In a recent international conference on ‘Climate Change: Technology Development & Transfer’ held in Delhi, the Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh began his speech by stating that climate friendly and environmentally sound technologies should be viewed as global public goods.

The panel, also chaired by the Maldives President after his country’s recent underwater stunt, called for the Northern countries to do (much) more than just emissions reduction. The statement also comes shortly after media reports suggest India could change its national position on climate change to drop the ‘deal-breaker’ tag put on it by the West.

The BIG question: Will India change its official position ahead of Copenhagen?

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I say this not because there was a lack of enthusiasm in the air-absolutely the opposite-rather I say it because a more zoomed-out perspective on cleantech has begun to crystallize, and with that everyone from VC’s to the entrepreneurs bootstrapping their way through the battlefields of innovation has recognized the value of niches within the ‘ecosystem’ of cleantech.

This, of course, is a fitting metaphor for the area of innovation hoping to save us from ourselves. The area of innovation slated to reinvigorate our intuitions about what it means to work alongside nature as opposed to taking it for granted. At the same time, the principles of business and innovation surrounding growth of capital via monetization requires these innovations to return deep profits for those invested. Here’s how that duality played out in real-time:

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Mohr Davidow Ventures partner Will Coleman, who moderated a cleantech-financing panel at the event, asked panelists to guess when the IPOs would come back. “The second quarter, which doesn’t mean the markets [will have] reopened,” said Gary Vollen, managing director of the Stanford Group Co. “I think the third quarter, probably,” guessed Jeff Lipton, managing director of Jeffries & Co. Inc.

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It’s a reflection of the economic environment, said Ron Pernick, a principal at research firm Clean Edge and a co-producer of the conference. “There haven’t been any exits to speak of, which tells you something,” he said.

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Think of Björk and the Icelandic musician’s bizarre videos, eccentric clothing and eclectic music might spring to mind. Now she’s bringing a new theme to her persona: money.

Reykjavik, Iceland-based Audur Capital is raising money for its second venture-capital fund, named Björk, focused on greentech startups (via Earth2Tech and The New York Times). The singer and Audur jointly established the fund to help turn around Iceland’s economy, which was crushed by the country’s banking collapse in the fall. Audur seeded the fund, expected to close in March, with an investment of 100 million Icelandic kronur (about $816,330).

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It’s been quite a year for the cleantech industry, with roller-coaster oil and stock prices, multiyear federal tax credits finally passed after more than a year of narrowly failed attempts, the beginning of a recession and the election of a new president.

“It feels like it’s been three years in one just with all the emotions,” said Michael Butler, CEO of investment bank Cascadia Capital. “A lot of people thought they were having a really good year, then they were hit with the negative economic environment. … So many people are saying ‘let’s just shut down until the end of the year.’”

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But Th!nk Global, yes, think with an exclamation mark, a Norwegian company buoyed by undisclosed funding injection by Silicon Valley venture capital firms, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and RockPort Capital Partners, is rolling out the Ox, Open and City in North America within three years after a gallant start in Europe and I can’t stop to think when they’ll ever get to Africa.

Think cars are gas-free, city cars that will start selling in the US next year but the actual mass roll out is slated for sometime in 2011, and the company has recently opened its North American division to steer the promising mad drive from the gas pumps.

Which, I think, is good news for those who feel fuel prices are already over the top, with more pump shocks yet to come if the global crude price projection is anything to go by?

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As a green career consultant, one of the questions I hear most frequently is what’s hot in cleantech? In greentech? In renewable energy?

Although I can give green career changers my impression, I always encourage them to connect with experts in their fields of choice to understand the hottest trends and future directions. In my mind, those who live, breathe, and work in a field are going to know much more than someone looking at it from the outside.

Recently I clicked on a link from Inside Cleantech by the Cleantech Group to discover a gold mine of information for green job seekers who are getting up to speed on cleantech.

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Very recently my boss came to me and said. “Jessica, we need to do something about the graveyard, it is getting seriously out of control”. She was right. The box had turned into three boxes, nearly spilling out into the hallway whenever someone opened the door. So, now I had a mission. I had to figure out someway to deal with the tech stuff that was more sustainable than keeping it a closet (out of sight, out of mind- right?). Well, little did I know, the answer would be waiting for me in my inbox the next day. A friend of mine sent me an article that she thought I might find interesting. And interesting it was! Here is what I found out…

It seems as though “tech graveyards” may be more popular than you think. People all over the U.S. are struggling to find a solution to all the tech stuff that they just don’t know what to do with. Enter: Office Depot. According to this article, Office Depot is stepping up to the plate and helping the people of America find a home for all that obsolete tech equipment. As the article states, “the office supply retailer will offer recycling for tech equipment at all its 1,100-plus stores in North America.” Pretty nifty, no?

From what I understand, the tech recycling program is something Office Depot has been toying with for awhile now. It has been reported that the recycling program began 2006, in nearly 100 stores in the United States. Now, those stores must have done a really good job, because sustainabalebusiness.com claims that “more than 108,000 pounds of technology” has already been recycled. That’s the equivalent of over 15,428 of my office’s ‘tech graveyards’.

Further, according to the Office Depot Website, the company is taking measures in their offices to prevent the buildup of their very own ‘tech graveyard’. As the website states,
“Office Depot has an extensive waste recycling program at our Corporate Headquarters that targets more than 80% of our waste stream. This program includes paper, plastic bottles and cans, ink and toner cartridges, cell phones, rechargeable batteries and computers. Every ton of paper this program recovers has conserved 17 to 24 trees, and each extra ton of aluminum cans and plastic bottles recycled has conserved more than 2,000 gallons of gasoline.”

Now, Office Depot isn’t the only business looking to capitalize on the tech-recycling market. According to Frank Norton, from The News and Observer, “Intechra …{a company out of Jackson, Miss}, recycles tech equipment for major corporations. The company, which operates a logistics center in Durham, removes outdated computers, servers, monitors and other equipment, strips them of all data, refurbishes some and sells the rest as ground plastic, glass and metal on commodities markets.”

So, next time your boss is complaining about the ‘tech graveyard’ in your closet be reassured; there are options outside of throwing it all in the trash and hoping for the best. It is a sad fact that, an estimated 400 million units of obsolete electronics are scrapped yearly. That means that by 2010, three billion units will be in need of responsible recycling. That means we need to find an easier, more comprehensive way of dealing with our outdated gadgets. If all else fails, put an ad in the paper, or on craigslist.org saying you have a free box of out-dated tech stuff that you are looking to give away. I guarantee someone will be glad to get their hands on your unwanted ‘tech graveyard’.

Editor's note: Megan Prusynski, GO's newest team member, is a professional graphic designer and a very prolific blogger. She'll be covering design, art and culture for us. We're happy to welcome her aboard!

Apple computers have been staples for the graphic design industry since they arrived in the early 1980s. The company prides itself on its innovative technology, attention to detail, and good design. Designers like myself are often unapologetically obsessive about their Apple computers.

But as I type this on my Apple PowerBook, I feel a bit guilty for being such an Apple addict. Why? Because they are pretty far from a green company. In fact, according to Greenpeace, Apple is one of the worst computer and electronics companies out there in terms of sustainability.