Sponsors
Premier Sponsor
Hawaii State Energy Office
The State of Hawaii has a bold energy agenda – to achieve 100 percent clean energy by the year 2045. Along with reducing our islands’ dependency on fossil fuels and increasing efficiency measures, the clean energy plan is also contributing to the state’s economic growth.
Because Hawaii is committed to re-powering the clean energy market, we have embraced bold solutions that will help develop this competitive industry making Hawaii one of the leaders in the clean energy race.
The Hawaii State Energy Office is leading the charge and has embarked on a strategic plan to position Hawaii as a proving ground for clean energy technologies and accelerate our transformation to a clean energy economy. To learn more, please visit energy.hawaii.gov.
Hawai‘i Tourism Authority
The Hawai‘i Tourism Authority is responsible for strategically managing the State of Hawai‘i’s marketing initiatives to support tourism. HTA’s goal is to optimize tourism’s benefits for Hawai‘i, while being attentive to the interests of travelers, the community and visitor industry. Established in 1998 to support Hawai‘i’s leading industry and largest employer, HTA continually strives to help ensure the sustainability of tourism’s success.
For more information about HTA, please visit www.hawaiitourismauthority.org. Follow updates about HTA on Facebook, Twitter (@HawaiiHTA) and its YouTube Channel.
Supporting Sponsors
Panasonic
Ulupono Initiative
Ulupono Initiative is a Hawaii-focused impact investing firm working to improve the quality of life for island residents in four areas: renewable energy, locally produced food, and the management of freshwater and waste resources. In the energy sector, Ulupono's investments include the Honolulu Seawater Air Conditioning project, which is developing Hawaii's first seawater air conditioning district cooling system in downtown Honolulu; Bikeshare Hawaii which operates Biki, the state's largest bikeshare program; Drive Electric Hawaii, a coalition that seeks to promote electric vehicles (EV), cut fossil-fuel transportation and add more renewable energy; and EV charging networks Volta and OpConnect Hawaii that provide charging infrastructure to Hawaii's EV drivers. Ulupono is proud to be a sponsor of VERGE Hawaii for its third year. For more information, visit ulupono.com and follow @ulupono on Facebook and Twitter and @uluponoinitiative on Instagram.
Hawaiian Electric
For more than 100 years, the Hawaiian Electric Companies have provided the energy that has fueled the Hawaiian Islands’ development from a Hawaiian kingdom to a modern state. Hawaiian Electric, Maui Electric, and Hawaii Electric Light serve 95 percent of Hawaii’s 1.4 million residents. The Hawaiian Electric Companies have a shared kuleana or responsibility to serve their customers, care for the communities, and lead the way to a clean energy future for the Hawaiian Islands. The Hawaiian Electric Companies are also among the state's leading employers and a major contributor and supporter of community and educational programs. Today, the Hawaiian Electric Companies are providing cleaner, smarter and more reliable service for their customers. And, the Hawaiian Electric Companies are committed to continuing progress to meet the state’s ambitious goal of achieving 100 percent renewable energy future for Hawai‘i by 2045. For more information, visit www.hawaiianelectric.com/ourvision.
Carbon Lighthouse
Carbon Lighthouse is on a mission to stop climate change by making it easy and profitable for building owners to eliminate carbon emissions caused by wasted energy. The company’s unique approach to Efficiency Production goes deep into buildings to uncover and continuously correct hidden inefficiencies that add up to meaningful financial value and carbon elimination that lasts. Since 2010, commercial real estate, educational, hospitality and industrial customers nationwide have chosen Carbon Lighthouse to enhance building comfort, increase net operating income and achieve their sustainability goals.
Carbon Lighthouse believes in Hawaii’s ambitious 100% clean energy initiative and is actively engaged with a growing list of local firms, like A&B Properties and Elemental Excelerator, to help the state achieve the goal. For more information, visit www.carbonlighthouse.com.
Contributing Sponsors
Energy Focus
Energy Focus, Inc. is a leading provider of energy efficient LED lighting products and a developer of energy efficient lighting technology. Our LED Lighting products provide energy savings, aesthetics, safety and maintenance cost benefits over conventional lighting. Our long-standing relationship with the U.S. Government continues to enable us to provide energy efficient LED lighting products to the U.S. Navy and the Military Sealift Command fleets. Customers include national, state and local U.S. government agencies, as well as Fortune 500 companies and many other commercial and industrial clients. World headquarters are located in Solon, Ohio with additional offices in Washington, D.C., New York City and Taiwan. For more information, see our web site at www.energyfocus.com.
OpTerra
OpTerra Energy Services is a national energy company that works with education and institutional organizations to implement efficiency and sustainable energy solutions that save money, enhance safety, improve assets, and protect the environment. As a subsidiary of ENGIE, the number one energy efficiency services provider in the world, OpTerra Energy Services provided more than $2 billion in energy savings for its customers over the past 40 years.
The sponsor of the 2017 VERGE Hawaii microgrid installation, OpTerra's expertise in cutting-edge energy program development has generated more than $2 billion in savings for customers over the past 40 years. In Hawai'i, OpTerra's innovative partnership with the Department of Education is transforming the learning environment through the state-wide Ka Hei program. Wide-reaching energy and sustainability solutions scale impact across the islands, using technology to reduce operational expenses for Hawai'i schools, spur progress towards the state’s clean energy goals, and provide engaging educational opportunities for students & the broader community.
For more information about how OpTerra uses energy to do more, visit OpTerraEnergy.com
Antenna
ABB
ABB is a technology leader with a comprehensive offering for digital industries. With a history of innovation spanning more than 130 years, ABB is today a leader in digital industries with four customer-focused, globally leading businesses: Electrification, Industrial Automation, Motion, and Robotics & Discrete Automation, supported by its common ABB Ability™ digital platform. Learn more at www.abb.com.
NEC Energy Solutions
NEC Energy Solutions designs, manufactures, and integrates smart energy storage solutions for the electric grid and applications with critical power needs. Its megawatt‐scale energy storage and control systems provide greater stability to the grid while maximizing renewable generation, while in telecom, datacenter, and other industrial applications, its high performance lithium-ion battery systems provide better value than traditional lead-acid batteries in tough, critical power applications. Learn more at www.neces.com.
Sempra Renewables
Sempra Renewables is a leading U.S developer of renewable energy. Together with its partners, the company owns and operate nearly 2,600 megawatts of renewable generating capacity fueled by the sun and wind, that generates power for over 600,000 homes and businesses in 11 states. Sempra Renewables is a subsidiary of Sempra Energy, a Fortune 500 energy services holding company based in San Diego, California with 2017 revenues of more than $11 billion. The Sempra Energy companies' 16,000 employees serve approximately 32 million consumers worldwide.
Hawai'i Energy
Hawai‘i Energy helps educate island families and businesses about the many and lasting benefits of energy efficiency and conservation. We encourage and reward smart energy decisions that allow our state to reach 100% clean energy faster and cheaper and to date, have saved Hawai‘i more than a billion dollars in energy costs. For more information, visit Hawaiienergy.com
Granite Power
Granite Power Limited (GPL) is an Australian clean energy efficiency company, with a particular focus on clean lower temperature and lower cost power generation. GPL harvests lower temperature energy and generates lower cost electricity using its’ GRANEX® process equipment and technology. GPL efficiently generates electricity from lower temperature heat 150c-400c. It uses benign organic working fluids in a process called the “Organic Rankine Cycle” (instead of water/steam, which is common at higher temperatures).
GPL’s business model is to build, own and operate supplemental power blocks, with commercial arrangements structured as Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). These will form a portfolio of long term, utility style annuity cash flow assets. With the first plant now generating electricity, and the first of a significant pipeline of future deals being approved. GPL installations are autonomous, have very low maintenance and require no on-site staff. For more info visit www.granitepwr.com.
Perkins Coie
Founded in 1912, Perkins Coie has more than 1,000 lawyers in 19 offices across the United States and Asia. We provide a full array of environmental, energy, corporate, commercial litigation and intellectual property legal services to a broad range of clients, from FORTUNE 50 corporations (such as Boeing, Weyerhaeuser, Amazon, Intel and others) to small, independent startups, as well as utilities, public and not-for-profit organizations. Chambers & Partners ranks the firm's Environment, Energy & Resources practice as "band one" in the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska and as “band three” nationally. For more information, please visit PerkinsCoie.com.
AES
The AES Corporation (NYSE: AES) is a Fortune 500 global power company accelerating the future of energy. Together with our many stakeholders, we're improving lives by delivering the greener, smarter energy solutions the world needs. Our diverse workforce is committed to continuous innovation and operational excellence, while partnering with our customers on their strategic energy transitions and continuing to meet their energy needs today. Learn more at aes.com.
Spirae
Spirae is an innovative technology company that delivers scalable smart grid solutions to global partners and customers. Spirae specializes in the integration of large-scale renewable and distributed energy resources, the development of local and wide area controls, energy service platforms and power system simulations.
Sustainability Partners
Aloha Harvest
Aloha Harvest is a non-profit organization that rescues quality, donated food and delivers it “free of charge” to social service agencies feeding the hungry in Hawai‘i. Aloha Harvest is now in its 17th year of service to our community. Since its inception, Aloha Harvest has collected and distributed over 18 million pounds of food which now includes quality perishable and non-perishable foods, as well as beverages. The food has been donated by over 1,000 participating donors, of which 271 are currently active, such as restaurants, caterers, government facilities, hotels, food distributors, businesses and others. This food would otherwise be discarded and gone to waste.
Change the Course
Change the Course brings together the public, corporations, and on-the-ground conservation organizations to raise awareness about freshwater, reduce water footprints, and restore flows and health to vital freshwater ecosystems. For every personal pledge to conserve, Change the Course returns 1,000 gallons to an ecosystem in need. Corporate partners underwrite the restoration projects, which are teed-up with on-the-ground conservation partners. It’s a virtuous cycle of education, conservation and restoration – and it’s working.
Copia
Every day in America, we waste 3 times more food than there are mouths to feed. It is not a lack of food that's the issue, rather an ineffective distribution of that food. Hunger is not a scarcity problem — it's a logistics problem. For the first time ever, we can effectively donate prepared and highly perishable food to those who need it when they need it most. Copia’s technology allows businesses to request pickups of their surplus food. Copia’s platform then dispatches a driver to pick up the donation and deliver it to a nonprofit in need. Businesses that partner with Copia benefit from significant tax savings; robust waste tracking analytics to help reduce future waste; and marketing materials to share environmental and community impact with employees and stakeholders. Copia has diverted more than 1 million pounds of edible food from landfills and distributed over $9M worth of food to local nonprofits. We’re on our way to feeding over 2 million people with great food that would have otherwise been wasted!
EarthCheck
From humble beginnings in 1987, EarthCheck has always believed that tourism is a force for good in the world. With infinite potential for poverty alleviation, environmental conservation and cultural understanding; travel changes the world. When it's done responsibly everyone benefits. EarthCheck is dedicated to making tourism responsible in over 70 countries with destinations, corporations and communities. Their unique blend of thinking, advice and solutions inspire and enable the tourism industry to drive change and resilience. EarthCheck help their clients make better decisions, integrate sustainability into their business and destinations and create innovative and engaging stories.
Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii
Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii (SCH) hosts large scale beach cleanups across the state. With the mission of “inspiring local communities to care for their coastlines through hands-on beach cleanups” SCH hopes to create coastal stewards after every cleanup who can help to sustain the beauty of our fragile coastlines. Along with large-scale coastal clean-up events SCH also runs educational programs focused on marine debris and plastic pollution, public awareness campaigns, waste diversion educational services, and corporate team building events. Through these efforts we hope motivate volunteers and communities around Hawaii to look after the coastlines we all love.
Sustainable Tourism Media Partners
Hawai'i Lodging & Tourism Association
The Hawai‘i Lodging & Tourism Association is a statewide trade association of lodging properties, lodging management firms, lodging owners, suppliers, and other related firms and individuals.
Skål International
Skål is a professional organisation of tourism leaders around the world, promoting global tourism and friendship. It is the only international group uniting all branches of the travel and tourism industry. Its members, the industry's managers and executives, meet at local, national, regional and international levels to discuss and pursue topics of common interest.
Exhibitors
Demand Energy
Demand Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of Enel Green Power North America, Inc., has developed a best-in-class Distributed Energy Network Optimization System (DEN.OS) that maximizes the economic returns of behind-the-meter storage systems alone, or in combination with distributed generation (DG). The company provides a turnkey solution (hardware, software and services) that ties together modeling, design and simulation with installation and operational monitoring, control, and financial optimization, to deploy storage-plus-DG systems at speed and scale. The DEN.OS software platform was designed as a scalable end-to-end solution that delivers differentiated value across the entire project life cycle, able to support utility-side, behind-the-meter and microgrid projects. For more information, visit www.demand-energy.com.
Smartflower Pacific
Smartflower Pacific’s mission is to facilitate the increased use and development of renewable energy in Hawaii and throughout the world. For economic and environmental reasons, Smartflower Pacific believes Hawaii and the world will benefit greatly from the rapid development of renewable energy resources and that Hawaii should be a leader in such development. Learn more: www.smartflowerpacific.com
Saft
Saft specializes in advanced technology battery solutions for industry, from the design and development to the production, customization and service provision. For nearly 100 years, Saft’s longer-lasting batteries and systems have provided critical safety applications, back-up power and propulsion for our customers. Our innovative, safe and reliable technology delivers high performance in space, at sea, in the air and on land. Saft is powering industry and smarter cities, while providing critical back-up functionality in remote and harsh environments from the Arctic Circle to the Sahara desert. Saft is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Total. Designed for industry. www.saftbatteries.com
Honeywell
Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 technology company that delivers industry specific solutions that include aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings and industry; and performance materials globally. Our technologies help aircraft, buildings, manufacturing plants, supply chains, and workers become more connected to make our world smarter, safer, and more sustainable. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywell.com/newsroom.
Johnson Controls
Johnson Controls’ Building Technologies & Solutions is making the world safer, smarter and more sustainable – one building at a time. Our technology portfolio integrates every aspect of a building – whether security systems, energy management, fire suppression or HVACR – to ensure that we exceed customer expectations at all times. We operate in more than 150 countries through our unmatched network of branches and distribution channels, helping building owners, operators, engineers and contractors enhance the full lifecycle of any facility. Our arsenal of brands includes some of the most trusted names in the industry, such as Tyco®, YORK®, Metasys®, Ruskin®, Titus®, Frick®, PENN®, Sabroe®, Simplex® and Grinnell®. Learn more at www.johnsoncontrols.com or follow @JCI_Buildings on Twitter.
Wärtsilä
Wärtsilä Energy Solutions is a leading global energy system integrator offering a broad range of environmentally sound solutions. Our offering includes ultra-flexible internal combustion engine based power plants, utility-scale solar PV power plants, energy storage & integration solutions, as well as LNG terminals and distribution systems. The flexible and efficient Wärtsilä solutions provide customers with superior value and enable a transition to a more sustainable and modern energy system. At the end of 2017, Wärtsilä had over 67 GW of installed power plant capacity in 177 countries around the world. Learn more at http://www.smartpowergeneration.com
Toyota Hawaii
Since 1958, Toyota Hawaii has been the exclusive business partner and distributor of Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) vehicles in the State. Toyota Hawaii is a subsidiary of Servco Pacific Inc., the state’s largest privately owned business with more than 1,700 employees in Hawaii, Australia, and the Pacific Northwest. Last year, TMC announced a new initiative to reduce its worldwide vehicle CO2 emissions by 90 percent (in comparison with 2010 levels), by 2050 through the development and promotion of next-generation vehicles—like the Toyota Mirai fuel cell vehicle and Prius Prime. To support this goal, Toyota Hawaii will begin construction of a hydrogen fueling station, powered in part by electrolysis, at its dealership in Honolulu this year. Hawaii is the second state after California to receive the Toyota Mirai. For more information, visit www.toyotahawaii.com/mirai.
Hawaii Gas
Hawaii Gas is the state’s only government-franchised, full-service gas company, and has been providing local communities with clean, efficient energy for more than a century. Hawaii Gas manufactures synthetic natural gas, or SNG, for its utility customers on Oahu, and distributes liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG (propane), to utility, tank and bottled gas customers on all islands. Hawaii Gas also is also moving rapidly into the renewable, clean energy future envisioned for the state, as it constructs Hawaii’s first biogas facility at Honouliuli Wastewater Treatment Plant on Oahu, and is exploring other renewable sources of biofuels, such as landfill biogas and energy crops. Hawaii Gas is a subsidiary of Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation (NYSE:MIC). For more information, visit hawaiigas.com and follow us on social media @higoodenergy.
RBI Solar
RBI Solar is the leading turn-key solar racking company in the US. We design, engineer, manufacture and install solar mounting systems for large commercial and utility scale projects. Leveraging more than 80 years of experience in the commercial design-build specialty structures market, RBI Solar, works with its clients to identify the most economical, durable and robust racking solutions.
Highview Power
Highview Power Storage is a designer and developer of large-scale energy storage solutions for utility and distributed power systems that use liquid air as the storage medium. Highview can design bespoke Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) plants that can deliver from 5MW/15MWh – to more than 200MW/1.2GWh to service a growing multi-billion dollar energy storage market. LAES has been developed using proven components from industry to deliver a pumped-hydro capability without geographical constraints and can be configured to convert waste heat and cold to power. At the end of 2013 Highview signed a global
At the end of 2013 Highview signed a global licensing and technology collaboration agreement, with GE Oil & Gas, to develop the integration of Highview’s LAES technology into its peaker plant offering.
For more information, please visit: www.highview-power.com
Accelerate Partners
Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI)
Los Angeles has launched its cleantech business incubator to accelerate development of cleantech start-ups by offering flexible office space, CEO coaching and mentoring, and access to a growing network of experts and capital. LACI is the business equivalent of baseball’s farm system: it identifies local talent, nurtures it, and helps it get to market, resulting in more jobs and a bigger green economy in Los Angeles.
Oregon BEST
Oregon BEST funds and supports innovative cleantech startups across Oregon. As an economic development catalyst, we connect startups with state and federal resources while preparing them for follow-on investment through a series of focused programs. Oregon is a nationally-recognized leader in accelerating solutions to environmental challenges through a vibrant innovation ecosystem. The cutting-edge clean technologies developed in our state create jobs, save resources, and compete in global markets — making Oregon more sustainable and resilient. - See more at: http://oregonbest.org/about/#sthash.vOrojzoF.dpuf
Elemental Excelerator
Elemental Excelerator helps startups change the world, one community at a time. Each year, it finds 15-20 companies that best fit its mission and funds each company up to $1 million to improve systems that impact people's lives: energy, mobility, water, agriculture, and beyond. To date, it has awarded over $30 million to 82 companies. Learn more at https://elementalexcelerator.com.
Cleantech Open
The Cleantech Open is a non-profit organization that runs the world’s largest accelerator for cleantech startups. Our mission is to find, fund and foster entrepreneurs with big ideas that address today’s most urgent energy, environmental and economic challenges. Since our founding in 2005 in Silicon Valley and Boston, we have expanded to 33 countries, have worked with over 700 companies, nearly half of which have been successful in raising external capital now totaling over $800 million. Learn more at http://www.cleantechopen.org.
Cleantech San Diego
Cleantech San Diego is a nonprofit member organization that positions the greater San Diego region, including Imperial County, as a global leader in the cleantech economy. The organization achieves this by fostering collaborations across the private-public-academic landscape, leading advocacy efforts to promote cleantech priorities, and encouraging investment in the San Diego region.
Cleantech San Diego’s membership includes more than 100 local businesses, universities, governments, and nonprofits committed to advancing sustainable solutions for the benefit of the economy and the environment. Learn more at http://cleantechsandiego.org.
Imagine H2O
Imagine H2O®, the water innovation accelerator, provides entrepreneurs with the resources, insight and visibility to launch and scale water solutions. By partnering with industry and policy experts and a global network of customers and investors, Imagine H2O has become a proven path-to-market for emerging water technology businesses. Participants benefit from access to mentorship, industry exposure, customer and investor connections and strategy, marketing and sales support. Since 2009, Imagine H2O’s accelerator has helped over 70 innovative companies win customers and receive more than $1 in every $10 of early stage investment in the water sector.
New Energy Nexus
New Energy Nexus works to accelerate the great energy transition by supporting entrepreneurs who are powering the thousands of businesses, technologies, and innovations needed to break open the economic and social opportunities of a clean energy future. New Energy Nexus builds ecosystems and runs programs that are locally tailored to support the specific needs of entrepreneurs in that region: providing accelerator services, capital, mentoring, skills and networks to help clean energy entrepreneurs thrive. We know that getting the right resources to entrepreneurs at the right time will unlock the clean energy solutions the world needs to tackle climate change. Learn more at https://www.newenergynexus.com.
Powerhouse
Powerhouse works with startups, corporations, and investors to create an energy system that is decarbonized, decentralized, democratized, and digitized in the US and around the world. Powerhouse Ventures is a network-driven venture fund that backs entrepreneurs building the future of energy. Learn more at https://www.powerhouse.fund.
Keiretsu Forum
Keiretsu Forum is a global angel investor network with more than 2500 accredited investor members throughout 46 chapters on 3 continents.
Greentown Labs
Greentown Labs is a community of climate action pioneers working to design a more sustainable world. As the largest climatetech startup incubator in North America, Greentown Labs brings together startups, corporates, investors, policymakers, and many others with a focus on scaling climate solutions. Driven by the mission of providing startups the resources, knowledge, connections, and equipment they need to thrive, Greentown Labs offers lab space, shared office space, a machine shop, an electronics lab, software and business resources, and a large network of corporate customers, investors, and more. With its headquarters in Somerville, Mass. and a recently opened incubator in Houston, TX, Greentown Labs is home to more than 180 startups and has supported more than 400 startups since the incubator’s founding in 2011. These startups have collectively created more than 8,400 jobs and have raised more than $2.2 billion in funding.
Cyclotron Road
Cyclotron Road is a home for top entrepreneurial researchers to advance technologies until they can succeed beyond the research lab. Our purpose: support critical technology development and help identify the most suitable business models, partners, and financing mechanisms for long-term impact.
F6S
F6S is the world’s largest founder community. We help founders grow by delivering $2.4 billion in funds and services each year to our 1.8 million members.
Silicon Climate
Silicon Climate creates the ecosystem required to invent the sustainable technologies and innovations of our future. We believe that by leveraging our entrepreneurial skillset, tailoring our advising services and connecting entrepreneurs to resources such as capital, knowledge and talent, we can create momentum around building an ecosystem that leads to an outsized impact on the problem of climate change.
We bring these resources and connections to bear primarily through our Silicon Climate Accelerator which targets early-stage startups for rapid growth.
High Technology Development Corporation (HTDC)
High Technology Development Corporation (HTDC) is a state agency established by the Hawaii State Legislature in 1983 to facilitate the development and growth of Hawaii's commercial high technology industry. The State views high technology as an important driver in the diversification of Hawaii's economy and one that provides quality, high-paying jobs for Hawaii residents.
Startup Showcase Participants