 |
 |
CleanTech Showcase lunch keynote Ira Ehrenpreis, Founder and Managing Partner of DBL Partners, delivered a speech regarding the ever deepening political divide in the United States and how it relates to energy. He stated that the world order has shifted and global security has changed, but one thing remains certain, that climate change is real. He noted that we have witnessed this reality with the change in temperature in 2014 and 2015 and the unprecedented extreme weather events like hurricanes and wildfires.
With this shift in thinking, we’re no longer making concessions in business when it comes to cleantech—we’re no longer trading one off for the other. For the first time, it seems that morals and business need not be mutually exclusive, and in fact is good for both sides. Ehrenpreis sees tremendous opportunity for growth as the energy market is one of the largest, and advanced energy stands a chance to be a bigger player in the market.
Ehrenpreis pointed out that we’re seeing advocacy for change and a call to action like we have never seen before, and that there is an achievable road to fix what we have broken. He encouraged the crowd to seize this moment, for the future, and reminded the crowd that it is up to “us” to ensure that innovation and progress continue.