{"id":2015,"date":"2011-05-18T07:32:33","date_gmt":"2011-05-18T11:32:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2011\/05\/renewable-energy-network-at-opportunity-central.html"},"modified":"2011-05-18T07:32:33","modified_gmt":"2011-05-18T11:32:33","slug":"renewable-energy-network-at-opportunity-central","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2011\/05\/renewable-energy-network-at-opportunity-central.html","title":{"rendered":"Renewable Energy Network at Opportunity Central"},"content":{"rendered":"Renewable energy for jobs: that’s something that would interest\na Chamber of Commerce.\n

\nPartly due to\n\nMAGE SOLAR at Lowndes High School<\/a>\n\n<\/a>\n(thanks, Jerome Tucker!), the Valdosta – Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce (VLCoC) has taken an interest in renewable energy.\nReKasa Deen,\n\nBusiness Development Director<\/a>,\nalready heads the Chamber’s\n\nOpportunity Central<\/a>:\n

\n\n<\/a>\nThe Valdosta-Lowndes Chamber is positioning Metro Valdosta as Opportunity\nCentral with opportunities for business to grow and thrive, career\nopportunities for well-educated young professionals and opportunities\nfor cultural interests and active lifestyles.\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n\n<\/a>\nThe key phrase I keep hearing from\n\nVLCoC president Myrna Ballard<\/a>\nis\n\n“knowledge-based businesses and jobs.”<\/a>\nAs it says on a recent\n\nOpportunity Central blog post:<\/a>\n

\nNew jobs follow bright and creative professionals…\n<\/blockquote>\nMs. Ballard and Ms. Deen have repeatedly said they see renewable energy\nas a source of jobs for graduates of our local high schools and colleges.\n

\nWhat do they mean by renewable energy?\n\n\nWell, that’s still being determined, but they asked me for suggestions\nbeyond just solar PV, and what I suggested was at least six things:\nwind, ground loop, conservation, efficiency, solar PV, and solar heating.\nThat plus maybe the Chamber is the appropriate organization to organize\nthe \nrenewable energy study<\/a> I keep calling for.\nWith grant funding, that could be work for professors at VSU and Wiregrass Tech.\n

\nWhat is VLCoC going to do about renewable energy?\nReKasa Deen has been tasked with organizing a renewable energy network,\nwhich will arrange a series of events for Chamber members about\nrenewable energy, especially related to knowledge-based jobs.\nShe was at the MAGE SOLAR LHS event and at the\n\n<\/a>\n\nWiregrass Solar Commissioning.<\/a>\nShe has been preoccupied with another event she was organizing,\nwhich has now happened, so presumably we’ll start to hear more shortly.\nIf you’re interested in the Renewable Energy Network,\nit’s best to contact ReKasa, rdeen at valdostachamber.com.\nThis is primarily for Chamber members (I’m a Chamber member),\nso you’ll probably want to join to participate.\nYou may think, “What, me join the Chamber of Commerce?”\nWell, if you want them to think along your lines….\n

\n\n<\/a>\nPeople who have been involved in organizing the Renewable Energy Network\nso far have been Jerome Tucker, Dr. Dennis Marks, Myrna Ballard, ReDasa Deen,\nand me. As\n\nJerome has said:<\/a>\n

\nAnd with this industry there’s opportunity for engineers, there’s opportunity for electricians, there’s opportunity for plumbers, truck drivers, across the board.\n<\/blockquote>\n

\nWill the Chamber solve all our renewable energy problems?\nOf course not. But they do have a large number of members\nwho are interested in jobs, so they’re another organization\nthat can help get the renewable energy industry jump-started\nin south Georgia.\nAlso, Opportunity Central’s\n\n“full blown effort to create a smarter community”<\/a>\nis a bit of a contrast to VLCIA’s nineteenth century\nmodel of “we’re industry” as in big smokestack industry.\nVLCIA is actually showing some glimmer of interest in\ndistributed business rooftop solar lately, but the Chamber\ngets that from the git-go.\n

\nEarlier I promised to spell out what I meant by\n\n“So does this mean reinforcing the old boy network? No, it means expanding\nit to include more of the community.”<\/a>\nThis Renewable Energy Network is part (but not all) of what I meant.\nIt’s well known I don’t agree with the Chamber on everything\n(see CUEE<\/a>).\n\n<\/a>\nBut in the case of renewable energy, they seem to get it.\nAnd if they get it, they can show those\n\nrenewable energy carrots to their numerous members.<\/a>\nAnd that will also get the attention of local elected and appointed officials.\n

\nThe most common question I get about this project is,\n“Will the Chamber actually do anything about it?”\nMy answer is, “I think so, because they see it as jobs.”\nAnd I guess we’re about to find out.\nOver to you, ReKasa.\n

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