
The U.S. Department of Energy recently announced it awarded six organizations $2 million to fund student competitions to create innovative green energy businesses.
In announcing the funding at a University of Florida-Gainesville event, DOE Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Henry Kelly said, "By promoting innovation at our nation's universities and cultivating America's next generation scientific and technical leaders, we will ensure our nation's competitiveness in the clean energy economy of tomorrow."
Rice University, University of Maryland-College Park, University of Colorado-Boulder, California Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Clean Energy Trust of Chicago will receive the federal funding.
These regional organizations will ask student competitors to develop innovative business plans drawing on cutting-edge green energy technology. The regional winners will receive $100,000 and go on to compete for a grand prize as the national winner.
In a recent interview with EnergyNOW! TV, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu said the United States must keep investing in renewable energy research and development to remain competitive with China.

