Hawaii's Unique Approach to Funding Cleantech Startups

Many states prioritize tech incubators for a variety of economic reasons. The Energy Excelerator in Hawaii has a much more specific mission: tie support for startups to a 100% renewable energy target set by the state last year. That mission guides the way Energy Excelerator funds projects, chooses awards, and works with incumbents. This week, we'll talk with Dawn Lippert, the organization's co-founder and director, about how Hawaii plans to support innovation in distributed energy. Later in the show, we'll look at where Generate Capital (where co-host Jigar Shah acts as president) is deploying $150 million for "infrastructure-as-a-service" projects in underserved markets. We'll finish with a look at the political prospects for a carbon tax in 2016. The Energy Gang is produced by Greentechmedia.com. The show features weekly discussions between energy futurist Jigar Shah, energy policy expert Katherine Hamilton and Greentech Media Editor Stephen Lacey.