Sustainable Storefronts Competition Kicks off in Chinatown
Boston Architectural College students revealed sustainable storefront design concepts, still under development, at an event last week at the Asian American Civic Association to mark the beginning of an innovative design competition in Chinatown. The teams’ inspiring, creative design concepts are precisely what this competition sought to highlight. On behalf of six small busienss owners, students are exploring building materials options, evaluating energy impacts and daylighting, thinking about overall design and signage, while keeping an eye on historic preservation.
Chinatown leaders who participated in the event spoke about the need to preserve and strengthen the strong cultural identity of the community and rich streetscape experience in the neighborhood’s business district. The student teams are commited to developing designs that reflect that cultural identity while improving the energy performance and competitive position of participating businesses.
Project partners, the Asian American Civic Association, Boston Architectural College, and Boston Redevelopment Authority celebrated the public private partnership and substantive opportunity for students to work closely with Chinatown business owners. And everyone applauded Chinatown for leading the charge on a new, innovative sustainability effort with city-wide implications. The design competition is supported by a grant from the Barr Foundation.
We look forward to watching these teams as their storefront renovation designs coalesce. A jury composed of Chinatown community leaders and design professionals will pick a winner in January. The winning business will receive $18,000 to help implement their design. The winning design team will receive a $2,000 award.
read moreSatcon Secures Sun Shot Award
Clean energy Innovation District anchor Satcon was awarded a $3 million US Dept. of Energy “SunShot” award last week. DOE’s SunShot initiative aims to make solar power cost competitive with fossil fuel based grid power by the end of the decade.
If you could buy premium gasoline at the pump for the same price you pay for regular, you’d choose premium, right? Who wouldn’t choose a superior energy source (no carbon solar) over a polluting, carbon intensive one if prices were equal? That’s essentially the goal of the sunshot initiative.
In case you’ve forgotten, as recently at 2007, solar installation costs in Massachusetts were hovering around $9 a watt. Installation costs are half that these days and panel and balance of system efficiencies are improving, thanks to healthy competition, component innnovation, and smart, market based industry incentives from the state and federal goverment.
The shift away from fossil fuel based grid power (produced largely out of state) toward solar (installed locally, some components manufactured locally) also produce substantial macroeconomic benefits. Each megawatt of solar installed in Massachusetts generates 41 job years, $2.3 million in wage and salary compensation to workers and $6.1 million in economic activity (Source: DOE). Solar installations also reduce local emmissions by offsetting fossil fuel based power generation. These reductions have real human health and economic impacts. According to the US EPA, for each megawatt of solar installed in Massachusetts, reductions in emissions (sulfer dioxide, nitrogen oxide, CO2) generate $1.03 million in health benefits.
Satcon has been growing steadily at its location in the Boston Marine Industrial Park, adding jobs and manufacturing capacity. Satcon will use the award to develop a new inverter architecture that eliminates the impacts of voltage variation caused by PV system generation variability.
We congratulate them, and the three other Massachusetts SunShot award recipients, on their latest achievement.
read moreNew Brookings Report Maps Clean Economy
The venerable Brookings Institution has provided depth and clarity to a long standing economic development research challenge: how to quantify and map the cleantech industry. The report, Sizing the Clean Economy: A National and Regional Green Jobs Assessment, charts the growth of the cleantech industry by sector, state and region.
National cleantech employment, at 2.7 million, exceeds the number of workers in both the life sciences and fossil fuel industries, but remains smaller than IT. The Boston region (including Cambridge, Quincy, southern New Hampshire in the report) ranks 8th nationally in cleantech job totals. Other key findings include:
- While the cleantech industry overall grew slightly slower than the rest of the economy through the recession (dragged down primarily by heavy construction/green buiding losses), some sectors including solar, wind, energy storage, and smart grid – where the greater Boston area is strong - grew rapidly.
- The clean economy is manufacturing and export intensive. Roughly 26 percent of all clean economy jobs lie in manufacturing establishments, compared to just 9 percent in the broader economy. On a per job basis, establishments in the clean economy export roughly twice the value of a typical U.S. job ($20,000 versus $10,000).
- The clean economy offers more opportunities and better pay for low- and middle-skilled workers than the national economy as a whole. Median wages in the clean economy—meaning those in the middle of the distribution—are 13 percent higher than median U.S. wages.
The report also describes the benefits of cluster strategies, importance of coordinating and aligning workforce training resources, and the importance of government policy with regard to energy and green procurement.
read moreGreenTown Labs Breaks Ground in the Innovation District
With its exposed plywood floors, sub-basement “dungeon” workspace, and clean energy prototypes strewn over two floors, GreenTown Labs, the newest addition to the Innovation District’s growing cleantech cluster is crackling with energy, optimism, product development, and talent. The space conjures up decade-old images of Boston’s dot.com start ups – the interiors and appointments a shade closer to ReadyMade than Dwell - but the young faces, collaborative vibe, and innovative products are everywhere, and the smattering of older suits (okay, I was wearing one too) circulating through the crowd at last night’s ribbon cutting prove that Boston’s business class is taking notice. (Boston law firm Hinckley, Allen & Snyder is GreenTown Lab’s legal sponsor and a key supporter.)
If there were a biofuel shuttle between MIT and the Innovation District, GreenTown Labs would be the first stop. Structured as a non-profit, built on strategic partnerships and considerable bootstrapping, GTL essentially serves as affordable housing for cleantech entrepreneurs who can’t pay the lease rates in Kendall Square but appreciate the Innovation District’s proximity to the mothership, Boston’s venture community, and the District’s sustainability and living lab constructs. The founding members who made the leap across the river have been joined by other incubator occupants including wind and solar power developers, a home energy management system venture, various energy efficiency start ups, and a green trade association, among others.
Boston Mayor Menino said it best before he cut the ribbon: “there are a lot of great companies in Boston, but your companies are growing” and he added, “you know, one of the companies here might become the next big company, the one that everyone recognizes around the kitchen table.”
We all look forward to watching GreenTown Labs, and its member companies grow and thrive in Boston’s Innovation District.
read moreDeveloping the Next Generation of Cleantech Employees
An Open Letter to Boston Cleantech Employers:
The last 2 years have been challenging, but Boston cleantech/clean energy companies are thriving, thanks to the drive, talent and innovative spirit of the region’s cleantech entrepreneurs, growing firms, and established companies, the strategic investments made by our considerable cleantech venture capital community, and state and local goverment policy that recognizes the strength and growth potential of the clean energy industry.
Last summer, in the midst of the recession, I introduced Mayor Menino to a dozen cleantech CEO’s, and I think we were all surprised and delighted to hear that every single one of those companies was creating jobs and growing.
The labor market remains awash with talented individuals who want to join the clean energy field. But we all need to work together to ensure that the workforce pipeline remains full, and that young people entering the job market have the skills, experience, and credentials to be competitive.
I know that many of you are committed to hiring locally. I want to commend Fast Cap Systems, a relatively new addition to the City and to the Innovation District, for their leadership on this issue. And challenge all of you to learn more about how you can support Mayor Menino and his effort to create summer youth employment opportunities for our young citizens.
I hope you’ll participate in a briefing next Monday June 20th, 10:30 am at the BRA’s offices in the Marine Industrial Park at 22 Drydock Ave. to learn more about how you can engage a Boston high school student in a valuable summer internship learning experience.
Josh Bruno, School-to-Career and Employer Engagement Director, at the Private Industry Council, which administers the City’s summer youth employment program, will be there to answer questions. In the meantime, calls and emails are also welcome. Please contact Josh at josh.bruno@bostonpic.org or 617-488-1327 for more info or to participate in the briefing.
Our industry is laser focused on developing products and services that reduce environmental impacts, while
read moreCity Engages Garage Owners on EVs
The City will unveil a 3 charging unit pilot in the near future. Meanwhile, Chevy Volts (purchased in Connecticut and New York) and Nissan Leafs have already been spotted on Boston’s streets.
The City and BRA will soon begin a process to identify the best strategy to roll out charging infrastructure across the City, and to help owners of private parking spaces make the best decisions about this new technology.
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