Thanks to everyone who made it to the most recent Climatini on July 21^st!  40-50 people made it out to the Westin on Dearborn and a good time was had by all.  We regret the confusion at the start of the event and hope everyone’s patience was rewarded by the networking which followed.  It was encouraging to get such a solid turnout in light of Congress’ continuing failure to pass energy/climate legislation and the scorching summer heat that afternoon.

The lack of clarity from Congress has left many renewable energy projects hamstrung and the possibility of federal cap-and-trade is all but a distant memory.  While California’s AB32 calls for a statewide cap-and-trade system to be enacted in 2012, GOP gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman has openly stated she will kill the program if elected.  The success that seemed to be certain in April ’09 as Waxman-Markey was released now looks uncertain, even unlikely.  In spite of this several attendees talked of new companies they were starting up to provide emissions and sustainability consulting services.  The expectation seems to be that there will still be demand from corporate interests for voluntary emissions reductions and environmentally responsible practices, regardless of what government does.

Although it is difficult to be optimistic about the progress of energy/climate legislation, the automotive sector seems to be finally committed to producing more efficient vehicles using alternative fuels and the BP disaster will hopefully result in new commitments to clean energy.  The private sector will ultimately dictate whether or not clean energy and sustainable practices prevail in the market and events like Climatini are crucial to enabling the inter-industry connections required to implement such ideas.  We look forward to seeing everyone again at our next event, at a date TBA in late September or early October.