For the past few years I have been extremely interested in algae as an alternative to petroleum. I was a student at the Green MBA and my interest was first peaked by my then classmate and now CEO of Skip to Renew, Stig Westling. Stig’s company develops and produces sustainable, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective industrial lubricants and greases.

This got me thinking - who other companies are out there and who is leading the pack in the biofuel market? My research led me to Riggs Eckelberry, the CEO and President of OriginOil. “OriginOil is proving its next-generation technology to greatly enhance algae biomass harvesting and oil extraction. This allows scalable industrialization to make algae a high-yield, cost-competitive replacement for petroleum.”

What is admirable about algae is that unlike many other biofuel alternatives is that it does not require farmland or fresh water therefore “fundamentally changing the world’s source of oil without disrupting the environment or food supplies”.

To say I am very excited about Riggs Eckelberry speaking at this month’s EcoTuesday on May 22nd would be a great understatement. I feel that the knowledge and expertise he can provide our members is invaluable. Not only has Riggs proved himself in the competitive tech market he has now undertaken this challenge in the world of alternative energy and proven to be successful.

Riggs Eckelberry has helped OriginOil become a publicly-traded technology firm that helps algae growers extract oil from Algae for use as a feedstock for the commercial production of transportation fuels, chemicals and foods. In January of 2011, Riggs Eckelberry was named to the Advisory Board of the National Algae Association. He speaks regularly on algae industry trends and writes the Algae Business column for Algae Industry Magazine.

I hope that as you read this you are as excited as I am and will attend what will surely be an amazing discussion about Algae as viable replacement for petroleum. Register today - there's only one week left!

(This article was featured in Renewable Energy News and Cleantechies.)

In this second installment in our series on leading women in cleantech and sustainability sectors, we offer up our top picks for the sustainability sector. Quite often this category is dominated by women working in Corporate Social Responsibility, as it’s a sector where women have made great strides to gain leadership roles in the last few decades. However, for our series, we are saving those women of CSR for a later post. This let’s us focus more on those women doing unique sustainability work that might otherwise not be noticed. Stay tuned for our Women of CSR post, it’s not far behind!

1. Nikki Pava – Co-founder, EcoTuesday & Founder of Alegria Partners

Nikki Pava is both the co-founder and president of EcoTuesday and part of the organization’s Ambassador team in San Francisco. EcoTuesday is a renowned networking event for sustainable business professionals that takes place every fourth Tuesday of the month in cities across the US. The organization’s 5-year anniversary celebration takes place on February 21st with special guest speaker Brian Black, president of the Sustainable Industries Magazine.

Most recently, Nikki launched Alegria Partners, an integrated marketing and sustainability consulting firm that helps to manage and grow businesses. Clients include Technology Forecasters, Blue Coat Systems, Maestro Conference and Greenopolis. As an independent consultant, Nikki has also worked in a strategic capacity with Williams-Sonoma on a project to decrease waste in their stores and played a key role in implementing Burning Man LLC’s five-year sustainability plan. She also helped Morrison & Forester (one of the country’s largest law firms) establish its Cleantech Practice Group. Nikki has an MBA in Sustainable Business from the Presidio School of Management and has worked in a strategic capacity with Fortune 500 companies, small- and medium-sized businesses, and non-profits to develop strategic plans and coordinate teams to reach specific and measurable goals.

Follow her on Twitter>>

2. Elizabeth Sturcken - Director of Corporate Partnerships, Environmental Defense Fund

Elizabeth Sturcken is the Managing Director of the Corporate Partnerships program at the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). There she develops and implements joint projects with leading companies in order to create environmental change. Elizabeth currently works with Wal-Mart to create a broad environmental change in crucial areas of its business, including climate change, China, seafood, and packaging. Additionally, she has worked with FedEx to develop environmentally advanced heavy-duty delivery vehicles. With UPS she helped implement innovative changes in their express delivery packaging.

3. Karen Flanders – Senior North American Representative at Prince of Wales’s Business and Sustainability Programme

Karen Flanders is a Senior North American Representative at Prince of Wales’s Business and Sustainability Programme where she contributes to the organization’s mission to draw on world-leading research and networks of Cambridge University to help business leaders address the critical global challenges they face today. Karen is also a Senior Associate (Fellow) with the University of Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership (CPSL). In her 20 years of experience working on the sustainability field, both domestically and internationally, Karen has become an important member of several major corporations, NGOs and intergovernmental organizations.

Prior to joining CPSL and working with PWBSP, Karen served for eight years as the director of sustainability for the Coca Cola Company. Prior to that, she lead the European and global advocacy campaigns for WWF for 12 years. She is also part of the board of the Women’s Network for a Sustainable Future.

4. Bonnie Nixon – Executive Director, Sustainability Consortium

Formerly an executive with Hewlett Packard, Bonnie Nixon is known for her ability to inspire and serve as a catalyst for transformation in the field of sustainability and social and environmental responsibility. As Executive Director for The Sustainability Consortium (TSC), Bonnie is responsible for providing strategic direction and executing on the TSC’s bold vision for independent global product standards. TSC works to help set the standards and develop transparent methodologies, tools and strategies that will drive a new generation of products and supply networks that address environmental, social and economic imperatives. Some of the Board of Directors representatives are companies and organizations of the caliber of Arizona State University, the University of Arkansas, The Walt Disney Company, Wal-Mart, PepsiCo, Proctor & Gamble, Dell and more.

With her more than 25 years of experience in social and environmental responsibility for large corporations, Bonnie serves on many multi-industry consortiums, including global retailers, footwear and apparel, toy, pharmaceutical, chemical, automotive, consumer goods and mining. She is also the Board Chair for Sustainable Silicon Valley and Board Member of Blue Planet Network.

5. Marianna Grossman – Executive Director, Sustainable Silicon Valley

Marianna Grossman leads Sustainable Silicon Valley, who’s mission is to create a more sustainable future within the Valley by collaborating with local government agencies, businesses, and community organizations to identify and address the most pressing environmental issues of the area. Marianna’s goal is to catalyze innovation and action to produce economic value, while at the same protecting the environment. She brings more than 25 years of business and leadership experience with knowledge of climate change, sustainable technologies, Total Quality Systems and transformation management. All of this aims to create value for clients across the different sectors of the industry, including the entrepreneurship, computer hardware and software, semiconductors, automotive, educational and civic organizations. Marianna has also both developed and led training courses from executive to individual contributors on four continents. She is an expert in increasing revenues while at the same time taking advantage of both new market opportunities and improved use of energy.

6. Diane MacEachern – Author, Big Green Purse

Diane MacEachern is the founder & CEO of Big Green Purse, the award-winning environment-focused website. She is also the author of the best-selling book Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World as well as Save Our Planet: 750 Everyday Ways You Can Clean Up The Earth. She’s also a a regular commentator on Martha Stewart’s Whole Living radio program.

In addition to writing, Diane is a founding member of Green Moms Carnival, one of the most reputed green lifestyle blogging networks on the web. During her career, her main focus has been to empower consumers – especially women – to use their marketplace clout to protect the environment. Due to her passion in these endeavors, Diane has garnered a series of awards and recognitions, including the Best Green Website of the year 2007, being the finalist in the Books for a Better Life award 2008, being featured in the Top 100 Environmentalist Blogs from Design Sprout and much more.

Follow her on twitter here>>

7. Nina Simons – Founder, Bioneers

Nina Simons is a social entrepreneur, Co-CEO and Co-Founder of Bioneers, a national nonprofit that helps highlight, gather and disseminate breakthrough solutions to the most pressing environmental and social challenges. Nina’s life and work have been shaped by her passion for the natural world, women’s leadership, systems thinking, and the arts’ capacity to shape culture and consciousness.

Throughout her career, Nina has served as president of Seeds of Change and as director of strategic marketing for Odwalla, being instrumental to the success of each of these companies nationwide. Since beginning Bioneers in 1990, she and her partner and husband Kenny Ausubel have collaborated to grow the organization and its influence. Bioneers now reaches many millions through its annual conferences, satellite conference partners, award-winning radio series, broadcast and print media, interactive website and book series.

Nina Simons has also been vital in restoring the “feminine” to a balanced place in our culture. In 2006, she began offering Cultivating Women’s Leadership, a five-day intensive for diverse women with the passion and capacity to effect change in their communities. This intensive training emphasizes skillful collaboration across differences, and the creation of relationships and networks to cultivate leadership, build alliances and encourage mutual support.

Follow her on Twitter here>>

8. Pamela Gordon – Author, Lean and Green: Profit for Your Workplace and the Environment

Pamela J. Gordon is the President and Founder of Technology Forecasters Inc. (TFI), as well as being the Lead Consultant for TFI Supply Chain and TFI Environment. TFI is an organization that helps technology companies create more efficient supply chains while at the same time reducing their environmental impact. She specializes in sustainability and is a popular keynote speaker, having presented at high-tech conferences in Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Before founding TFI, Ms. Gordon was a senior analyst at McGraw Hill’s electronics industry market-research firm Gnostic Concepts Inc. She is also the author of the influential 2001 book, Lean and Green: Profit for Your Workplace and the Environment. It features 17 electronics companies from around the world and has been required reading at the University of California Haas School of Business.

On top of all of these achievements, Ms. Gordon has received the 2011 Sustainability Summit Community Award which was given in recognition of “the person who has most generously dedicated time and effort to support the development of a legacy of environmental stewardship in the [electronics] industry.”

9. Astrid Lindo – Co-founder, The Living Seed Company

A native of Colombia and raised in Miami Beach, Astrid Lindo always lived close to the earth. This led her early on to understand modern human’s disconnection with the natural world and contributed to her desire to found The Living Seed Company and inspire people to live more harmonious lives with their environments. The organization specializes in providing people with the best possible choices for food diversity.

With her formal training as an interior designer from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, she has also built a career as an ecological interior designer. Astrid holds a Certificate in Green Building and Permaculture, as well as an LEED accreditation. Her firm Astrid Design Studio supports more sustainable practices in the design field.

Follow her on Twitter here>>

10. Stacie Shepp – 2011 Executive Director, San Francisco Green Chamber of Commerce

In 2011, Stacie Shepp was the fearless leader the San Francisco Green Chamber of Commerce. The organization empowers businesses to achieve economic, environmental, and social sustainability. Members benefit from increased visibility, educational tools to improve operational performance, and extensive networking opportunities.

Stacie is also co-founder of Earthsite, a Digital Consultancy for Sustainable Brands that specializes in building web strategies, design and social media marketing campaigns that are sustainable and optimal. Stacie is a graduate of the Green MBA program at Dominican University of CA.

About the author:

Lisa Ann Pinkerton is founder of Women In Cleantech & Sustainability, a San Francisco Bay Area group dedicated to the advancement of women in various environmental and technology sectors. She is also Founder and President of Technica Communications, where she handles marketing and public relations strategies for cleantech and biotech companies. Lisa Ann is a former award-winning broadcast journalist who reported for National Public Radio, PBS Television, WPXI-NBC, American Public Media, and Free Speech TV.

 :: Register for the 5th Anniversary Here! ::

Wow - the 5th Anniversary is quickly approaching and it's been so fun to reflect on all the fantastic events we've had in San Francisco (and in other cities) over the past few years. The events in SF have run the gamet from small (around 25 people) to large (around 250 people). Each time, everyone in the room has shared what's important to them with everyone else. I've heard some extremely serious shares and also extremely silly shares. What I've seen is that people are putting so much of their efforts into doing good - for both the planet and for busines. There have been times over the past five years when I thought about ending EcoTuesday, but then I go to an event and get so inspired by all of the incredible work that the participants spend their time on, and it revitalizes my efforts.

We have a special guest this month as our speaker. Brian Back, President of Sustainable Industries Magazine, was the very first EcoTuesday speaker back in February 2007. When he spoke at the inaugural event, he shared with us about what the magazine covers and his perspectives on the upcoming trends in different areas of sustainability (such as the consolidation of the solar industry, the different interpretations of clean tech, and more).

During this presentation he said, "Last year we thought that this year global warming and climate change would reach a critical mass in interest in business. I think that has largely happened." (How true!) He also mentioned, "In the beginning, the things we wrote about were nowhere near mainstream, but now they are." (What a relief!)

This month Brian will discuss The Access Economy:

• How a "stealth" economy has emerged over the past 5 years
• What happens when we start contributing powerfully to economic development as something other than a consumer?
• What if we shifted from a one-way transaction to a collaborative interaction?
• A new approach to innovation

Sustainable Industries has grown by leaps and bounds since 2007, most recently combining forces with Triple Pundit. We're so happy to have Brian back at EcoTuesday!

The entire Ambassador team has put a lot of time and energy into making this event much different than our usual events. Participants can enjoy delicious (and free) beverages, desserts, and even sustainable oysters. As we do at every EcoTuesday event - everyone there will have the opportunity to share their name, company name, and a sentence about what they're most passionate about as it pertains to sustainbility in order to make your networking time even more effective.  

Thanks so much to the gorgeous Bently Reserve for hosting us, and to all of our sponsors (below) for making this night a true celebration! We look forward to seeing you on February 21st in San Francisco. 

OUR FANTASTIC SPONSORS FOR THE ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION:

GreenMBA - an engaged learning community that seeks to promote financial viability, ecological sustainability, and social justice in business and organizations of all types. Please read more about the program on EcoTuesday.com.

FEARLESS Chocolates: Grown from humble beginnings at local Bay Area farmer’s markets, FEARLESS has become the largest manufacturer of raw chocolate in the world while remaining true to three core values: SUSTAINABILITY, INTEGRITY, and FUN.

Frey Organic Wine: Organic and Biodynamic wine, no sulfites added – from America’s first organic winery.

Alegria Partners: an integrated marketing and sustainability consulting firm that helps to manage and grow businesses.

KOR Water: Celebrate and protect water with the world’s most stylish, functional personal hydration products. The first 85 people to register will receive a beautiful KOR water bottle.

Mamma Chia: For health-conscious souls seeking an extra dose of vitality, Mamma Chia is the undeniable drink of choice. Learn more on their FB Page.

Presidio Graduate School: Educates and inspires a new generation of skilled, visionary and enterprising leaders to transform business and public policy and create a more just, prosperous and sustainable world.

ilovebluesea: Voted best of the city for sustainable seafood in 2011, i love blue sea gives you convenient access to the freshest fish available and allows you flexibility to pick up order locally or have it shipped to your home. Find out more about sustainable seafood here.

Contact us about the Exhibit Sponsorship opportunities that are available available for this event only, in addition to our standard Sponsorship package (more bells and whistles).

At the July EcoTuesday gathering in San Francisco, Sue Amar, Sustainability Officer at salesforce.com, referenced what Malcolm Gladwell calls the "law of the few" (aka the 80/20 principle), according to which 20% of the people will bring about 80% of the changes in the world. She's a prime example of this herself, having single-handedly started a robust sustainability program at salesforce.com.

While many companies have recently embraced sustainability, Sue explained how salesforce.com, with their commitment to the cloud, goes beyond the usual efforts to green the supply chain, travel, facilities, and other such areas. But beware: You may think you're already using the cloud, but not all clouds are created equal! The salesforce.com sustainability site delineates the differences:

• On-premises cloud: Onsite hardware and software that must be bought, installed, and maintained.
• Private (or "false") cloud: A cloud that's housed in a data center, uses virtualization technology, or is hosted -- and still requires hardware and software that must be bought, installed, and maintained.
• 100% cloud: A cloud that uses "multitenant architecture" to allow sharing and economies of scale -- using a small number of servers that are optimized to do as much as possible. This cloud has the benefit of being 64% more efficient than the private cloud and 95% more efficient than an on-premises cloud.

This kind of focus has made salesforce.com a leader in sustainability among high-tech companies. Their commitment to sustainability has been solidified and advanced by one employee, Sue, who started their sustainability program as a volunteer (in addition to doing her regular job) and now leads the effort full-time.

EcoTuesday itself is another excellent example of the power of one or two people. Just a few years ago, the organization didn't exist, and now, thanks to its two founders, Nikki Pava and Oren Jaffe, it's spread to cities throughout the U.S and is providing a wonderful and inspiring venue to learn about what people like Sue Amar are doing.

This latest EcoTuesday gathering has inspired me to look into how I can help promote sustainability at my own workplace. Although Adobe is already strong in this area, I know there's always more that can be done.

Every EcoTuesday evening I've attended has been similarly inspiring. I've met others working on sustainability and learned about all kinds of green resources and ideas.

Over a year ago, Erica Mackie spoke at EcoTuesday about GRID Alternatives, a local nonprofit she co-founded that provides solar to low-income families. Since then, I've volunteered at their Solarthon and convinced my employer to sponsor them. Not only that -- a good friend of mine learned about the organization from me and is now working for them. If I hadn't heard about GRID at EcoTuesday, perhaps she wouldn't have thought to apply for the job, and they'd be out a great employee. But wait -- there's more! GRID was started by just two people who wanted to make a difference and saw a need that they could fill. They started small, but 10 years later, they're growing by leaps and bounds. They've installed solar systems for over 1,000 families, preventing over 100,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions.

I'm participating in the Solarthon again this year and encourage you to sign up, too! If you can't participate but still want to help, here's a good way to get a bang for your buck and for one person (you!) to do a lot. By sponsoring me, you can help empower low-income families while also helping improve the environment, the economy, public health, and global politics -- which helps all of us!

All of this shows what the vision of a couple people can create. Though we all rely on others and we need to work together to achieve our sustainability goals, each one of us can do a lot. Any of us who worry that we can't make a meaningful difference should look at what people like Nikki Pava, Erica Mackie, and Sue Amar have done. That should be enough to restore our faith in the power of one.