Economic Development
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Green Zebra lands first half of a $2.2M funding round
Portland’s incoming healthy convenience store has indeed collected on at least part of the money it expected to collect before opening its first outlet this fall. Green Zebra Grocery LLC, a venture…
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SPRNG reigns: The 10 things I learned at UO's conference
Dave Frohnmayer, the former University of Oregon president who’s assumed a statesman-like role as he champions all walks of the state’s life and businesses, is always up for offering some useful advice…
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PSU, Wells Fargo seeking cleantech breakouts
Portland State University and Wells Fargo have teamed up on an effort to boost the flow of cleantech ideas. The school and the bank are enlisting students to participate in the PSU-Wells Fargo Cleantech…
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Nike employee grants bring big green to green works
The latest round of Nike Inc. employee grants, awarded through the Oregon Community Foundation, includes several sustainability-related groups among its 25 recipients. Among those sharing in the $250,000…
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Gallery: OEN/Drive Oregon's PubTalk on electric vehicles
Each month, the Oregon Entrepreneurs Network hosts a compelling event called, quite simply, PubTalk. Along with the requisite networking opportunities, the gatherings feature discussions with up-and-comers…
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From brown to green: Portland launches clean-up loan program
After more than a year of planning and strategizing, a fund to help clean Portland brownfields is in loan-issuing mode. The Portland Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund issued $130,000 to clean contaminated…
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Making Change: Leather Storrs on another way to look at broccoli
Editor's note: This is part of an interview series called Making Change. The interviews by Mark Feldman will explore the specifics of how change happens through conversations with a range of sustainability…
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Environmental woes can send land deals south
Environmental liabilities can quickly make a good deal go bad. A buyer who unwittingly buys land with subsurface contamination is stuck not only with damaged goods, but the potential of a costly cleanup…
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Making Change: Drive Oregon's Jeff Allen on the iPhone of cars
Editor's note: This is part of an interview series called Making Change. The interviews by Mark Feldman will explore the specifics of how change happens through conversations with a range of sustainability…
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Experts: Speak plainly when touting cleantech
“Clean" and "Tech” are a couple of dirty words in the investment world lately — or, at least one dirty word, depending on who's using it. It's been tarnished by green-washing and the hype surrounding…
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Travel Oregon gives money for sustainable tourism
Oregon’s most ardent tourism booster is giving money to state communities working on sustainability related opportunities. Travel Oregon gave more than $14,000 to a total of seven projects in each of…
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Making Change: SERA's Lisa Petterson on LEED-ing the way
Editor's note: This is part of an interview series called Making Change. The interviews by Mark Feldman will explore the specifics of how change happens through conversations with a range of sustainability…
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Making Change: Martin Goebel on consumate risk
Editor's note: This is the first in an interview series called Making Change. The interviews by Mark Feldman will explore the specifics of how change happens through conversations with a range of sustainability…
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Electric vehicle industry drives $266.5M economic impact in Oregon
A new report completed by researchers at Portland State University and released Tuesday found that Oregon's electric vehicle cluster has created more than 1,500 jobs and fired $266.5 million in economic…
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Mercy Corps Northwest looks to expand its microfinance reach
For the last decade, Mercy Corps Northwest has filled a niche in Portland, making more than $3 million in loans to business endeavors that wouldn't be able to secure a traditional bank loan. But while…
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Exports — including coal — are key to a sustainable economy
Editor's note: This blog post was written in response to "Coal export makes no sense for Oregon." In an economy that’s quickly globalizing, one of the surest ways to create jobs is to increase exports.…
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Oregon Wave Energy Trust works to position state as renewable leader
There’s little question that Jason Busch will look back fondly on 2012. The executive director of the Portland-based Oregon Wave Energy Trust counted four major accomplishments during the year. Each…
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Innovation in Sustainability award winners unveiled
For the fourth year Sustainable Business Oregon has awarded companies and organizations for leadership and innovation at the intersection of business and sustainability. In partnership with the city of…
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Leadership Award: Bruce Laird shapes Oregon's clean energy sector
When SoloPower Inc. opened the doors on its North Portland manufacturing plant in September, it wasn’t Bruce Laird who cut the ribbon. That’s the job of politicians and C-level executives. They get…
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Did Vestas meet job growth requirements for HQ loan?
When Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas announced plans to invest $66 million to renovate a historic Pearl District building for its new North American headquarters, it was praised as a public-private…
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How well did Oregon vet its $5 million in loans to now-bankrupt ReVolt?
How well did Oregon government agencies vet the now-bankrupt company ReVolt Technology before giving it more than $5 million in taxpayer-backed loans? That's a tough question to answer. The Business…
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ReVolt Technology officially files bankruptcy
The parent company of a taxpayer-backer battery technology company has filed bankruptcy in a Norwegian court. Portland-based ReVolt Technology, whose parent company is in Norway, said last month it would…
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Electric vehicles: Keep Oregon weird
Drive Oregon’s mission is to grow the electric vehicle industry. Too often, people assume “vehicles” means “cars.” The truth is a lot more complex. Certainly Oregon is a leader in electric vehicle…
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San Francisco mayor announces cleantech initiative
San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee Tuesday announced a city initiative to support the growth and development of cleantech businesses. Lee said the CleantechSF initiative will focus on three areas first: using…
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Oregon's cleantech sector slows the pace
Portland cleantech startup Lucid Energy is attempting to raise a $6 million Series A funding round to grow its technology, which involves producing electricity from water pipes. Though the early stage…
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