120 likes | 241 Views
Aligning Business and Philanthropy to Drive Sustainable Social Change: The Fuel Cell Opportunity Benson P. Lee, President Technology Management, Inc. Cleveland, Ohio. Finding Philanthropies Sweet Spot Symposium. Stanford Social Innovation Review & Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors.
E N D
Aligning Business and Philanthropy to Drive Sustainable Social Change: The Fuel Cell OpportunityBenson P. Lee, PresidentTechnology Management, Inc.Cleveland, Ohio Finding Philanthropies Sweet Spot Symposium Stanford Social Innovation Review & Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors May 16, 2006 Dahesh Museum New York , NY
Technology Management, Inc. (TMI) • Vision • Business mission leveraged by foundations and NGOs to further their social missions • Fuel cells in the Third World • 1 kW solutions, starting with clean water • Technology + Philanthropy + Business • “Do better by doing good”
Fuel Cells • Chemical process converts fuel into electricity and heat • Twice as efficient as today’s power plants • Clean energy, non-polluting • In use since the ’60s • Commercial systems must be efficient and affordable, at NASA levels of dependability • Now at the demonstration stage
Developed at SOHIO Acquired technology and technologists in 1990 3-5 years from shipping product Brutal field testing Engineer for volume production Three I,000 Watt Systems
TMI System Evolution 2002 Demonstration 2006-7 Field Test System ~50-60 lbs. • Virtually any fuel: • Natural gas, propane, kerosene, blends • Ethanol, vegetable oil • Biogas • Ease of maintenance • Scalable by adding systems • Full production: ~$500. 29” X 12” x 12” 42” X 15” x 15” ~100 lbs.
Fuel Cell Systems • Core advantage: grid independent • One time opportunity • Distributed generation – on-site alternative to utility grid • Bypass dependence on foreign oil • Head off oil, gas, and coal consumption • Advance renewable biomass energy sources • Third World can lead reduction of greenhouse gases • New Partnerships can drive change • Local control • Social change and business creation • Electricity infrastructure – common goal • Technologists, entrepreneurs and foundations
Scenario – Rural Village in India • Loan to self-help group for fuel cell system • Power for water purifiers and pumps • Education on clean water and health • Cooking, refrigeration, lighting, telecommunications • Businesses created, • Social and economic infrastructure • Repay loan, replicate
4 Billion People: A Transformative Opportunity • Enormous business opportunity • Two critical challenges: • Financing to bring to scale • Partnerships on the ground
First World Markets • Early adopters -- performance/features provide more value than low price • Natural gas pipelines and telecom towers • Military, many mobile • Truck APUs (Auxiliary Power Units) • TMI’s partnership model: • Market knowledge, market delivery capabilities, end user relationships
Third World Markets • No templates to follow • Planning … requires a process of discovery • New kinds of partnerships • NGOs, foundations, governments, and/or businesses • Local stakeholders
Program Related Investment (PRI) • “… if foundations are willing to take on the risk and complexity of pioneering financial solutions to these market gaps, they can achieve program objectives while still creating investments that earn market-comparable returns.”* • Unique opportunity for • Convergence of for-profit missions with social missions to alleviate Third World problems * p.18 Investing for Impact – Managing and Measuring Proactive Social Investments Foundation Strategy Group (January 2006)
Accelerate Sustainable Social Changes • Significant financial returns possible • Electric infrastructure, based on fuel cells, offers a sustainable, systemic approach • Alignment … impossible can become natural and inevitable