Greetings, PosiPeople community! For my first post in this series, I want to answer the first question that most people ask when I tell them my field of interest:

Just what is ‘Cleantech’?

You probably have an intuition about this, but I want to hone it. Fundamentally, Cleantech is more of a business mindset than a specific industry. It describes clean technologies made under sustainable business models.

A clean technology is a product made from material and energy extracted from the Earth only as fast as they can be replenished, or from already available material or stored energy. After use, its composition can be returned to the Earth or cycled back into the industrial ecosystem. I use “technology” broadly here: Recycline (Waltham, MA; www.recycline.com) makes toothbrushes and other products from recycled plastic; definitely clean technologies.

It’s not enough to offer a “clean” product or service; the company’s processes and its very value proposition must be aligned with their technologies’ tenets. This definition is clearly fuzzier; how do we define the business ramifications of the Cleantech values?

The fundamentals of Cleantech are still far from defined. Is a solar panel, capturing renewable energy with plastics and precious metals, a “clean technology”? Is a company that makes products from remediated ore tailings following Cleantech business principles? Take this blog journey with us as we explore these nuances.

More definitions and examples will follow, but here is the emotional connection you can make to our Cleantech concept. Ask yourself: “if this company doubled in size, and their product or service output doubled, would the Earth be worse off, unchanged, or better off?” A Cleantech firm strives for a neutral or positive presence. And that’s a worthy goal to shoot for.

Disclosure: At the time of the writing of this post, I have no financial relationships with any of the organizations mentioned, except as explicitly indicated.

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About the Author

Asheen Phansey has filled both R&D and operations roles in various biotech firms and startups, and currently consults on biomimetic technologies for Aurora Flight Sciences, a maker of autonomous aircraft systems; he is now leveraging his experience in technology entrepreneurship into a career in Cleantech and sustainable business. He is excited to teach (and learn) about sustainable-business practices, such as cradle-to-cradle manufacturing and biomimicry, to the PosiPeople community. Asheen holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from Cornell University and is currently pursuing his MBA at Babson College; he is a huge New England Patriots fan, gets easily lost in books, and loves talking ideas with everyone he meets.

CNNMoney/Fortune Small Business has compiled a great list of schools where budding social entrepreneurs can learn more about being one.

Disclosure: At the time of the writing of this post, I have no financial relationships with any of the organizations mentioned.

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About the Author

Jonathan Chang received his MBA from Babson College and his BA from Columbia University. Jon is interested in new technologies which help individuals and organizations make a positive impact on society and the environment. He is also a proponent of long term thinking, supports the creation of renewable resources, and is an ardent advocate of social entrepreneurship. He is involved with and a member of Net Impact and the Commonwealth Club. (Net Impact is an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to make a positive impact on society by growing and strengthening a community of new leaders who use business to improve the world. The Commonwealth Club is the nation’s oldest and largest public affairs forum which organizes events on topics ranging across politics, culture, society and the economy.)

I was recently provided a beta test account for a voicemail service provided by GrandCentral (A startup communications company based in San Francisco that was recently acquired by Google.) I was pleasantly surprised to find out that they offer free accounts to homeless people who desperately need a phone number to arrange doctor appointments and job interviews through their program called Project C.A.R.E.

The irony to this program is that the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) is considering a $1.00 tax on all phone numbers to subsidize phone service for poor households. GrandCentral’s CEO argues that this tax would make his model “economically impossible”.

I think this is a great example of how for profit organizations can make a positive impact through their own products or services. So, the question I pose to you is, “What is your organization doing to make a similar positive impact?”

You can read more about GrandCentral’s Project C.A.R.E. on Time, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the Project C.A.R.E. website.

Disclosure: At the time of the writing of this post, I have no financial relationships with any of the organizations mentioned.

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About the Author

Jonathan Chang received his MBA from Babson College and his BA from Columbia University. Jon is interested in new technologies which help individuals and organizations make a positive impact on society and the environment. He is also a proponent of long term thinking, supports the creation of renewable resources, and is an ardent advocate of social entrepreneurship. He is involved with and a member of Net Impact and the Commonwealth Club. (Net Impact is an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to make a positive impact on society by growing and strengthening a community of new leaders who use business to improve the world. The Commonwealth Club is the nation’s oldest and largest public affairs forum which organizes events on topics ranging across politics, culture, society and the economy.)

Are you interested in attending a conference about sustainable innovation? If so, check out Thunderbird’s Sustainable Innovation Summit.

Disclosure: At the time of the writing of this post, I have no financial relationships with any of the companies or organizations mentioned.

We are looking for editors and we’re interested in working with members of the PosiPeople community. If you are interested in writing for PosiPeople, please tell us information about yourself such as why you would be a great editor for PosiPeople. Please also include a short writing sample (less than 300 words) about any topic that would be a good post for the PosiPeople blog. Please email your submission to apply@PosiPeople.com.

Let us call the watchers “gatekeepers”. When we pause to think, there are many gatekeepers and their personal likings and limitations greatly affect those on the other side of the “gate”. Teachers who advise school clubs. Professors who decide on what is appropriate service-learning. Elected officials and civil servants who decide on what the public may read. FBI managers who filter reports by agents about terror threats. On and on it goes.

A month ago, I wanted to announce a very outside-the-box concept to members of Pi Sigma Alpha, the political-science fraternity. The newsletter editor was kind and prompt; unfortunately, there was no room in the fall newsletter and the fraternity did not do e-mail blasts. What raised the significance of this missed opportunity was the nature of the idea: nonlegislative, citizen-centered campaign reform which would be self-funding and could employ many people in a community.

How would you deal with the gatekeepers, because if our aim is a better world, there are many gatekeepers who are keeping the gate shut?

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About the Author

Van received his J.D. from UCLA and his B.A. from California State University, Los Angeles. While an attorney by profession, Van is a social entrepreneur by passion. He develops concepts for social ventures and community programs–a delightful challenge–and then looks for collaborating students and faculty–a devilish challenge. Concepts include mass education through online lessons, micro-franchising, the promotion of fuel efficiency, pet care, at-risk teen males, and democratizing American democracy. He is very supportive of youth entrepreneurship, as expressed through Youth Venture, Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship, and Do Something, Van finds a major challenge in the generally irrelevant curriculum-from a community viewpoint-to which millions of high schoolers are subjected throughout the United States.