SEATTLE – Seattle-based CleanTech Alliance is announcing the sixth annual 2019 CleanTech Innovation Showcase (Showcase) at Bell Harbor International Conference Center in Seattle on June 24—this year with participation from outside North America.
For the first time ever, in partnership with the Western Interstate Energy Board (WIEB), the Showcase will feature a second day innovation workshop dedicated to advancing cooperative energy projects across the west and with the federal government.
The Showcase will be especially important this year in light of proposed legislation to support Washington state’s transition to carbon-neutral energy by 2030 and carbon-free energy by 2045. The Showcase helps link policy, applied and basic research, and technology development to achieve a cleaner economy and environment locally and globally.
The Showcase’s presentations are geared towards generating new business opportunities for participants. This includes opportunities to display the latest cleantech innovations that enhance regional competitive advantages, and create added value for participating companies, research and higher educational institutions, utilities, and local authorities. There are 24 competitively awarded 20-minute Presenting Company spots. Past presenters have included, Boeing, City of Spokane, A&R Solar, UniEnergy Technologies, university and national laboratory initiatives and partnerships. This year, the Presenting Company spots will include topics related to innovation in policies that support cleantech development and adoption.
On June 25, the members of the CleanTech Alliance and WIEB will gather in downtown Seattle to participate in a follow-up Innovation Workshop. Members will incorporate key learnings and insights from the Showcase to enhance the economy of the west through encouraging cooperative energy policies.
“We are pleased to partner with the CleanTech Alliance and encourage our members to attend the Showcase, the Innovation Workshop, and actively engage through applying for Presenting Company spots, and participating in keynote addresses, and plenary sessions,” said Maury Galbraith, Executive Director of WIEB. “Regional cooperation is key to implementing solutions that reduce carbon and grow clean technologies for application in the energy sectors. The 2019 Showcase in Seattle provides our members with unparalleled access to some of the top business, policy and government leaders in the field.”
One of this year’s keynote speakers for the Showcase include Eric Beckwitt, the Founder and CEO of Freightera, the North American platform for automating and reducing emissions from freight transport. Mr. Beckwitt is an internationally recognized author and speaker on emissions reduction from freight transport, authoring “A Green Future for Freight” in the 2016 and 2018 G7 Summit editions of Climate Change: The New Economy. Beckwitt was a speaker at COP22, the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Marrakesh, Morocco. He recently received the 2019 Clean50 Award, which recognizes Canada’s leaders in sustainability for their contributions over the prior two years.
“Eric is a passionate and effective cleantech leader and entrepreneur who is actively engaged in disrupting a very important sector to our state and region: freight transportation,” said Tom Ranken, President and CEO of the CleanTech Alliance. “We are delighted that he will be speaking to the ways his company is using technology to improve freight transport while ensuring cost-effective efficiencies and reducing the carbon footprint of the sector.”
Also new this year is the first Seattle-Japan Cleantech Innovation Summit to be held in conjunction the Showcase. Hosted by the Washington State Department of Commerce and Innovation Finders Capital, the two-day, curated event is designed to match innovative clean technology companies and products to select Japanese multinational corporations and strategic investors.
“We look forward to three days of focus on clean technologies and international collaboration,” said Brian Young, the Governor’s Clean Tech Sector Lead. “Attendees will be attending the Showcase on June 24 and then convene for the official summit to be held June 25-27, 2019 at Pacific Tower in Seattle, Washington.”
Showcase sponsors to date reflect how important cleantech innovation is in light of state, regional, national, and international policies aimed at creating a thriving cleantech economy while reducing carbon emissions. As of mid-March, sponsors of this year’s Showcase include Boeing, Dow, Advanced Professionals Insurance and Benefit Solutions, Trade and Invest British Columbia, Washington Department of Commerce, WIEB, and sponsors of the Accelerator Pavilion: Craft3, Dorsey and Whitney, and the Toyota Mobility Foundation.
“This year’s Showcase is more important than ever,” said Craig Husa, board chair of the CleanTech Alliance and CEO of Impact Bioenergy, a manufacturer of modular bioenergy systems that convert commercial food waste into renewable energy and probiotic plant food with zero-waste in local circular economies. “We are incredibly pleased to partner with members of WIEB, welcome the attendees of the Seattle-Japan Cleantech Innovation Summit, and grateful for this year’s sponsors. As attention is turned with increasing urgency to the importance of accelerating and implementing clean technologies, the 2019 CleanTech Innovation Showcase has never been more timely or critical.”
To learn more, please visit: CleanTech Alliance Innovation Showcase
About CleanTech Alliance https://www.cleantechalliance.org
CleanTech Alliance represents more than 300 member companies and organizations across the greater Northwest region. Founded in 2007 by business leaders, the organization facilitates the generation and growth of cleantech companies, jobs, products and services to advance the cleantech economy. CleanTech Alliance offers a range of business services and benefits uniquely designed to help businesses gain visibility, access services at a lower cost and benefit from public policy.
About Western Interstate Energy Board https://westernenergyboard.org/
The Western Interstate Energy Board is an organization of 11 western states and two western Canadian provinces. The purpose of the Board is to provide the instruments and framework for cooperative state efforts to “enhance the economy of the West and contribute to the well-being of the region’s people.” The Board seeks to achieve this purpose by promoting energy policy that is developed cooperatively among member states and provinces and with the federal government.
About Washington State Department of Commerce https://www.commerce.wa.gov/
The Department of Commerce is the one agency in state government that touches every aspect of community and economic development: planning, infrastructure, energy, public facilities, housing, public safety and crime victims, international trade, business services and more. We work with local governments, tribes, businesses and civic leaders throughout the state to strengthen communities so all residents may thrive and prosper.
Contact:
Tom Ranken, CleanTech Alliance, 206.389.8655, tom@cleantechalliance.org