The venture capital folks that specialize
in green businesses got together in March 2006 in San Francisco, looking
for alternative energy business plans.
("Green businesses" are those that deal with renewable resources
and alternative energy.)
There were over 500 attendees, a big
increase from earlier years.
The keynote speaker was John Doerr, the
highly respected member of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, a major
venture capital firm. He gave a rousing speech.
Mr. Doerr was more than a little
concerned about the rampant growth in population of major cities
throughout the world. "We will suffocate, and overrun, and
pollute and poison our planet to death,'' he said. He noted that
there are eight cities the size of Manhattan being built every year,
mainly in China. John Denniston, Mr. Doerr's partner, joined him in the
presentation.
The gentlemen presented two solutions to
the planet warming conditions that are so threatening:
(1) implement sensible policies,
including a market for trading carbon emissions credits. Such a market
would give credits to countries that pollute less than their pre-set
limit, and allow them to sell those credits to other countries that want
to pollute more than the limit, and
(2) more state and federal subsidies to
help support alternative sources of energy, and consumption.
He encouraged other venture capital firms
to join in the battle, lauding Entrepreneurship, the real strong suit of
the US and of Silicon Valley. He was emphatic that companies need to
search for ways to reduce the vast amounts of energy consumed by cars,
industrial pumps and other energy hogs.
And when companies have found the way, go
straight to Kleiner Perkins -- collect your millions and do some good for
the planet at the same time.
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Alternative Energy Business Plans
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