3. Project Better Place: Finally, Real Innovation in Transportation
Innovation in the automobile sector is coming from Silicon Valley and not Detroit. Detroit is playing catch-up despite some well publicized products such as the Chevy Volt.
One of the most innovative and successful models is Project Better Place (PBP). PBP is led by Shai Agassi, 39, the former software entrepreneur. The innovative business model will sell “electric car transportation” based on the model of the cellphone. Purchasers get a subsidized car and pay a monthly fee for expected mileage.
In March of this past year PBP signed a letter of intent with DONG Energy to bring mass market vehicles to Denmark in 2011. The Danish government will provide tax incentives for the all electric vehicles and PBP Denmark will construct an electric grid across the country. Nissan will build the cars. This follows the announcement in January of this year of a joint venture between PBP and Nissan as the initial test location to roll out the electric car infrastructure and vehicles.
In November BPB, San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose joined the project to turn the Bay Area into the “Electric Vehicle Capital of the US.” The PBP goal is to create 250,000 charging ports, 200 battery-exchange stations and a control center to service Bay Area electric car drivers for an estimated cost of $1 billion.
In the current climate of bailouts this seems like a bargain.
4. Climate Change and the Endangered Species Act
Unfortunately we are seeing the impact of climate change on biodiversity. This year the polar bear was listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in May of this year. This is the first species to be added to the list due to global warming.
Going forward, the ESA will likely be used as a tool to protect species and increase awareness of the impacts of climate change.
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December 29th, 2008 at 10:55 am
Thank you for this post. Renewable energy is a term used to describe energy that is derived from resources, like the sun and the wind resources that are continually available to some degree or other all over the world. We never run out of them. And their use or capture does not inflict any material damage on the environment, but it seems it is affecting on the environment either direct or indirectly. We are the group working on Global Warming and Green World and spreading the benefits of this to many of them with the help of Internet and many sites… Recently i liked JustMeans.com, nice platform to share and debate on Green and Corporate Social Responsibility. Justmeans is where individuals can talk to organizations about their social and environmental initiatives and stay updated on CSR news and jobs. Please do spread the word and save the world.