Blog Intrapreneur
By Kristina Loring - June 3, 2011
Years after the end of apartheid, South Africa is still striving to recreate its identity. Many outdated social and economic systems have undergone massive changes on a national and local level, all with the goal of cultivating diversity while also preserving tradition. The result is that great strides in racial equality and civil rights have been achieved. Economic equality, however, is still part of a hopeful future—one for which a number of social innovators in the country are working hard to achieve.
Blog Intrapreneur
By Kristina Loring - October 13, 2010
The electric vehicle (EV) revolution has begun. But it can only be fueled if the right ecosystem is put in place to support the mass of energy-conscious consumers who hope to hit the road in one of the new EVs soon to hit the streets. In July, frog design unveiled our partnership with ECOtality to address this challenge with the design of Blink, a new family of chargers that can be easily integrated into the EV owner’s lifestyle. Now, we are excited to announce the latest addition to the Blink family, the DC Fast Charger. By introducing the DC Fast Charger, ECOtality further demonstrates its commitment to extending the Blink network, and encouraging drivers to put down the gas pump and make the switch to an EV.
Blog Intrapreneur
By Kristina Loring - October 8, 2010
Simpa Networks, a start-up that enables users to make mobile pre-payments for solar lighting, receives funding at this year's SOCAP Conference.*
Energy can be a large faceless commodity. This makes it hard to understand the correlation between the amount of energy a user is consuming, the data appearing on a bill and how that all relates to one’s behavior. For those living at the “base of the pyramid” (BoP)**, energy is a huge expenditure and represents a very specific material need, enabling their deep understanding of how much they need to spend on energy and what money needs to be saved on a daily basis. So, the implementation of an energy system that helps user’s understand their energy consumption could have a huge impact on someone’s socio-economic status.
