Before Monsanto is hailed as our new Pharaoh, students at Wright College and Clean Energy and Trust have joined forces to combat the damage that has been done to our fragile environment.
Since 2010, Clean Energy and Trust has been an advocate for sustainable living through their CleanTech contest that offers competitors the chance to win the $50,000 University Prize (UP). Science, innovation, and energy are the main focal points for this contest. With help from the U.S. Department of Energy, it seeks environmentally friendly business plans throughout the nation.
Overseeing the Cleantech UP is program manager George Johnson. His prime directive is to identify, fund, and support promising new technology at the infant stages of critical development.
Johnson mentions that there no application fees and that participants must go to gust.com complete the application for the contest.
On a cold and rainy afternoon, Wright Times met up with Johnson for a hot cup of coffee downtown to discuss his involvement for Cleantech and the application process for those who would like to become involved.
“Over 100 companies have participated in Clean Energy Trust programs and those companies have created over 300 jobs and raised over $125 million in follow-up funding,” explains Johnson.
The silent war between gross polluters and global conservationists has begun. Battle plans to conserve energy are being implemented as people live in fear due to hostile climate change, such as the violent hurricanes in Texas and Puerto Rico. Wisdom, sincerity and discipline are just a few words to describe Wright College’s part-time Director of Environmental Technology, John Brophy. Covering emergency management, urban agriculture, and environmental law, Brophy is advocating for a solar panel installation training certificate program to be implemented at Wright College by next year.
More tactical dispositions are in the works as Wright College’s Environmental Club joins allied forces by keeping their eyes on the University Prize that will defeat hard-hitting ecological concerns.
“The Clean Energy Trust provides an abundance of resources and mentoring,” says Brophy. “Applying to a competition like this is a great way to get involved in a constructive way, learn from others about a range of issues involved in starting a business, and learn about environmental issues that really need long term focus.”
With every battle comes victory, and one success story is from RVS Rubber Solutions based out of Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve University was able to pitch their concept by building plasma assisted fuel injection for cleaner and lighter engines by using a state-of-the-art process.
The RVS tech cleanly and efficiently converts otherwise useless rejected tire components into a high-quality, low-cost, and environmentally-friendly rubber source for a wide array of applications. RVS placed third in the Cleantech UP contest, DOE's 2016 National Competition and RVS was able to pitch and receive additional mentorship in the 2017 National Competition.
“Cleantech UP is a great opportunity for students looking to get funding or exposure for their business plan,” explains Johnson. “While there will be up to 10 finalists pitching their ideas at the February showcase, only three will go on to the Department of Energy's National Competition and one will win the $50,000 prize. Each applicant has the opportunity to gain feedback from the Clean Energy Trust team. It is a great opportunity for students to get an advanced crash course in entrepreneurship!”
Wright College’s Environmental Club is no stranger to conflict as they battle the evil forces of the Keystone Pipeline. Recently leaked over 200,000 gallons of oil that saturated 1100 acres of soil and killing precious vegetation and wildlife. Last year the Environmental Club was able to send money and supplies to the Standing Rock Sioux as they fought for water rights at the Keystone Pipeline.
They have also been helping those by fundraising to provide solar panels for hurricane victims in Puerto Rico.
“A business plan competition is more about creating a powerpoint and a short video to go along with a couple pages of the main idea of the business,” stated Brophy. “The environmental field is BOOMING and most new jobs created in the United States in the last year are solar panel installers and wind turbine technicians. Environmental technology is going on the offensive, and these fields will continue to grow nationally and locally with the Future Jobs in Energy Act going into effect in 2018.”
As the Cleantech UP contest is underway, Wright College’s environmental club tackles the T-Rex competition by recycling 500 pounds of plastic. There are no plans to compete in next years University Prize, however, should the club achieve their goal for the T-Rex competition within the six month deadline, students at Wright College could receive a high performance composite bench.
Wright College’s environmental club needs your help by recycling your clean, dry empty plastic bags, milk jugs and unwanted film packaging. Together, with the help of Clean Energy and Trust and the T-Rex recycling challenge you can join the ranks for the environmental revolution.