Renewables - Publications - Faculty & Research

01 Jun 2008
News

The Making of a School

the selection team. On June 4, 1927, a reported 4,000 people attended the dedication, with speakers including Bishop William Lawrence, former Dean Edwin Gay, Dean Wallace Donham, Harvard University President Lawrence Lowell, and Owen Young, chairman of General... View Details

Keywords: George Bates MBA '25; Dean Wallace Donham; George F. Baker; Bishop William Lawrence; Lawrence Lowell; Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools; Educational Services

11 May 2010
First Look

First Look: May 11

Amyris Biotechnologies: Commercializing Biofuel Gary P. Pisano and Alison Berkley WagonfeldHarvard Business School Case 610-031 In 2009, Amyris Biotechnologies was building a plant in Brazil that used synthetic biology to convert sugarcane into both View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

24 Sep 2021
Blog Post

Alumni Spotlight: Career Advice from Alums Working in Climate

there is a broad ecosystem of what we refer to today as climate tech — from renewable energy to advanced transportation to AgTech to name just a few. From a job function perspective, you can work at an operating company (whether a start... View Details

September 2009 (Revised January 2012)
Case

Suntech Power

By: Richard H.K. Vietor

Suntech, a Chinese manufacturer of photovoltaic cells and solar panels, is the third largest solar company in the world. About 90 percent of its sales have been in Europe—especially Germany and Spain. But with its new "pluto" technology, and with new governmental... View Details

Keywords: Solar Power; Renewable Energy; Globalized Markets and Industries; Competition; Market Entry and Exit; Business and Government Relations; Expansion; Strategy; Energy Industry; Green Technology Industry; China

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August 2009 (Revised August 2011)
Case

Nanosolar, Inc.

Nanosolar is a start-up company in the clean tech sector. It expects to be one of the first manufacturers to produce thin-film solar panels using copper indium gallium (di)selenide (CIGS) technology. Although this technology is less efficient in producing electricity... View Details

Keywords: Business Startups; Renewable Energy; Marketing Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Energy Industry; Green Technology Industry; Europe; United States

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October 2015 (Revised January 2017)
Case

UPower Technologies Inc.

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, William A. Sahlman and Liz Kind

The UPower founders, Jake DeWitte and Caroline Cochran, were recent graduates from MIT's Nuclear Science and Engineering Department. They chose to attend Palo Alto–based Y Combinator's accelerator program to focus on building a "mini" nuclear reactor that would produce... View Details

Keywords: Nuclear; Nuclear Energy; Nuclear Power; Energy Markets; New Nuclear; Entrepreneurial Finance; Entrepreneurial Marketing; Business ＆ Government Relations; Off-grid; Energy; Renewable Energy; Energy Generation; Energy Sources; Entrepreneurship; Marketing; Business and Government Relations; Energy Industry; Utilities Industry; United States

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24 Sep 2014
Op-Ed

Tackling Climate Change Will Cost Less Than We Think

No one knows how much it will cost to keep the risks of significant climate disruption to a reasonable level. One commonly cited estimate puts the cost at roughly 1 percent of world GDP a year, or about $840 billion. This is a large number, but it seems smaller when... View Details

Keywords: by Rebecca Henderson; Energy; Utilities

11 Jan 2021
News

Strengthening Democracy

Business Case for Saving Democracy Why free markets need free politics, according to University Professor Rebecca Henderson. Harnessing Entrepreneurship to Revamp Democracy Professor Mitchell Weiss (MBA 2004) believes that a renewed... View Details

Profile

Eryn Schultz

me have the confidence to leave consulting and to take an operations job at a Texas-based grocery retailer. Not only would I get direct P&L responsibility, but I would also get to try moving back to my hometown and working in the food industry. Second, HBS made me... View Details

Keywords: Services; Consumer Products

Career Coach

Sarah Bua

Executive Leadership Program - China (SELP-China), Owner President Manager Program (OPM) and Leading Change through Organizational Renewal (LCOR) executive education offerings. She has worked extensively with early-, mid-career and... View Details

Keywords: Consulting; Entrepreneurship; Investment Banking; Financial Services (All); Investment Management; Financial Services (All); Private Equity; Financial Services (All); Venture Capital; Financial Services (All); Government; Health Care; Clean Technology; Energy

2012
Working Paper

'Power from Sunshine': A Business History of Solar Energy

By: Geoffrey Jones and Loubna Bouamane

This working paper provides a longitudinal perspective on the business history of solar energy between the nineteenth century and the present day. It covers early attempts to develop solar energy, the use of passive solar in architecture before World War 2, and the... View Details

Keywords: Renewable Energy; Business History; Policy; Entrepreneurship; Innovation and Invention; Business Model; Energy Industry

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17 Nov 2016
News

Wired for Innovation

challenges. In his latest role, as founder and president of Houston-based Clean Line Energy Partners, he hopes to push the United States closer to what he considers an attainable national goal: a 30 percent reliance on renewable energy.... View Details

Keywords: Deborah Blagg; Electric Power Generation, Transmission, Distribution; Utilities

30 Sep 2002
Research & Ideas

Use the Psychology of Pricing To Keep Customers Returning

people to join and getting people to renew. (The churn at health clubs can exceed 50 percent.) Knowing that members are going to be more likely to renew in year two if they feel that they have "gotten their money's worth" in... View Details

Keywords: by Manda Mahoney

07 Aug 2015
Research & Ideas

Obama’s Clean Power Plan: Can Nuclear Power Beat the Global Threat of Coal?

This week, President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency released the final version of the Clean Power Plan, a major set of rules and incentives aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from America's power plants. The plan requires each state to meet a... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Energy; Utilities

15 Apr 2014
Research & Ideas

Calderón: Economic Arguments Needed to Fight Climate Change

What do Chinese coal plants and the American legislative branch have in common? They are both major adversaries in the fight against climate change, according to former President of Mexico Felipe Calderón. "The most serious problem is in the United States... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Manufacturing

01 Jun 2011
News

New Program Helps Restless Alums Answer the Question, ‘What’s Next?’

with a new name, Crossroads, and a renewed sense of purpose — helping alumni identify and build a plan for achieving personal goals. “Our focus is to help people plan their lives, not just their careers,” says HBS senior lecturer John... View Details

Keywords: Roger Thompson; Health, Social Assistance; Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services; Professional Services

08 Dec 2009
News

Don’t Scare the Bankers

Twenty five years ago, Ji Heng (MBA ’39), a Chinese national, made a special visit to Soldiers Field. A senior official at the Bank of China (BOC), Mr. Ji had returned to the School to renew old ties, as China was opening up and reaching... View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons; Finance; Offices of Bank Holding Companies; Management

Web

Search Fund Fellowship | MBA

Through Acquisition (ETA) search. It is renewable for one year for total support of $130,000. During the fellowship period, HBS faculty will meet regularly with recipients to provide ongoing mentorship and guidance. This program is funded... View Details

17 Nov 2022
Blog Post

Creating Emerging Markets Sustainability Series - The Future of Green Building

approximately 40% of global CO2 emissions. With renewed commitments to green building coming from the conclusion of COP27, we feature two interviews from the CEM collection with business leaders in the real estate and hotel industries.... View Details

February 2017 (Revised June 2017)
Case

ExxonMobil: Business as Usual? (A)

By: George Serafeim, Shiva Rajgopal and David Freiberg

Climate change was becoming an important societal and business issue as more governments were introducing climate change related regulations and investors became increasibly worried about stranded assets within oil and gas firms. In September 2016, the U.S. Securities... View Details