The 463: Inside Tech

Advanced Energy Economy Unveils New Report: Economic Impacts of Advanced Energy

Advanced Energy Economy (AEE), a national organization representing the advanced energy industry, has just released a new report, Economic Impacts of Advanced Energy.

Commissioned by the Advanced Energy Economy Institute, AEE’s educational and charitable affiliate, and produced by Pike Research, this report marks the first time both a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the advanced energy markets in the U.S. and globally has been conducted.

One of the report’s most surprising findings was the magnitude of the advanced energy industry. Advanced energy makes up more than a $1.1 trillion global market, larger than the pharmaceutical manufacturing worldwide.  Domestically it’s bigger than the trucking industry!

You may be wondering, what is advanced energy? AEE defines advanced energy as the best available commercial technologies for meeting energy needs today and tomorrow. It’s not just clean and renewable energy; it’s a broader category that includes categories like nuclear and natural gas turbines that are not generally included. In short, advanced energy is what happens when energy meets 21^st century technology. IT and the Internet, advanced materials, electronics and “big data” are all transforming the way we make and use energy, and driving innovation across the entire energy landscape.

Here are some other key findings from the report:

• The U.S. advanced energy market represented $132 billion of economic activity in 2011, with market growth of more than 15% year over year.
• The share of the U.S. global advanced energy market will rise from 12 percent to 15 percent in just one year, from 2011 to 2012.

Click here to download the report. 

Connecting for the Sandy Hook Promise

One month after the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut and the nation still grapples for a way to deal with the senseless violence committed on innocent victims.  Sensationalistic storylines and outsized personalities continue to drive headlines, but underneath all the noise and flash something good is happening.

 Families at the center of the tragedy are leading the call for moderate conversations and solutions that can help prevent similar tragedies in the future.  Their effort, the Sandy Hook Promise is a good place to start.

There will be no easy answers, but agreeing to have a civil dialogue is a positive first step on this and other important national issues. Taking the pledge is free and cathartic, but most importantly it connects participants to a much larger community of people interested in considering new ideas, not just talking points.