday Links

Links on a Wednesday:

Wild Green Yonder on City Farming- the emerging trend of actually growing food on urban plots, and a potentially huge step in the "locavore" movement of sourcing food locally.

PeakEnergy lists the top 10 CleanTech stories of 2007. Some very interesting stories, including blog buzz about whether buying carbon offsets is an odd philosophical compromise or an indicator of a very conscientious consumer, and some top-notch investigation by the Clean Tech blog about IBM's movement into solar.

Interesting take for cleantech investors from AltEnergyStocks on what percentage of a public company's business should be green-oriented to constitute a green investment. GE is the case in point, and the author devises a "Green P/E" and concludes that GE's is $282; you have to buy $282 of GE stock to get $1 of alternative energy earnings (since, per the critics, only 6% of their business is focused on alternative energy and other cleantech stuff.)

Inspiring story for employers from Renewable Energy Access about how alternative energy companies also lead the way in offering innovative benefits supporting green activities to their like-minded employees.

Press release about REI's second LEED-certified retail location.

Did you know people with common interests in the environment may already be meeting for drinks regularly in your neighborhood through GreenDrinks.org? Here's where the Orange County, CA-ites congregate.

Learned about the GreenDrinks meetups above from FundraisingGreen.com, based in Long Beach, CA.

Detroit: Green Envy and Not Going To Take It Anymore

If you don't have time to read this whole BusinessWeek article on U.S. Automaker's "Green Fear and Loathing" at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show, here are your key takeaways:

• A phenomenal headline: Fear and Loathing and Green Tech in Detroit
• Toyota is kicking U.S. automaker arse in the "green vehicle" race, with the Prius becoming the 9th best-selling car in the U.S. in 2007!
• Ford, with its gas-turbocharged direct injection hybrid technology, and GM are apparently scrambling to close the gap (the sleeping giants have awoken!)
• Oil barrels cost over $100 each now (with oil in them; a few bucks if they're empty, I'm guessing)...will this be the breaking point, and thus 2008, that we collectively say "Enough!"?
• All improvements are still incremental to this point, I am required to say, and fuel efficiency progress is embarrassing compared to, say, microprocessors (duh, but still)

I remember going to the Detroit show up at Cobo about 15 years ago, a care-free pre-teen, with my longtime pal Brad (who lives not far from Detroit and works on some of the coolest ad campaigns for some of the region's best vehicles, including Jeep). We were young and carefree, mesmerized by the shiny metallic Lamborghinis. Hummers and other 9 mpg beasts were nary a thought on our minds- heck, the minivan heydey had yet to yield to the SUV craze.

Imagine how far we've gone in 15 years...I mean, it's 2008 and we're talking about how this might even be the year that possibly we could maybe start to think about how U.S. automakers might consider preparing to compete with mass-market, cutting edge alternative technologies of their own!

P.S. With Subtle Disclaimer: Just so as not to appear entirely cynical, the 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid (younger and more eco-friendly nephew to my 2001 unhybrid Explorer) is a seriously good looking vehicle.

Thursday Links

Links early on a Thursday...

Wall Street Journal breaks the hope and promise of a New Year with the report of a Harvard study and its stimulating conclusion that businesses "doing good works" or pursuing "societal benefit" are only weakly correlated to reap shareholder benefit. (Save yourself the click- that's basically all it says.) The discouraging suggestion is that cash contributions to charities are a better indicator of a company's financial success than community projects, for example...or responsible corporate policies! Expect nothing less from Harvard and WSJ then the stunning philosophy of "Make your money first, and then give it away."

Admittedly my first reaction to news of Salesforce.com CEO Mark Benioff's book was skeptical; after all, I figured it was easy enough for a celebrity chief exec to cajole all of his/her buddies into writing an essay and throw them together and have them published. On second glance I decided I'd give this one a try, not for my dayjob allegiance to Benioff's web-based software, but for the diversity and star-studdedness of his essayist lineup.

This week's TreeHugger Carnival of the Green is a best-of-the-best of the green web by EBikeBlog.org, leading off with a link to a GreenLivingOnline.com story about "Pedelecs" on college campuses. I've never been a big fan of "motorized bikes" and any time I see one here in moderately temperate Southern Cal, I can't help thinking, "Why don't you just pedal yourself?" Of course the few times I have pedaled the 8 miles to work, I'm covered in sweat by the time I arrive; maybe that's an argument.

Double the wheels, but only multiply the cost of your average bike x 10, and you get the world's first $2,500 car, by Tata of India. It's actually closer to $3k at the moment- and I am fine that we continue to refer to Optimist innovations by their target price, whether it's achievable yet or not. Admittedly the "$100 Laptop" has a lot more cache than the "Buy Two $100 Laptops for $400" that the production economies currently allow...

Great local story from the Indianpolis Star about some Indiana farmers who began using roduce from there all-natural farms to create food products back in 2002 and have since grown Local Folks Foods 20x into a nice-sized (we don't know how nice) specialty foods company.

Another quick local story, this one from the Bismarck Tribune, about 2008 Marketplace Entrepreneurs of the Year winner SolarBee, a North Dakota company whose floating, solar-powered water circulator improves water quality in lakes, reservoirs, and water storage facilities. Another great story about local entrepreneurship with universal applicability- and yet another great (and, not that I could have thought it up, relatively simple-sounding) product marketed toward better water quality.

And finally, on Monday I was absolutely enlightened to absorb this perspective on why my all-time favorite lunch- the All-American Classic Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich (I am very particular about mine and make with Jif Reduced Fat Crunchy Peanut Butter and Smuckers Strawberry Preservers, both marketed by the JM Smuckers Company of Orrville Ohio, on whoe wheat bread with some tortillas inserted for added crunch)- is also far better for the environment than your average lunch! Check out the PB&J Campaign.

Cosmos Ignite, Belu Water and British Social Entrepreneurship

Here's The Independent's (UK) Six Finalists for the title of Social Entrepreneur of the Year, 2007. It's a nice perspective on social entrepreneurship from across the pond, and the finalists represent a cross-section not only of focus areas but also of business structure. Cosmos Ignite is a for-profit company focused on making safer lighting and electricity products for developing regions that currently depend on more dangerous methods (like kerosene.) Belu Water donates 100% of its bottled water profits to funding clean water projects.

The Optimist normally focuses on for-profit ventures (like Cosmos) and largely ignores the burgeoning world of non-profits, like Finalist MEND, a childhood obesity program. It's not for lack of interest or respect; if anything we don't think we could do justice to the entirely unique challenges of running a non-profit: it's every bit as competitive as a for-profit these days with the proliferation of charitable organizations, and there's every bit the same requirement of running a profitable and accountable organization. It's just that...we barely have what it takes to cover "Profit and Purpose" businesses- let alone venturing into the non-profit world.

Rochester Promotes Itself

I use Google Alerts to find interesting links and stories for some of our favorite topics, and when one alert popped into my inbox, the corresponding relevant text ad at the top of the page was for RochesterBiz.com.

The site touts the regions productive work force, plus technologies in development for biofuels and fuel cells and wind and solar energy; a PDF lists over 35 regional companies working on alternative energy technologies. The site is a great outreach for a region that, if it's anything like the nearby "Rust Belt," is scrambling to find an identity and position itself to be at the epicenter of the 21st century's biggest business (potentially, of course). At that, there should be a number of East Coast and Midwestern towns scrambling for the same position, including my own hometown of Toledo.

A quick search for "Toledo Alternative Energy" turns up no ads for similar regional organizations, but there are a few compelling organic search results:

University of Toledo's Clean and Alternative Energy Incubator
and a Toledo Blade story from Governor Ted Strickland's November visit to UT, where he touted our city as a potential alternative energy hub, identified participants like UT's solar tech research and First Solar (with a plant in suburban Perrysburg), plus a proposal to bring Spanish solar company Xunlight to the region.

Here's hoping Northwest Ohio can capitalize on this early progress in the nascent solar industry in a way that nearby Detroit has failed to do in the still-up-for-grabs alternative transportation rebirth.

Fast Company: Go Diesel!

Haven't stumped for Fast Company in a while, and the recent cover on the "Motorhead Messiah" Jonathan Goodwin, he of Kansas, the mechanic-turned-master of alternative engines (from Electric to military grade Turbines to Diesel) whose $28k conversions to diesel are not only good for MPG but also a celebrity fad, delved into a fascinating side bar: the critical role that Diesel can play in moving us all away from gas. Diesel engines are already more fuel efficient, but more importantly, they are a likelier stepping stone, since they are more accommodating of alternative fuels- an idea that seems to becoming a necessity, since few large corporations seem willing to take the lead on rolling out purely alternative vehicles until the alternative power source is ubiquitous, and vice versa (author Clive Thompson's chicken/egg analogy, not mine)

Not one to typically paraphrase a brilliant story, I'll nonetheless sum up Goodwin's three-step program:

• Aggressively roll out diesel vehicles (already available at most gas stations, instant 40% MPG gain!)
• Release diesel-electric hybrids- again potentially doubling MPG
• Moving on to "dual fuel" hybrids that can use diesel OR another low-emissions gas (hydrogen, ethanol)

Even if you're in the microchip business and the word "double" doesn't impress your Moore's-Law-Loving appetite for innovation, this has to stimulate some thought. Now we wait for the devil's advocates, who already in full form in the comments below the article!

Clean Tech Gets Funding

As buzzwords go, while "Green" gets the ink, "Clean Tech" gets the money. PricewaterhouseCoopers reports that 3Q07 VC investments in Clean Tech companies numbered 62 and totaled $844M- over 10% of the total VC pie ($7.1B!). And just as I was about to claim that the phrase "Clean Tech" itself was becoming so ubiquitous as to lose its independent meaning, Inc. did a nice job of describing such start-ups as "alternative energy, conservation and recycling."

So Facebook is the "it" company of the year (our last Fast Company link, I promise...for today!) but you can get funding for your recycling business!

Meanwhile, tour the blogosphere on these other environmentally focused blogs, courtesy of our own Blogger.

Bon Appetit and "The Joy of Local Sourcing"

Here's a nice CSRWire release on Bon Appetit, an onsite restaurant company that is uniquely going beyond its mission of serving great food (I eat it at my employer every day, which is why this story caught my eye) at organizations, schools and corporate offices.

Bon Appetit's Eat Local Challenge inspires the chefs at each of the company's 400+ locations in 28 states to cook up the day's menu on September 25 using all local ingredients originating from 120 miles of the site.