Solyndra Aftermath: Google, others still upbeat on Green

Solyndra Aftermath: Google, others still upbeat on Green

By Alison van Diggelen, host of Fresh Dialogues

As the Solyndra aftermath continues to ripple through the green economy, the mood was distinctly upbeat at the AlwaysOn Going Green Conference at San Francisco’s City Hall yesterday. Google’s Green Czar, Bill Weihl confirmed that the company has spent over $850 Million in renewable energy projects (including its latest $75 Million solar project finance deal) and said, “Virtually everything we’ve done to be ‘green’ has made economic sense…we’re able to find creative solutions… that make us money (or) save us money.”

“What can we do to save energy, to be greener? We really try to look at things that other people can do, that can be replicated…”

I had the chance to chat with Weihl backstage and he dismissed the Solyndra debacle as mostly political. He doubts it will impact venture money flowing into the clean tech sector. Instead, he focused on the strides that Google continues to make in the green and sustainable energy sector. Here are video highlights of the event featuring:

  • Ray Rothrock, Partner, Venrock
  • Carrie Armel, Research Associate , Precourt Institute for Energy Efficiency, Stanford University
  • Gene Wang, People Power, CEO
  • Bill Weihl, Green Energy Czar, Google

.Read transcripts, see photos and check out our ARCHIVES featuring exclusive interviews with Tom Friedman, Paul Krugman, Vinod Khosla and many more green experts and visionaries…

and join the conversation at our Facebook Page