By Julie Sammons •
June 11, 2008
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Looking for a ten thousand-fold return on your investment? For just $250 and the time it takes to complete a three-page application, you could be the next $100,000 winner of the California Clean Tech Open. Just be sure to submit your bright idea by midnight on June 14th.

Clean Tech Call for Entries
“The California Clean Tech Open is unique among business plan competitions: it seeks entries from professionals, scientists and students alike; focuses solely on clean technology; and […] the prize package of cash, services and office space goes above and beyond other awards and is not typically available to early-stage start-ups.“
Eligible entries are accepted in categories as diverse as green building; smart power; air, water and waste management; energy efficiency; renewables; and transportation. Competition winners will be showered with an incredible array of resources designed to fast-track the startup phase. The generous prize packages include $50,000 in cash, one year of office space, legal and insurance services, marketing support, accounting services, and enrollment in the exclusive Summer Workshop Series for entrepreneurs.
Not ready to share your big idea with the world? CCTO offers a wealth of resources for non-entrants, including:
CCTO Sustainability Starter Kit
Formerly reserved for competition winners, CCTO’s extensive Sustainability Starter Kit is now available for download at no cost to curious clean tech ecopreneurs. Proposing concrete solutions to a broad range of challenges faced by sustainability change agents, the kit includes information on topics such as:
- Sustainable supply chain management
- Waste management strategies
- Company case studies
- The five rules of green marketing
- B2B resources for forward-thinking companies
By Julie Sammons •
April 27, 2008
The sought-after studio behind famed viral videos “The Meatrix,” “Grocery Store Wars,” and “The Story of Stuff” wants to craft your next marketing campaign — for free. Known for their humorous approach to sustainable social media, the talented team at Free Range Studios invites you to compete for some top-shelf promotional assistance.
“Through Free Range’s 2008 Gratitude Grant program, we are offering up to $15,000 worth of design and/or strategic communications services from our menu of core offerings: strategy consulting, identity design, web design, print design, and online movies.
So what do you want to “ink” this year? A new campaign strategy? A website? A fresh logo? A never-before-seen Internet tool? As long as you have a concrete goal and a concrete goal to make a positive difference for our planet and its people, we encourage you to apply.”
Eager to join the ranks of previous grantees such as the Global Footprint Calculator or ChangingthePresent.org? Act fast and submit your organization’s eight-question application form by 5:00pm on Thursday, May 1st.
A small business success story of its own, Free Range is committed to helping fellow social change agents succeed. Even non-contestants come out ahead by downloading Free Range’s fantastic PDF guides to effective communication strategies.

Teams from around the world are gearing up for the Automotive X Prize, a competition that will award part of $10 million to the team that builds the cleanest production-ready 100 MPGe (mile per gallon equivalent) vehicle.
This isn’t a race centered on space-age concept cars that will never see a US highway, but aims to jump-start the auto industry with revolutionary, super-efficient vehicles that consumers will actually want to buy. Entries must be ready for production and have a business plan outlining how they’ll be brought to market. They’ll also be judged on safety, cost, and features.
By Julie Sammons •
March 4, 2008
You’re an ideas person. It’s why running your own business appeals to you, and it’s the reason why you see solutions where others see problems. Turn those ideas into exposure this summer by entering the Re:Connect urban design competition.
A 200-word essay, a clever solution, and a $25 fee secure your entry into this international competition that seeks to build sustainable urban communities. Re:Connect encourages ecopreneurs to consider the role of technology in urban environments, the localization of key services, and biomimetic neighborhood design.
Register for the competition by June 1st and submit your innovative entry by June 15th for consideration. Prizes include $2,000 in cash, media promotion, and the opportunity to sustainably transform an urban landscape. While on the Re:Connect site, be sure to browse additional competitions and resources including:
By Ecotality Life •
August 3, 2007
Editor’s note: This week, Ecotality’s Bill Hobbs takes a look at the Automotive X-Prize, a competition to develop a 100mpg automobile. This post was originally published on August 2, 2007.
The Automotive X-Prize has announced the first 31 teams accepted into their competition to create a commercially viable car that gets at least 100mpg. Among the teams accepted: Tesla Motors, Zap, Phoenix Motorcars, Fuel Vapor Technology and Team Velozzi. According to
[...]
In the design world, often times young architecture/design firms and even individual designers will apply to competitions during the young part of their career to get public recognition, build credentials, and experience the social circuits around design.

As a young aspiring designer myself, I have made a keen observation of the design industry this year. Many of the call-for-entries and competitions this year have been for solutions related to sustainable development, energy,
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We've seen plenty of evidence that the tech world has caught the green bug, and now the search engine optimization (SEO) folks are getting on board.