Revolutionary Road…WA's Innovation Summit

April 13, 2010

Last Friday, I had the pleasure of attending the 2010 Washington Innovation Summit hosted by the Washington Technology Center (WTC) at the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center. This year’s theme came in three words, which could be taken as directives: Collaborate. Create. Grow. As noted in the welcome letter from WTC Board Chair Mike Schwenk, Innovation is an idea that is implemented…. Innovation requires courage, leadership and connections.

This year’s conference focused on three key verticals: aviation, defense and energy. My primary interest was in energy but I did hear the tail end of an interesting presentation on new materials and alternative fuels in the aviation industry. As many would expect, the next century’s transportation systems will look very different from the way we have traveled over the past 100 years.

The energy sessions focused on Washington’s role in evolving clean technology and in energy efficiency opportunities. Both these platforms provide significant economic and jobs benefits to Washington’s citizens.

In addition, a few regional companies and organizations were represented at the event’s Expo. I especially enjoyed meeting with the Staff of the Tacoma Visitors Bureau. Thanks to their enthusiasm and knowledge, I look forward to exploring the area with my family this summer.

Tacoma Public Utilities sponsored the luncheon program. The theme was most intriguing, as panelists looked 25 years into the future and beyond to explore some ideas that may become innovations. The discussion was designed to inform our business plans of today.

The primary areas addressed by Steven Ashby of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory related to the Smart Grid–or what he called the Power Net, a merging of information technology with utility-scale energy systems. He referenced new smart appliances that will make informed decisions on the best time to use power and will determine their own temperature settings based on supply, demand and, ultimately, pricing. He foreshadowed a requirement for an exponential increase in computing power. These “smarter” choices will result in less pressure on utilities to build new power plants that would require millions of dollars in capital costs as well as public support.

As a former Astronaut and veteran of five spaceflight missions, it is no surprise that Dr. Bonnie J. Dunbar, CEO of the Museum of Flight, underscored the need to keep exploring space, including our Moon and Mars. The return on investment benefits all of us here on Earth, and the amount of money spent on the space program is insignificant compared to its payback. The Earth is a closed-loop life supporting system and our learning from projects like the International Space Station allows us to develop technologies and processes that we utilize in our daily life. Specialized materials science, solar energy, and waste management are just a few of the real world–not Star Trek–issues addressed by NASA.

Science Fiction Author Greg Bear reminded us that our future relies not just on the numerate thinking of computers and math sciences, but ultimately on human intelligence and biological systems. We need to solve our own problems today and not wait for a mechanical or technological system to mitigate them. As we depend more on computers, we run the security risk of reliability disruptions and the personal privacy risk of having the details of our lives captured in data centers and possibly exposed in a detrimental way. Humans need to think through these key issues as systems are developed that automate various aspects of our professional and personal lives.

As a marketer, I found the Summit’s information download to be beneficial on multiple levels. One key area is in thinking about consumer behavior and some of the shifts that we will be asking people to make in their personal and professional lives. In order to be successful and sustainable, new innovations will need to address their roles in a system with limits on natural resources, including fossil fuels. Innovation must also respond to significant population growth, increased urbanization, more multiculturalism, and the geo-political challenges brought on by rapidly developing nations, economies and technologies.

Now go and develop your own revolutionary idea… and be a part of the solution.
–alex

Filed under: clean tech,Energy efficiency,green marketing

Tags: clean tech, Energy efficiency, forecast, innovation, smart gird, washington innovation summit, washington technology center