Gov. Roy Cooper (’79, ’82) and others to headline UNC Clean Tech Summit in March

January 23, 2017

The UNC Clean Tech Summit convenes professionals in business, policy and academia for two days of problem-solving to foster leadership and growth in the Southeast’s clean tech industry.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) will host its fourth annual UNC Clean Tech Summit Mar. 2-3. The event highlights the latest innovations, trends and challenges in the clean technology industry and how North Carolina is playing a key role in leading the way to a green global economy. The Summit is co-hosted by the UNC Institute for the Environment and the Center for Sustainable Enterprise at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Top row L to R: Gov. Roy Cooper, Adam E. Bergman, Tom Darden; Bottom, row L to R: Carol L. Folt, Rep. Chuck McGrady, Fran O’Sullivan.

This year, N.C. Governor Roy Cooper will deliver the keynote address on Mar. 2. Cooper is the 75th governor of the state of North Carolina and a double Tar Heel, earning a B.A. in political science in 1979 and his juris doctor in 1982 from Carolina. Other featured speakers include Adam E. Bergman, senior vice president of Wells Fargo CleanTech Banking; Tom Darden (UNC ’76 and ’92) founder and CEO of Cherokee and Cherokee Investment Partners; Chuck McGrady, representative, N.C. House of Representatives; and Fran O’Sullivan, general manager of IBM GBS Global Operations. A full list of speakers and panels is available on the UNC Clean Tech Summit Web site.

Chancellor Carol L. Folt is moderating a panel on public-private partnerships which will explore partnerships between universities and the private sector as a way to advance clean tech innovation in the region.

Speakers and panels at the summit will focus on four themes including innovation, clean energy, food, and water + energy. A full agenda is available online.

This year’s Summit includes special programs around careers, including the opportunity for students to engage with clean-tech industry leaders through one-on-one mentoring, networking sessions featuring company-hosted tables, and a luncheon featuring Triangle Women in STEM on Thur. and a career networking luncheon on Fri.

Registration is open at https://ie-old.sites.unc.edu/cleantech. The fee is $250, with special rates for one-day participants, students, and representatives from the non-governmental sector.

The Summit will be held at the William and Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education in Chapel Hill. For directions, see http://fridaycenter.unc.edu/map-and-directions/.

Cypress Renewables and Wells Fargo are lead sponsors for the event. Other sponsors include Birdseye Renewable Energy, Cherokee, Duke Energy, Research Triangle Clean Tech Cluster, Southern Company, Strata Solar, ABB, Double Time Capital, UNC Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, Lee-Moore Capital Company, Scott Madden, Restoration Systems, ScottMadden Management Consultants, 02 emc, Fifth Third Bank, First Solar, NC Sustainable Energy Association, UNC Center for European Studies, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School Energy Center, UNC Center for Climate Energy, Environment and Economics, UNC Curriculum in Environment and Ecology and UNC Environmental Finance Center.

Pre-Summit Workshops + Smart Cities Day
Two pre-summit workshops will be held Wed., Mar. 1 at The Carolina Club and are included with registration to the Summit.

Design Thinking & Food in North Carolina, with Liz Tracy, facilitator and co-Instructor Citrix-Red Hat Startup Accelerato is a hands-on workshop in “design thinking” will take you through a complete design cycle and help you leverage user studies to create a low-resolution prototype. The focus for this session is North Carolina’s food systems in celebration of UNC’s campus-wide “Food for All” theme.

Perfecting Your Pitch Techniques with Tim Flood, professor of Management and Corporate Communication at UNC’s Kenan Flagler Business School is an interactive session involving both instruction and opportunities to refine a pitch. Participants will not need to have a specific innovation or venture to pitch. The workshop will explore the structure of any effective venture pitch (from 15 seconds to any length), the value and flow of storytelling, managing nervousness, conveying confidence and the basics of effective slide design and usage.

Smart Cities Day
This pre-summit event is for local government employees, developers, participants from industry, students and faculty. The day will offer keynote speakers and panelists who will provide an update on state-of-the-art global smart city developments, answer questions on why smart city solutions can’t be addressed or implemented in isolation, and provide information on how to develop a systems approach that offers a coherent and inclusive city. This event requires additional registration. Register for “Smart Cities Day” at https://ie-old.sites.unc.edu/cleantech/smart-and-connected-communities/.

WHAT IS THE UNC CLEAN TECH SUMMIT? (WATCH THE VIDEO TO SEE)