Green Technology Forum

This Wednesday, May 14, actor Ed Norton, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and experts in the field of green building appeared before Chairman Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming to discuss how more efficient buildings and better building policies can reduce energy costs and cut global warming pollution. Norton is a Trustee for the Enterprise Foundation and works to bring green building practices to low-income housing development.

The building sector is responsible for 48 percent of all heat-trapping emissions, and it is estimated that 76 percent of all electricity generated by U.S. power plants goes to operate buildings. As energy prices rise — increasing the costs of cooling, heating and construction — green building has become a popular mantra for homeowners, corporations and environmentalists alike. Yet the numerous definitions of green buildings can lead to confusion, inaction or ineffective policy. As Congress examines all sources and causes of global warming emissions, it must consider how the buildings we work and live in can contribute to reducing the impact of climate change.

Source: globalwarming.house.gov

The winner, or winners, of the first ever science prize for outstanding achievement in nanosciences will be announced next month by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. The first winners of the new Kavli Prize, comprising three international awards for outstanding contributions in the fields of nanoscience, neuroscience and astrophysics, will be announced on 28 May 2008.

The prizes, to be awarded every two years, will be presented in co-operation with the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and the Norwegian ministries for education and research and foreign affairs. They are worth $1 million each, which makes them comparable to the cash received by Nobel Prize winners.

According to Professor Reidun Sirevåg, the Academy’s secretary general, the prize is the first of its kind for nanoscience. “It will be very interesting to know the winner, as the nanoscience field is not yet that specific,” she said.

Source: nanowerk.com

The Institute of Nanotechnology brings you the ‘3rd International Conference on Nanotechnology and Smart Textiles for Industry, Healthcare and Fashion’, an unmissable one-day conference taking place at the Royal Society, London on the 19th March, 2008. This event provides a venue and breeding ground for industry development, university and other research personnel to get together to present new ideas, learn what the industry wants and make linkages.

This textiles conference should be seen by the industry as the key international venue, where new ideas and developments are presented and industry challenges are tabled. It should indeed be regarded as the venue for bringing together new science and technologies into the industry arena.

Conference aims:

• To raise awareness of the potential for advanced technologies and the opportunities they present for the future success of the textile industry.
• To showcase novel textile technologies.
• To consider the implications of advances in technology on maintaining the competitiveness of the industrial and fashion textiles industries.
• To bring together a mutli-disciplinary delegation, to encourage discussion and advance collaborative opportunities.

Why attend?

This conference offers you:

• The opportunity to learn about new developments affecting the textile industry.
• Presentations from research and industry experts, to expand your knowledge of the latest developments in textile technologies.
• The opportunity to meet, advise and influence, representatives of a range of textile organizations from across the value chain.

source: nano.org.uk

Michael Mandiberg and Brooke Singer are two wizards of eco-data visualization.

Eyebeam alum. Brooke Singer is behind Area´s Immediate Reading and the Superfund 365, A Site-A-Day. Superfund 365 is probably my favourite project from 2007. Each day for a year, this online data visualization application visits one toxic site active in the Superfund program run by the U.S. The contaminant, the responsible party and the people involved with or impacted by Superfund are represented in the project.

Michael Mandiberg is a 2007-08 Fellow in the R&D OpenLab and the author of two eye-opening dataviz plug-ins: Oil Standard converts all prices from U.S. Dollars into the equivalent value in barrels of crude oil and Real Costs inserts emissions data into travel related e-commerce websites. Think of it like the nutritional information labeling on the back of food… except for emissions.

As members of the Eyebeam Sustainability Research Group (which began in July 2006 as a forum for residents, fellows, and staff to engage in a critical dialog about environmental sustainability) the two of them have launched Eco-Vis Challenge, a competition which was previously mentioned on the blog (Eyebeam’s Ecovisualiz Design Challenge panel, part 1 and part 2).

Based on the idea that being aware of the current environmental crisis doesn’t mean that it is easy to recognize its extent and complexity, the “Eco-Vis Challenge” invited artists and designers to submit projects which make meaningful patterns emerge from the mass of environmental data.

source: we-make-money-not-art.com

www.InvestorIdeas.com, and its global investor and industry Greentech portals announce the 2008 Investorideas.com Global Greentech Online Investor Conference, March 21, 2008. The conference theme is: “Insight into Global Green Investing Trends and Opportunities in Solar, Wind, Biofuel, Green Transportation, and Water.”

The in-depth online conference will be available March 21^st, 2008, starting at 9:00 am EDT and archived thereafter.

The online conference will include presentations from renewable, environmental, water, clean energy and technology experts providing in-depth perspectives on what is happening in the Greentech sector from venture capital, funds, indices and global publicly traded companies.

The conference format will consist of an audio presentation (average 15 minutes) with images in a slideshow presentation, in flash format.

The conference is free to online visitors with login registration. http://www.investorideas.com/Forums/Portals/Green2.aspx

source: investorideas.com

ONAMI and SNNI (Safer Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacting Initiative) present the Greener Nano 2008 Conference: Nanoscience for a Sustainable Future, 10-11 March 2008 at the Hewlett-Packard Company Corvallis, OR site. As nanotechnology advances, many questions arise regarding putative effects of engineered nanomaterials on the environment and health. How do we make the right decisions in the face of these uncertainties? This conference focuses on cutting edge research in nanotechnology, potential biological and environmental impacts of nanomaterials and how to use this new knowledge to develop greener nanomaterials. We are especially pleased to present “A Conversation with Dave Chen” (founding partner, Equilibrium Capital Group, and Chair of the Oregon Innovation Council) to engage discussion in this important area. SNNI will also present its latest research advances in developing greener nanomaterials and nanomanufacturing processes.

source: greennano.org

At the recent International Conference & Exhibition on Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials held in Hong Kong in mid-December, experts and researchers in the textile and apparel industry gathered together to share their findings and vision of nano-treated textiles of the next generation.

The term nanotechnology comes from the Greek word “nanos”, which means dwarf. One nanometer (nm) is one millionth of a millimeter. On this micro scope, the once-common-sense understanding of fiber properties have been turned upside down, giving fibers and fabrics such characteristics as water repellency, oil and stain resistance, wrinkle free, UV-protection, antibacterial performance, odor elimination and quick drying.

“Self-cleaning probably has the biggest potential for commercialization as more fabric makers are trying to utilize the lotus-effect,” said Jeff Chan, Project Manager and Senior Specialist of the Industry & Information Department of Taiwan Textile Federation (TTF).

The lotus effect, or superhydrophobicity, in material science, refers to the observed self-cleaning property found with lotus plants. Their microscopic structure and surface chemistry ensures that the leaves never get wet, hence the leaves are naturally non-sticky while able to clean themselves on their own. It has been imitated by using nanotechnology. In Schoeller’s second-generation NanoSphere introduced in fall 2007, the finish’s abrasion resistance on both wet and dry fabrics is greatly improved, so the protective function is permanently maintained even under heavy-duty use and frequent washing.

source: textile.2456.com

The International Association of Nanotechnology invites entrepreneurs to present their business plans for free at the Emerging Tech Investment Forum 2008 on Jan. 23-24, 2008 in San Jose.

Participating premier venture capitalists will include those specializing in clean tech; biotechnology; nanotechnology; aerospace; medical devices and instruments; and pharmaceuticals.

Dr. Fred Aslan of Venrock, Rich Helfrich of Alameda Capital and Nicola Corzine of Band of Angels will be among some of the attending VCs.

For details and registration info, contact International Association of Nanotechnology.

source: SFGate.com

Cleantech 2008 is a multi-disciplinary and multi-sector conference on global sustainability addressing advancements in traditional technologies, emerging technologies and clean business practices. The mission of CSI Cleantech 2008 is to bring together the entire cleantech ecosystem with the goal of accelerating the flow of technologies from the research phase to the viable market phase. We do this by linking scientists, engineers and researchers with potential business, financial and government partners. The Cleantech ecosystem enables a growing set of knowledge-based technologies, products or services designed to improve operational performance, productivity or efficiency while reducing costs, inputs, energy consumption, waste or pollution.

June 1-5, Hynes Convention Center, Boston, Massachusetts

CSI Cleantech 2008 is collocated with:

• NSTI Nanotech 2008
  (the largest nanotechnology conference & trade show, and associated ventures and investment event in the US, 11^th annual)
• 2008 Techconnect Summit
  (the world’s largest peer-vetted deal flow for technology Partnering, Investing and Licensing)
• BioNano 2008

source: Cleantech2008

Nanotechnology for Security and Crime Prevention will be held January 17, 2008, at The Royal Society, London. Building on the success of last year’s conference, this one day event will examine a wide spectrum of new scientific developments taking place in the fight against crime. The latest discoveries and advances will be discussed, from the latest research in nanotechnology and forensics to explosives detection that will revolutionize the security sector.