Clean Cars

With 41 percent of the greenhouse gases emitted in the Bay Area coming from our daily transportation decisions, the announcement by Tesla Motors and Toyota last week to build up to 20,000 new Electric Vehicles per year at the recently shuttered NUMMI plant in Fremont could not come at a better time for our environment or our economy.

It also reinforces Silicon Valley’s leadership position in clean and green tech, to include clean and green cars.

In addition to the Tesla/Toyota deal, Silicon Valley is also home to companies creating the infrastructure needed for electric vehicles to exist.
• Coulumb Technologies of Campbell, which makes electric vehicle charging stations, and Better Place of Palo Alto, which makes charging centers to switch out batteries rather than filling up tanks of gas, are two innovative examples of not only what is to come, but what is already here.
• Innovative steps are also being taken for Personal Rapid Transit – PodCars – that are fast, flexible and financially feasible to link San Jose International Airport with CalTrain, Light Rail and the future BART extension.

Silicon Valley is proving again, that we are inventing the future today, in a way that creates jobs and strengthens the environment.

Enraged or engaged

With voter frustration aimed at both Washington and Sacramento, we are left with a choice: We can be enraged, or engaged.

At the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, we find it much more productive to engage.

That is why we recently led a delegation of 50 executives to Sacramento for in-depth, one-on-one dialogues with 65 out of 120 Members of the California Legislature - on education, housing, the BART extension, jobs, the environment, energy, and health care.

It's why this past week, under the leadership of SunPower CEO Tom Werner, we took a delegation of 70 CEOs and Senior Officers to DC for similar meetings with 100 Key Members of the House and Senate on jobs and competitiveness; focusing on energy, taxes, the federal deficit, education, immigration, transportation, housing and health care. 

Our CEOs are Republicans, Democrats and Independents.  First and foremost, we are Americans - and, like you, we are concerned about our state and nation; yet - also like you - committed to its success.

We will continue to bring innovation and ideas to Sacramento and Washington.  Give us your ideas.  Visit our web site at svlg.org and get engaged.  America is worth the effort.