Title: Top 10 cleantech cluster organizations for 2010 - the Council ranks #2!

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Top 10 cleantech cluster organizations for 2010

February 22, 2010 by Shawn Lesser

What's a cleantech cluster?

Indeed, many people may have not heard the term, although it could quickly gain currency as people increasingly realize the tremendous opportunities offered by the cleantech sector.

For purposes of this list, we define a cleantech cluster organization as an economic development organization aimed at growing jobs in a specific geographic region. Among a cleantech cluster’s main goals are to promote innovation and investment.

Creating such a cluster is no simple task. First, the right circumstances must be present: A thriving technology base, abundant entrepreneurial and management talent, access to capital, and a proactive environmental public policy. It’s not easy to create, but once in place, a cleantech cluster can, in theory, create thousands of new jobs and attract billions of investment dollars to a region.

Which regions have managed to best attract and leverage these key ingredients to help create the world’s best cleantech cluster organizations? Here's one observer's top 10 list.

Read the full list here.

#2 The New England Clean Energy Council, Cambridge Massachusetts - The New England cleantech economy could bring in $1 billion in investment by 2012, the region believes, and the New England Clean Energy Council is at the forefront of this opportunity. Formed in 2007, the council’s mission is to accelerate New England’s clean energy economy and elevate it to a position of global leadership by building an active community of stakeholders and a world-class cluster of clean companies. The council represents nearly 150 members, comprising clean energy companies, venture investors, major financial institutions, local universities and colleges, industry associations, area utilities, labor and large commercial end-users. Its ranks include more than 50 clean energy CEOs, representatives from most of the region’s top 10 law firms, and partners from over a dozen of the region's top venture capital firms (with a total of over $8 billion under management). Working with its stakeholders, the council develops and executes an array of programs in five key focus areas: Innovation, Growth, Education and Training, Adoption, & Policy. Cluster success stories include: Ze-Gen, Seven Solar, Next Step Living.