InnovatingSMART

THE INNOVATION:Helping startups and existing companies to create great workplace cultures – with Trust at their centers -- which can drive exceptional business results. Susan Lucas-Conwell, CEOGreat Place to Work Institutewww.greatplacetowork.net

THE INNOVATION: Growing mushrooms in a nearly closed-loop system, integrating many advanced indoor growing technologies. John Ashbaugh, CEO of Premier Mushrooms www.premiermushrooms.com For the full story, go to InnovatingSMART.org.

THE INNOVATION: Designing, producing and distributing compostable one-use food service products from annually renewable materials. Aseem Das, CEO and Founder, World Centric www.worldcentric.org Go to www.InnovatingSMART.org for the full story.

THE INNOVATION: Bringing together an array of cross-sector institutional partners to address systems-level issues of environmental, economic and social sustainability in the Silicon Valley region. Marianna Grossman, Executive Director www.SustainableSV.org Check out InnovatingSMART for the full story.

THIS INNOVATION: Advancing the triple bottom line by finding common ground between corporations and NGO watchdogs - moving past entrenched self-interests toward equally shared goals.  www.future500.org See InnovatingSMART.org for the full story.

This Innovation: CAforward is working to redesign California government so that is more efficient and provides California citizens the proper resources they need in their local communities.  Richard W. Raya: Policy Director CAforward.org Get the full story at www.innovatingsmart.org!

THE INNOVATION: Creating new myths and alchemies to promote environmental sustainability. Willi Paul, Founder www.PlanetShifter.com Magazine  www.SacredPermaculture.net Get the whole story at InnovatingSMART.org.

THE INNOVATION: Creating simple long-term financing options called "Power Purchase Agreements" which allow industrial electricity users to enjoy the benefits of renewable energy without up-front costs. Dirk MichelsPartner K&L Gates http://www.klgates.com Check out www.innovatingsmart.org for the full story...

This Innovation: Redesigning architecture to be greener through the use of new shear wall construction technology which can support habitat for flora and fauna. Nelson Hyde Chick, CEO www.vertlandscape.com Watch an Introductory Video: Read some Excerpts: Θ I love nature and I’m always kind of saddened that urbanization has to take … you build a structure and there goes nature. And I’d say: “Why can’t you have a composite of both?” … So what I’ve done is design a load-bearing shear wall system that in addition to bearing loads can sustain vegetation …. Θ Heat island effect. It’s a major component of global warming. Think of cities as kind of big bubbles of heat. Now … we reduce that [heat] by increasing vegetation in the city. Θ Quality of life. Greener people are happier. Θ Most technology now takes jobs away from people. You start building with my product, I can actually make more jobs. Θ There’s a guy named Patrick Blanc, and he does a thing called Vertical Gardens – and they’re beautiful things … he can go into existing walls … but, he only uses plants that can grow aeroponically … but, his palette of vegetation is very limited…. But what I’ve tried to do is make a wall that can grow anything. I can grow a wall of trees if I wanted to. Θ I think I can go fifty stories [high] with this. Θ Unless you’re above a green roof you can’t see it. … Vertical landscaping … you can have it framing your entrance. You have it right there for people to see. Θ By where you orient the wall to the sun you can create microclimates. … A greenhouse put on its end. Θ We are a part of nature and we’ve got to start living with it instead of trying to extinguish it thinking it’s something we’re apart [from], we’re not. The sooner we get closer to that than we are now, the better off we’ll be. Θ Almost every major city in the world is settled on some of the most prime arable land there was … we have lost so much really good arable land [to] urbanization. The thing is - arable land isn’t just about the soil – it’s about where it’s located: the climate and whatnot. That's why I think if all buildings start sprouting vertical landscaping we could get that arable land back. Θ We’ve got a lot to learn from nature. Θ In a way a building is a kind of a living organism now. You consider the people and their lives and how [a vertical landscape] will just make it more living, more in tune with nature. I think it would just benefit society and the individual.

www.starnetllc.net

A material manufacturing and SaaS company focused on high-tech solutions that reduce energy consumption in the built environment.

This Innovation: B Corporation is helping envision a new sector of the economy where corporations create benefit for all social stakeholders rather than just shareholders. Promoting notions of interdependence, agency and responsibility through collective action and accountability. An interview with Deborah Hirsh from B Labs about Benefit (B) Corporations. Excerpts: “What is socially responsible? What is environmentally responsible? How do we tell whether a business is just marketing themselves as green or sustainable versus: let's see how they're really doing - and actually have a score.” “The GIIRS rating system is ... a further development of our current B Impact Ratings system, and it's being developed for the global impact investing community.” “We have  a number of partnerships with business products and services that offer incredible discounts to b corporations because they want to reward and incent [environmentally responsible] companies and help them grow.” What are Certified B Corporations? Certified B Corporations are a new type of corporation which uses the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.  B Corps are unlike traditional businesses because they: Meet comprehensive and transparent social and environmental performance standards; Meet higher legal accountability standards; Build business constituency for good business Why B Corps Matter » Meet the Founding B Corporations » What are the Benefits of Becoming a Certified B Corporation? There are two main reasons companies have become Certified B Corporations; some join the community in order to leverage the influence of their business beyond their industry or geography, and some do so because it just makes good business sense. Learn more about B Corp as an act of leadership. Learn more about the business case for becoming a B Corp. How to Become a B Corporation? To become a B Corporation, you have to do three things: 1. Take and pass the B Impact Ratings System.  This sets a benchmark for social and environmental impact for good companies. 2. Adopt the B Corporation Legal Framework to bake the mission of the company into its legal DNA. 3. Sign a Term Sheet that makes your certification official. Want help?  Go to http://www.bcorporation.net/become or email us at thelab@bcorporation.net. (source: www.bcorporation.net/about)

This is a first-person interview with Kevin Krasnow, PhD candidate, UC Berkeley Fire Science Lab: http://nature.berkeley.edu/stephens-lab/.  His research is focused on fire ecology and history and how it relates to current forest management.

An interview with Curt Ward, President of Zajac Motors.  Zajac Motors has created an advanced combustion engine technology to increase fuel efficiency, produce zero emissions and run on any fuel type.  www.zajacmotors.com See the full story at innovatingsmart.org.

An interview with Ian Gover, the President and CEO of Teletrips. Teletrips helps organizations improve their financial, environmental and societal performance through intelligent workplace and workforce management.  www.teletrips.com. See the full story at innovatingsmart.org.

Going Evergreen is a non-profit in Silicon Valley, which is leveraging social capital to create change and adaptation, resulting in social and ecological profit. Mike Alvarado, Co-Founder, Going Evergreen www.goingevergreen.org Go to our website for the full story.

An on-site interview with Duncan Soldner, President, Gourmet Growers, www.gourmetgrowers.us Gourmet Growers is creating an indoor agriculture model designed to produce zero waste and operate near urban areas.  Current focus -- growing mushrooms. Check out the full story at InnovatingSMART.org.

An interview with: Marlene Zobayan, Founder, ConsumerChange.com www.consumerchange.com ConsumerChange has created a social-media website which allows users to provide feedback on businesses' environmental practices. Get the full story at InnovatingSMART.org.