In business, CleanTech is a term used to refer to companies that develop technologies intended to improve environmental sustainability.
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Table of Contents
What Is CleanTech
In business, CleanTech is short for “Clean Technology” and it is a term used to refer to technology companies having a mission to improve environmental sustainability.
“CleanTech” encompasses a wide range of businesses developing technologies positively impacting the environment such as improving waste management, new ways of recycling, renewable energy, or other environment-related activities.
Today, businesses and consumers are increasingly concerned about the environment.
We are actively looking for ways in changing our lifestyles, habits, practices, and traditional ways to bring a positive impact on the environment.
In the past few decades, there has been a significant amount of money invested in CleanTech businesses and this trend is expected to continue over the next decades.
Keep reading as I will break down how CleanTech works and go over an example.
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Why Is CleanTech Important
CleanTech refers to “Clean Technology” which is a blanket term encompassing many areas such as recycling, electric vehicles, renewable energy, lighting, green transportation, green chemistry, waste management, water management, and more.
The objective of CleanTech businesses is to improve the efficiency in how we use energy, find sustainable ways to use our resources, and find ways to protect the environment from adverse consequences caused by our activities.
Over the past years, companies build their Corporate Social Responsibility (or CSR) programs by adopting clean technologies.
To promote environmental sustainability, companies are using cleaner forms of energy, reduce their use of dirty energy, pollutants, and other harmful products for the environment, among other things.
According to reports, the Fortune 500 companies alone invested over $20 billion in CSR activities in 2018.
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How Clean Technology Works
The term “CleanTech” emerged in the business world in the late 1990s and early 2000s particularly when a company by the name of Cleantech Group was formed to provide research and consultancy services.
CleanTech products and services are intended for alternative and more efficient ways of producing and consuming energy, reducing the production of harmful products for the environment, and finding ways to lean up waste or pollution.
For example, CleanTech businesses and startups may focus on:
- Finding alternative energy sources
- Reducing dirty energy consumption
- Reducing waste
- Waste management
- Reducing environmental pollution
- Using non-toxic materials
- Purifying water
- Using solar and wind energy
- Finding energy-efficient processes
- Finding supply chain improvements
- Finding production line improvements
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CleanTech Company Example
There are many companies focused on Clean Technology.
For the purpose of giving you an example, let’s look at a few sectors CleanTech businesses tend to focus on:
- Wind energy
- Solar energy
- Hydroelectricity
- Geothermal energy
- Bioenergy
- Electric vehicles
- Biomass
- Nuclear power
- Hydrogen fuel
- Carbon capture and storage
- Pollution control
- Energy management
- Water management
- Waste management
- Energy storage
- Smart grid
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CleanTech Business Challenges
Although there has been a significant increase in investment in Clean Technology businesses, there are important challenges that CleanTech businesses face.
The most important challenge is for the CleanTech organization to get governmental support.
Many startups and entrepreneurs are unable to get their company off the ground as the government does not believe in their Clean Technology or does not believe that the technology will bring any value to society and the environment.
Another important challenge is that in promising sectors such as renewable energy generation, electric vehicles, and energy management, it can be costly to fund the research and development without significant investment from either the private sector or the public.
As such, many entrepreneurs with great ideas are unable to obtain the necessary funding to successfully commercialize their CleanTech products and services.
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CleanTech Businesses Needs
CleanTech businesses operate in a highly complex landscape.
They must deal with governments, comply with environmental laws and regulations, standards, and other regulations.
Investing in a CleanTech venture or starting a CleanTech business requires a good understanding of the legal and regulatory landscape, market potential, competitive landscape, and the ability to raise capital to fund the business.
In this context, entrepreneurs, company founders, and businesses who tend to succeed are those that build a solid team of managers within their organization along with a solid team of external professionals and support to help them navigate their business in the right direction.
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Takeaways
So there you have it folks!
What does CleanTech mean?
In a nutshell, CleanTech is a term used in business to refer to companies that operate environment-related activities such as waste management, pollution reduction, efficient energy sources, water purification, solar energy, electric vehicles, and so on.
If you’re looking to start a business in CleanTech or already operate in this area, surrounding yourself with the right team of managers, having the right employees, and hiring the right external advisors can bring a lot of value.
Good luck!
