To attract or to grow? That may not have been Hamlet’s question, but it is the question of the dozens of states trying to build clean tech clusters across America today. As Governor’s offices, Mayors, Chambers of Commerce, and other economic development organizations try to turn their regions into the economic engines of the green economy, they must (more…)

On Tuesday, I joined President Obama in Cleveland to meet with small business leaders and get their ideas on how we can support their work in clean energy. America’s small businesses are engines of innovation and job creation. In fact, they create two out of every three new jobs in this country. Their ingenuity is essential to (more…)

Solar energy is more prevalent today than ever before. Worldwide, investors put more than US$1.66 billion into the solar market in 2010, with the United States, France, Israel, and Canada leading the pack. Of late, Ontario has ranked particularly well in the photovoltaic (PV) market, encouraged by government incentives, such as the province’s feed-in tariff (FIT) program, which (more…)

A 10 MW solar park is under development in Thunder Bay, Ontario as a result of a landmark agreement between SkyPower and Fort Williams First Nation (FWFN). The (more…)

How great is it when one good thing creates a bunch of other good things? According to national averages provided by the American Wind Energy Association, the 201-megawatt Nobles Wind Farm in southeastern Minnesota created approximately:

• 200 construction jobs (more…)

Two solar companies, Unirac, Inc. and Canadian Solar Solutions, Inc. announced recently that they now offer a new joint solar package for their customers. The two companies now offer the 300 megawatts package, which consists of Canadian Solar Solution’s photovoltaic (PV) panels and Unirac’s solar racking systems, for either (more…)

With plans like New Energy for America looming on the horizon, the Green-collar job market shows potential for exponential growth. According to the Green Jobs Report (pdf) released by the US Mayors office, researchers estimate that there is the potential for 4.2 million green jobs to be created over the next 30 years. (more…)

Last month, The Economist told us that changes on the scale necessary to prevent even a two-degree rise in global temperatures are a “wishful dream.”  The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s 2007 Report on Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability concluded that the poorest regions in the world were going to suffer the most.  And as the world keeps (more…)

Brant County Power, Inc. (Brant Power), has created a new division called Brant Renewable Energy (Brant Renewable) to help the communities it serves take advantage of the benefits of Ontario’s feed-in tariff (FIT) and microFIT programs. The new division will create clean air and renewable energy jobs in the towns of Burford, Paris, and St. George, and the (more…)

Ontario entrepreneur, Jim Shaban, announced last week that he plans to take part in the province’s growing solar economy with a 500 kW rooftop solar installation on the sound stage of the film studio he intends to build near Windsor. The installation will create temporary jobs for graduates of Ontario’s solar power (more…)