Contact:
Rossana Weitekamp, 516-792-1462, rossana@weitekamp.com
Barbara Pruitt, 816-932-1288, bpruitt@kauffman.org, Kauffman Foundation
Check out the White House Blog: www.whitehouse.gov/blog
(WASHINGTON) May 6, 2010 – Tomorrow's White House Energy Innovation Conference is expected to be a breakthrough event for leaders in an industry wrought with regulatory challenges and disparate players who need to find ways to connect in order to meet the growing demand for innovations. The White House Energy Innovation Conference is a partnership of the White House, federal agencies, businesses and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The conference will be featured on the White House blog, www.whitehouse.gov/blog, and may be streamed live on the White House Web site at www.whitehouse.gov/live from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. EDT. This conference is a part of the Kauffman Foundation's Energy Innovation Network (www.energyinnovationnetwork.org).
"Entrepreneurs are critical to our economic recovery and growth, and we need these innovators now more than ever to explore the enormous opportunities in the energy sector," said Carl J. Schramm, Kauffman Foundation president and CEO. "We look forward to exploring solutions to energy innovation with other leaders and creating collaborations that will be absolutely essential for this industry to progress."
The Kauffman Foundation's role in the energy conference includes participating in two sessions:
- At 9:30 a.m. EDT, Schramm will bring a broader perspective on innovation and entrepreneurship to a roundtable discussion on supplying regional energy innovation that will be moderated by Karen Mills, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
- At 10:50 a.m. EDT, Kauffman Foundation Vice President of advancing innovation, Lesa Mitchell, will participate in a panel discussion on "Jumpstarting Commercialization and Early-Stage Companies" that will focus on how to make discoveries more accessible, how to help create new companies out of innovative technologies and connect founders with mentors, and how entrepreneurs and organizations that support entrepreneurship can help grow promising companies.
The conference also includes two separate breakout sessions, one highlighting new forms of funding, technology transfer and deployment models and the other highlighting the role of big companies and service providers.
This partnership with the White House helps to build a base for the Kauffman Foundation's Energy Innovation Network. Following the conference, the Kauffman Foundation will continue to partner with the federal government, businesses and nonprofits to hold regional energy innovation meetings over the summer and early fall to support energy entrepreneurs and high-growth energy businesses.
