Executive summary:
- Currently President/CEO of The Climate Economy Education Inc, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit for education on business models and lifestyles that are good for the climate, economy and humanity (www.theclimateeconomy.com)
- Established the CLimate Economy Action Network (www.CLEANetwork.com), an online community for education and community capacity building
- Established Youth Climate Economy Ventures (https://makeprojects.com/project/youth-climate-economy-ventures-hub) to teach students how to innovate for behavior change that reduces negative impacts on environment and humanity
- Organize regular events to inspire and mobilize communities
Describe your journey to where you are today.
I was all over the place in college: Russian, Business Administration, Entrepreneurship, Aviation. My first job was on the options exchange in Chicago, where I quickly moved from clerk to venture portfolio manager once the company found out about my Entrepreneurship education. At a nanotech conference looking for the next big thing, I met the CEO of Starlab, “the place where 100 years means nothing,” in Brussels, Belgium, a serendipitous research lab for basic research and eventual commercialization of that research. He recruited me and it was an experience of a lifetime, before it went bust after two and a half years. A stint on the Repo Desk at ING Belgium, then a long slog at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. Southern Illinois is very rural and quiet, and I aimed to stir things up in technology transfer then the energy research center. With things still moving slowly there after 12 years, I jumped out and established a nonprofit for education on business models and lifestyle that are good for the climate, economy and humanity. I think I’ll be here for a while.
What does your company do, for who, and how does it fit into the bigger picture of solving global issues with clean tech?
I am the founder, president and CEO of The Climate Economy Education Inc, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit for education on business models and lifestyles that are good for the climate, economy and humanity. We have two main programs. One is the Climate Economy Action Network at https://CLEANetwork.com. We’re providing an online education and project management community for everyone who is willing and able to dedicate time and effort to the advancement of knowledge, with the aim of optimizing the health and well-being of the planet and all its inhabitants. It’s a big complicated topic that’s scary for some, so we aim to make it fun and accessible. It’s a place where people can get ideas and get involved. The second program is Youth Climate Economy Ventures at https://makeprojects.com/project/youth-climate-economy-ventures-hub. Here the goal is to inspire individual students and groups to innovate for behavior change so people have less negative impact on the environment and other humans. We’re teaching to create businesses and ideas around that instead of the profit motive. Profit is still necessary, just not the main goal. Everything is changing fast, and needs to change even faster in some cases, and lifelong education is the key to facilitating the necessary change.
What do you think is the most important thing we can be doing in terms of clean tech solutions?
The transition to clean energy has to be first. I think most people underestimate how massive this is. It’s totally possible, but we have to educate people on what it actually entails. As illustrated in IRENA’s “Innovation Landscape for a Renewable-Powered Future,” it’s more than just solar panels. I look forward to helping advance knowledge on this topic.
The picture is from the first-ever Youth Climate Economy Ventures event in 2019: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
LinkedIn: Amy McMorrow Hunter