Students Pitch at the  “Destination Decarbonization Challenge”

Students Pitch at the “Destination Decarbonization Challenge”

Last week, the Water, Energy, and Technology (WET) Center at Fresno State hosted a pitch event for undergraduate students interested in student entrepreneurship and decarbonization. Dubbed the “Destination Decarbonization Challenge,” the event provided an opportunity for students from different universities across California to present innovative ideas aimed at reducing carbon emissions in the Central Valley.

Many student teams applied but eight made it to the competition. At the competition the student teams presented their projects to a panel of judges consisting of environmental and industry experts. The teams had the chance to win cash prizes, with the first-place team receiving $6,000 without any restrictions.

The competition showcased some exceptional student entrepreneurship skills, with the winning team composed of three Fresno State students. Team Project Zero developed a device prototype capable of measuring carbon content in soil, helping farmers maximize their land’s efficiency. The second-place award of $4,000 went to Team Six-Thousand Dollar,who proposed an app-based carpool program for students reducing vehicle miles traveled, lowering carbon emissions and building relationships between the students while saving them money on fuel and auto maintenance.

The third-place award of $2,500 went to Team SustainaBulldogs, who made an ambitious pitch to implement self-contained electricity microgrids across the Central Valley, specifically Fresno County, using urban green space for carbon sequestration and data analysis to determine the best trees for each location.

The Destination Decarbonization Challenge launched by the WET Center in December 2022 is an excellent opportunity for student entrepreneurs to showcase their skills in decarbonization. It is open to undergraduate students in groups of two to four, providing a platform for young innovators to present new and unique solutions to reduce carbon emissions in the Central Valley. The prize money comes with no restrictions, and the hope is that it will be invested in the next project, encouraging students to take their ideas to the next level.

Thomas Hall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Thomas is the Executive Director of CleanStart. Thomas has a strong background in supporting small businesses, leadership, financial management and is proficient in working with nonprofits. He has a BS in Finance and a BA in Economics from California State University, Chico. Thomas has a passion for sustainability and a commitment to supporting non-profits in the region.

CleanStart Sponsors

Weintraub | Tobin, Moss Adams, River City Bank, GreenbergTraurig

BlueTech Valley, PowerSoft.biz, Revrnt, Synbyo, Califronia Mobility Center

Destination Decarbonization: Student Contest with Real Prizes

Destination Decarbonization: Student Contest with Real Prizes

Are you an undergraduate college student and want a shot at several thousand dollars in prize money? Consider entering the 90-day Destination Decarbonization Challenge! Sam Fairbanks at the Water and Energy Technology (WET) Center at Fresno State provided a quick overview of what the challenge is and how to apply. The main point is that the window is now open through January 31. If you want to give it a shot, better move fast. A video of Sam’s presentation is available on our YouTube Channel.

The idea of the challenge is for small teams of 2-4 students to propose ways to eliminate carbon dioxide emissions either from a brand new idea or from an idea on how to improve something that is already happening. Teams can look at anything that broadly will reduce emissions or capture carbon dioxide for beneficial. The teams will work with mentors and other resources the WET Center can help arrange. The payoff comes on April 21 when the teams pitch their ideas to a panel of expert judges.

The top prize is $6,000, with $4,000 for second and $2,000 for third. There is a webinar that provides details on how to apply on January 19 at 5:30 pm. More information is available on the Challenge website.

Check it out!

Thomas Hall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary Simon is the Chair of CleanStart’s Board. A seasoned energy executive and entrepreneur with 45 years of experience in business, government, and non-profits.

CleanStart Sponsors

Weintraub | TobinBlueTech Valley, Revrnt, River City Bank

Moss AdamsPowerSoft.biz, Greenberg Traurig, California Mobility Center

CalNEXT: A New Resource for Innovation

CalNEXT: A New Resource for Innovation

Looking for help to crystallize your cleantech idea into a commercial product that finds a ready market? In July, the utilities in the state launched a new initiative called CalNEXT to speed the pursuit of promising emerging technologies. “CalNEXT is a statewide initiative to identify, test, grow electric technologies and delivery methods to support California’s decarbonized future.” They will fund projects in the range of $20-400K to assess innovations and help shape them to fit product needs that have already been identified.

CalNEXT

CalNEXT

CalNEXT is run by Energy Solutions in Oakland, a 25-year old analytics firm that provides insights on markets, designs for programs to incentivize adoption of innovations, and assessments of the potential of clean technologies. Program Manager Casidee Kido and her colleague Erin Fitzgerald explained how CalNEXT works in our Perspectives session on December 15.

Cassidee Kido

Cassidee Kido

CalNEXT is funded by the ratepayers of the investor-owned utilities in the state (PG&E, SoCal Edison, SoCal Gas and San Diego G&E) and is intended to focus the efforts of energy-efficiency innovators to work on things that can have the most impact on reaching a decarbonized future and the most effective ways to market them. It is an outgrowth of the work of the Emerging Technologies Coordinating Council created by the CEC with participation of all the investor-owned utilities plus SMUD and LADWP a dozen years ago. The idea of the ETCC was to encourage collaboration on RD&D among the utilities and to assure alignment of priorities with the CEC programs as well. As the innovation process evolved into one that involved a much broader set of entities, the ETCC added roles in increasing the visibility of ET resources and opportunities for engagement with ETCC members, along with strengthening the knowledge and capabilities of the ET community by sharing project results, methodologies, and collaboration opportunities. CalNEXT is the new way to achieve these goals and it comes at a great time with more money than ever being committed to clean tech deployment.

Erin Fitzgerald

Erin Fitzgerald

CalNEXT works through “Technology Priority Maps.” These are wish lists of innovations and market information the ETCC would like to see developed. They cover 6 technology groups and 46 families of innovations. The six are HVAC, lighting, plug loads/appliances, water heating, process loads, and whole -buildings. You can look at these here, and then dive into the details of the half-dozen or so technology families in each. Click on those and you get to specific innovations or market support projects the ETCC would like to see. You can then propose projects to address these needs each year. The current round will be open until February 23. The TPMs will be updated and probably adopted late in 2023, with applications then open in Q1 of 2024. Even if you are rejected, you can apply as many times as you like, and on multiple wish list items. To date CalNEXT has funded 35 projects totaling $14 million. At the end of each project, CalNEXT will provide help to connect companies to those in the utilities and elsewhere that can help on moving to demos and commercialization opportunities.

“CalNEXT will track and vet the efficacy and claims of these technologies, products, and solutions to assess and confirm their potential energy savings and operational performance, help estimate long-term cost-effectiveness, prioritize technologies with significant energy savings opportunities, and identify potential barriers to market adoption. CalNEXT is a great opportunity for programs to see their full potential, to get the evaluation and implementation support they need, and for good ideas to come to life and make major impacts to support California’s decarbonized future.”

This looks like a very helpful gateway to the kinds of connections and follow-on funding that innovators need. It is worth exploring even if you have been rebuffed on other programs. The vetting and evaluation process will be helpful in generating investor interest. The whole session is recorded and available.

Thomas Hall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary Simon is the Chair of CleanStart’s Board. A seasoned energy executive and entrepreneur with 45 years of experience in business, government, and non-profits.

CleanStart Sponsors

Weintraub | TobinBlueTech Valley, Revrnt, River City Bank

Moss AdamsPowerSoft.biz, Greenberg Traurig, California Mobility Center

The Story and the Pitch: Straight Talk From Josh David Miller

The Story and the Pitch: Straight Talk From Josh David Miller

In coaching clean tech startups, the most frequent question we get is “What should I say in my pitch?” We have our standard guidelines and examples, but nobody explains it better than our friend Josh David Miller. Josh has reviewed over 500 pitches of small early stage companies and has a reputation of asking some pretty blunt questions. Josh and Thomas sat down recently to discuss what makes a good pitch and it was quite insightful. The whole session is recorded [see below]. If you are getting ready to make your first or your hundred and first pitch, you should hear what Josh has to say. Here are some highlights:     

1. The best way to get information to stick in someone’s head, to get an audience engaged, is to tell a story. The worst way to begin is by talking about your technology.
2. The story has to describe through examples the problem you are trying to solve and why people should care about your solution.
3. A business is all about solving a problem for someone for a fee. So, talk about not only the problem but who that “someone” is and why. Be incredibly specific.
4. The most important thing to communicate is that you understand your customers and know where they are.
5. Don’t say anything remotely like, “If we could get only a 1% share of the current market, our revenues would be such and such.” It is a flashing neon sign that you have not done your homework and know almost nothing about your customer.
6. The objective of a pitch is to get someone to do something. That “something” is probably to agree to a second meeting. Rarely if ever does someone commit to writing a check based on the first pitch.
7. Research your target audience and what motivates them. If that audience is an investor or a fund, find out what their “sweet spot” is and tailor your pitch to that. Find out what other businesses they have funded. Research any talks they have given where they reveal their investment “thesis”.
8. The first time you make a pitch, it is always a “hot mess.” Don’t let that deter you.

Josh has a lot more to offer and he is willing to meet with you. Check out his bio and his website for his company, Rightbox. And, yes, he is well known as a wearer of bright shoes. Easy to spot in a crowd. The bright red hair helps, too.

 

Thomas Hall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary Simon is the Chair of CleanStart’s Board. A seasoned energy executive and entrepreneur with 45 years of experience in business, government, and non-profits.

CleanStart Sponsors

Weintraub | TobinBlueTech Valley, Revrnt, 

Moss AdamsPowerSoft.biz, Greenberg Traurig, California Mobility Center

MatterCup Wins Big Bang! Sustainability Award

MatterCup Wins Big Bang! Sustainability Award

At the final Big Bang! event on May 26, cup recycler MatterCup walked away with $11,000 from the SMUD Energy and Sustainability Award and one of the Little Bang awards. MatterCup was also a finalist in the UC Berkeley Big Ideas competition.  Congratulations to Chantal Deslauriers and Lorenz Lehmann!  Their innovation is a system that uses a heavy-duty polypropylene cup that users can bring back to any participating store and get a $1 refund on their original deposit.  The cup is dishwasher-safe and can be used multiple times.  A smartphone app will show where the participating locations are, making the program attractive to the stores that use MatterCups because of the increased traffic.  The target customer for the MatterCup system is an independent coffee shop or juice shop that wants to demonstrate a commitment to cutting waste from the 120 billion single-use cups that are thrown away each year.  The store would be charged a subscription fee to use the system.  

The idea was inspired by a system Chantal saw in Germany during the year she was staying there during the height of the pandemic.  At Christmas Fairs there, hot chocolate was served in reusable mugs, and it sparked the question whether something similar but customized for the US market might do well.  As more and more people have heard about MatterCup now, Chantal says she is hearing from more and more people that they can’t wait to try it out.  A good sign.

MatterCup will be using their winnings to fund a test of their product at the UCDavis Coffee House this summer.  The team believes their system will be more acceptable to customers than the more expensive travel mugs that users must wash or the compostable cups.  With what they learn, they hope to be able to refine the offering and get 50 stores signed up in the first year.

We will be keeping track of the progress of MatterCup and will invite them to a future Perspectives event to hear how the demo on campus worked out, as well as their future plans. 

Thomas Hall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary Simon is the Chair of CleanStart’s Board. A seasoned energy executive and entrepreneur with 45 years of experience in business, government, and non-profits.

CleanStart Sponsors

Weintraub | TobinBlueTech Valley, Revrnt, 

Moss AdamsPowerSoft.biz, Greenberg Traurig