If you have been following us for a while, then you know that Fremont’s a major hub for the clean tech industry – a status that was highlighted last year when we partnered with the Cleantech Open to host its 2013 Western Regional Finals. The Cleantech Open is the world’s largest clean technology accelerator. Founded in 2006, it is fast approaching $1B in the amount of funding received by the companies that have participated in the accelerator program. We recently sat down with Ken Lee, Cleantech Open’s new Metro Director, East Bay to see what plans they have in store for our region.

Q: What is the outlook for clean tech over the next few years?

A: The outlook is great. There’s still quite a bit of talk about challenges in the funding environment ranging from VCs to government investment. But I meet so many people every day, like me, who are just excited about the amazing solutions in front of us. These armies of talented engineers, business people and policy folks are making a difference. The money will fall in place and the impacts will be better understood when we consider environmental full cost accounting.

Q: How is 2014 shaping up for The Cleantech Open?

A: On a global level, we are expanding into more countries and at the Metro level, we already have more applications from the East Bay than we had last year. One of our goals is to develop deeper ecosystems in each of our 8 technology categories which include 1) Agriculture, Water & Waste, 2) Chemicals & Advanced Materials, 3) Energy Distribution & Storage, 4) Energy Efficiency, 5) Energy Generation, 6) Green Buildings, 7) Information, Communications & Technology and 8) Transportation. This region stands out because many of these categories have such strong representation here already.

Q: As a Metro Director, East Bay, what is your role with The Cleantech Open?

A: In general my goal is to work other volunteers, companies and cities to generate economic development around clean technology in the East Bay. I have a particular interest in our Energy Distribution & Storage category and cities like Fremont are ground zero for these technologies, so it’s really exciting.

Q: Can you tell us more about your interest in Energy Distribution & Storage?

A: It’s really just a personal interest, but I hope to create a more robust network for The Cleantech Open in this category and it starts with our event at WorkSpace Fremont on April 23rd, 2014: The Year of the Battery – Taking Batteries from Bottleneck to Breakthrough. We have an impressive lineup of battery company CEOs and the founders of CalCharge who will give updates about the new “Battery University” at San Jose State University. We’ll also have press at the event, so we think it will get some great exposure and will put Fremont and this region on the map for batteries and energy storage.

Q: How can clean tech companies find out more about this year’s accelerator program?

A: Companies that want to participate have until May 1st to apply on our web site. The site is also a great place for volunteers, mentors and sponsors to learn about The Cleantech Open. I would also encourage everyone to attend the events listed on our events page, like the battery technology event in Fremont as well as several others in the Bay Area and throughout the country. And certainly, anyone can feel free to contact me at klee@cleantechopen.org if they have questions about The Cleantech Open.