SF Bay Climate Tech: May 15 - May 21, 2023
Sustainability book clubs, climate legislation to decarbonize our homes, and cleantech startups all the way from Italy!
Hi friends,
This week we’ll dive into the world of energy change — from solar and wind, to advanced small modular reactors and more. We’ve got to find a way to wean ourselves off of fossil fuels, and we’re excited by the climate tech innovations this community and those around the globe are deploying!
Head to the Sustainability X Leadership Book Club on Wednesday, or stop by a variety of climate tech panels across the bay. On Thursday, dive into the world of Climate Legislation and how it will help us decarbonize the buildings sector (and Electrify your Home while you’re at it!). Close off the week with some pizza and nutella while you hear Italian Cleantech Startups pitch their ideas for a very special demo day!
As always, scroll down for the full list of upcoming events!
Cheers,
The SF Bay Climate Tech Team
Climate Change, Energy Change, and the Future of GHG Emissions
At SF Bay Climate Tech, we’re excited to kick off this month’s theme focused on the relationship between energy and climate, and key drivers in the clean energy transition.
Energy–powering industry, transport, homes, this very device you’re reading on–contributes to around 60% of global greenhouse emissions. Despite progress from renewables, around 80% of global energy is still derived from fossil fuels. Thus, decoupling energy access from carbon intensive sources is essential for reaching global climate targets.
Last year in the US, renewables surpassed coal for the first time as a source of electric power generation. But cleaner electricity is only a piece of the puzzle. In the US, only about 40% of total energy is used for electricity generation. Traditionally fossil fuel heavy industries like transport are two sectors with the greatest opportunity for electrification.
The IEA (International Energy Agency) identifies the key pillars of energy decarbonization as energy efficiency, behavioral changes, electrification, renewables, low carbon fuels, and carbon capture and storage. There remains significant gaps across all pillars when tracking against the 2050 net zero emissions scenario, and concerted efforts in policy, investments, technology commercialization & more are needed to accelerate the massive systems transition towards affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.
SF’s whopping 300+ page climate action plan set ambitious goals to achieve 100% renewable electricity by 2025 and 100% renewable energy by 2040, complemented by commitments like an all electric bus fleet by 2035.
In the coming weeks, we’ll take a close look at what’s working, what’s needed, and local efforts to accelerate the clean energy transition!
Community Shoutouts
Climate Startups and Climate Talent: Come One, Come All!
SF Bay Climate Tech and Streetlife Ventures are launching new platforms to support climate founders, funders, and career transitioners! There is no shortage of great companies raising money for their groundbreaking ideas, great investors looking to support with capital, and great talent living the mantra that every job is a climate job. Streetlife Ventures, co-founded by our very own Sonam Velani, is excited to support these efforts across our community. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Events This Week
📖 Sustainability X Leadership Book Club: Operationalizing Sustainability: Wed, May 17
🌱 Work on Climate Wednesday: Wed, May 17
🌳 ClimateTech Panel Discussion: Wed, May 17
💡 Driving Climate Action Through Innovation: Wed, May 17
🌱 Let's Talk Business Operations for Climate Startups: Wed, May 17
🏢 Climate Legislation & Building Decarbonization: Thu, May 18
🌱 Joule Presents Start-up Stories: Climate Tech: Thu, May 18
🏡 Electrify your Home and Save Money: Thu, May 18
🇮🇹 Italian Cleantech Startups Demo Day: Fri, May 19
Read on for more details about this week’s happenings and upcoming events this month
Events This Month
♻️ Recology San Francisco Public Tour: Mon, May 22
🧩 Air Quality & Sustainable Mobility 2023 : Tue, May 23
🍺 Carbon Leadership Forum SF Bay Area Happy Hour: Tue, May 23
⛈️ Designing Low Slope Roof Drainage for Climate Change: Tue, May 23
🌎 Climate Action in the Bay Area: Tue, May 23
🍷 Inaugural Napa Climate Summit: Wed, May 24
⚡️ YPE SF Happy Hour and Headshot Party: Wed, May 24
⚖️ A Pathway Towards Global Environmental and Climate Justice: Wed, May 24
🌳 Cleantech Open Bay Area Meetup: Thu, May 25
🍻 Urban Environmentalists May Happy Hour: Thu, May 25
🌿 Launch Conference: Global Center for Sustainable Digital Finance: Fri, May 26
🏝️ Marin Mangrove Happy Hour: Fri, May 26
🍷 Wine and Environmental Justice Conference: Fri, Jun 9
Events This Week
📖 Sustainability X Leadership Book Club: Operationalizing Sustainability
When: Wed, May 17th from 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM
Where: Online
Join Chrissa Pagitsas in a small group discussion about the leadership strategies and personal journeys of the Chief Sustainability Officers of Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, and other Fortune 500 companies captured in her book, Chief Sustainability Officers at Work. You’ll also hear from Chrissa about her journey building a $50 billion Green Bond business.
🌱 Work on Climate Wednesday
When: Wed, May 17th from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Where: Southern Pacific Brewing, 620 Treat Ave, San Francisco, CA
After a record-breaking 650+ registrations in April, we're back for our monthly climate community meetup! All are welcome: climate job seekers, climate employers, and folks already working in climate. ✨ Bonus points if you bring a climate curious friend ✨
🌳 ClimateTech Panel Discussion
When: Wed, May 17th from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Where: Port Labs, 2044 Franklin St, Oakland, CA 94612
Join us for our Panel Discussion about Climate Tech and participate in lots of Q&A and panel cross-talk after opening. Learn about the technologies explicitly focused on reducing GHG emissions or addressing the impacts of global warming.
💡 Driving Climate Action Through Innovation
When: Wed, May 17th from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Where: Port Labs, 2044 Franklin Street, Oakland, CA 94612
Climate action demands immediate attention and collaboration from all of us. We are living in a unique moment, where public and private sector capital, legislated targets, customers in need, and entrepreneurial energy are all aligning. We have an opportunity, and a responsibility, to make a real impact to save our planet.
🌱 Let's Talk Business Operations for Climate Startups
When: Wed, May 17th from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Where: Manny’s, 3092 16th Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Get Structure and Raise Green are joining forces to bring together startups and members of the climate startup ecosystem to share best practices for business operations and community capital. If you’re going to solve the climate problem, building your business with a sound foundation backed by a community of supporters will set you up for success. Come join us to discuss how we can build businesses centered around operational excellence to catalyze more investment in the space.
🏢 Climate Legislation & Building Decarbonization
When: Thu, May 18th from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM
Where: Webcor, 207 King St #300, San Francisco, CA 94107
Join us at 5:30 PM PT on May 18th to hear more about how recent climate legislation and local policies will be shaping building decarbonization work in California.
🌱 Joule Presents Start-up Stories: Climate Tech
When: Thu, May 18th from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Where: Mind the Bridge, 450 Townsend Street, San Francisco, CA 94107
We'll have 10 international founders of Energy Climate Tech start-ups showcasing how they're already making changes in the energy space and are looking to expand to Silicon Valley. And if that's not enough, there will be an insightful panel and ability to casually network with everyone at the event.
🏡 Electrify your Home and Save Money
When: Thu, May 18th from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Where: Pedro Point Firehouse, 1227 Danmann Avenue, Pacifica, CA 94044
Are you interested in electrifying your home and don’t know where to start? Do you want to learn about the benefits of electrification? Switching to electric heating and cooking equipment creates safer homes and communities for generations to come.
🇮🇹 Italian Cleantech Startups Demo Day
When: Fri, May 19th from 9:30 AM to 2:00 PM
Where: Mind the Bridge, 450 Townsend Street, San Francisco, CA 94107
Join us for a day of cutting-edge technology and sustainable entrepreneurship, as we showcase the latest innovations in the field of cleantech. Featuring accelerated Italian startups working on energy storage, robotics, biomaterials, wind, circular economy, and more.
Join the Fun!
Submit Events
We know all of you are cooking up great events across that highlight the latest and greatest in our collective effort to save our city - and our planet! 🌍 We would love to spread the word. Please share any event details and we'll add them to the list!
Climate Tech Cities
We are expanding! We started as an 8-person dinner and now have over 4,000 members in our community. We’ve had people across the world reach out to us to start their own chapters - so we’re launching a new Climate Tech Cities organization this year! If you have friends who are interested in becoming chapter leads, please share the word. Here’s to a global network of local communities making a positive impact!
