This collection of original articles authored by USGRDCO encompasses insights on a variety of topics pertinent to our own business as well as the greater energy transition currently taking place both nationally and globally.

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Takeaways from Oslo Innovation Week 2019

Winning the European Green Capital Award is no small feat. Entries are assessed on the basis of 12 indicators, and cities need to provide substantial documentation and proof of the accomplishments they believe earned them the right to be the next city to win the award. Oslo, this year’s winner, held its 14th annual Oslo Innovation Week last month, and I was lucky enough to attend. I witnessed a city proud of its accomplishments and also fully aware of the responsibility that comes with the EGCA title.

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Red, White, and Green: Three Companies Making Clean Living in Urban America a Thing of the Present

From the beginning of time, cities have been the central gathering places for human life. They are where the great thinkers and innovative ideas of the world emerged. Here in the United States, the beginnings of our independence happened in places like Boston with the Boston Tea Party, Philadelphia with the Constitutional Convention, and New York, the center of commerce and financial power.

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Impact Investing: “A Revival”

Impact investing—investments based on pillars of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals — seeks not only to avoid the potentially negative impacts a company may have on society the way Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) did, but also predetermine and actively define positive ones. The transformation we are witnessing is a transition from companies taking a reactionary stance toward their role in society to a proactive, intention-filled, and thoughtfully executed one. But that’s not all. There is currently an unyielding systematic reshifting of the investosphere, which is redefining the rules of the investment game.

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It Takes a Village — Accountability and Cooperation in Oslovian Environmental Policy

Norway might be one of the world’s biggest producers of oil and gas, but its capital city is in the midst of an extraordinary green revolution. Named the European Green Capital of 2019, Oslo has embraced the spotlight that comes with this title and is taking its responsibility as ambassador for sustainable and urban development very seriously. Morielle I. Lotan, our director of innovation, traveled to Oslo to learn about the historical evolution of Norwegian electric transportation, how they successfully introduced a profitable model for EV charging and how the cooperation between public and private sectors facilitated the city’s transformation. Below are her three top takeaways from the conference:

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