JULY 2018
Greetings from David Kenney
President & Executive Director

Collaborating with OEN on Impact

Ten years ago, we launched the Pacific Northwest's premier cleantech innovation conference, Oregon BEST FEST, an annual event that has attracted hundreds of attendees each year, and featured speakers ranging from Oregon Governors to well-known authors.

Starting this year, the name is changing to the VertueLab Impact Summit (VIS2018), presented by OEN and VertueLab. Be sure to save the date, September 26th, for this re-imagined, re-tooled event that's now a collaboration between our organization and the Oregon Entrepreneurs Network (OEN).

Our goal with VIS2018 is to help more cleantech startups throughout the Pacific Northwest find the critical support they need to succeed and ensure that impact investors find the technologies that both bring a financial return and have environmental and social impact. Read more about VIS2018 below, along with other success stories as the cleantech startups we've supported continue to grow, add jobs, and make a powerful impact on both the environment and the social fabric of our region and the world.

Thanks for your ongoing support,
SAVE THE DATE! CATCH THE IMPACT WAVE!

September 26, 2018, Castaway, Portland, Oregon
Catch the Wave where Cleantech Innovation and
Impact Investing Converge

Every September, innovators, investors, and others from across the Pacific Northwest come together at the VertueLab Impact Summit (formerly BEST FEST) - the Pacific Northwest’s premier cleantech innovation conference. Now in its10th year, VIS2018 brings together the doers, thinkers, and innovators working in clean technology across the region. This gathering is about learning, inspiring, networking, sharing ideas, and shaping our future with Green Technologies for Good. VertueLab, in collaboration with OEN, convenes a diverse audience of business leaders, entrepreneurs, impact investors, partners, corporates, university researchers, students and scientists - all of whom have the common goal of accelerating solutions to the world's environmental challenges.

Fireside Chat About the Power of Impact Investing
This year's Fireside Chat features the leading minds in impact investing - from foundations, family offices, impact venture funds, and field builders - exploring key issues and emerging opportunities for cleantech innovators. Attendees will gain insight into a growing source of "money with a mission" for cleantech innovators - money that recognizes and values the financial, social, and environmental returns from clean technology solutions. Two of the Fireside Chat speakers are Abhilash Mudaliar, research director at the GIIN, and Sarah Cleveland, an investment consultant and board member of the Russell Family Foundation. (Additional speakers TBA soon.)

Cleantech Showcase Features Stand-Out Startups
This year, the Cleantech Showcase will feature eight of the most up-and-coming startups telling their compelling stories of innovation, overcoming obstacles, and success. Two of the presenting companies will be The Renewal Workshop, which creatively keeps returned and damaged clothing out of landfills, and Beta Hatch, where insect entrepreneurs grow bugs for fertilizer and food.

Register now to get discounted early-bird rates that expire soon and plan to join us on September 26th. A networking lunch is included, along with a lovely evening reception. Event sponsors include Stoel Rives, IN2 Program, NETL, Emerge, Dow Venture Capital, and Prosper Portland.
VERTUELAB EXPLAINED
VertueLab's Mission Explained in 90 Seconds

As part of the rebrand we unveiled last month, when we transitioned from Oregon BEST to VertueLab, we put together a short explainer video that offers an overview of what VertueLab does, including our emphasis on creating impact by supporting and investing in cleantech startups to achieve a combination of environmental and social impact. Enjoy the 90-second video above. And check out the stories in the Portland Business Journal and the Portland Tribune.
VERTUELAB COMPANIES IN THE NEWS
Renewal Workshop Teams with North Face and Nau

VertueLab Company, The Renewal Workshop, has teamed up with The North Face and Nau to help these clothing manufacturers move toward a more circular business model and offer their customers a way to be part of zero waste. The Renewal Workshop takes clothing and textiles otherwise headed for landfills and inspects, repairs, cleans, and restores them to their original condition. Read more about The North Face partnership and the Nau partnership.
Take a Walk on the Inside of a Massive Flow Battery

VertueLab Company, ESS, Inc., makes a nontoxic battery the size of a shipping container that uses iron and water to store renewable energy when the sun's not shining or the wind isn't blowing. In the video above, you'll learn how ESS' "Energy Warehouse" works, and get to take a tour inside one of these very big batteries.
EV Manufacturer Arcimoto Grows to 60 Employees

Fueled by a $20 million funding round, VertueLab Company, Arcimoto, is now manufacturing its all-electric Fun Utility Vehicle (FUV) at its Eugene, Oregon, headquarters, where the startup has grown from a handful of visionary dreamers to more than 60 employees collectively chasing a big dream that re-imagines the way we will run errands and commute in the future (it's NOT in a 4-wheeled, fossil fuel-powered automobile). Read more.
EVENTS, OPPORTUNITIES, AND FUNDING
EVENTS

August 20-23 | Electrification 2018
Explore the critical issues, benefits, and opportunities of electrification with industry experts. Long Beach, CA

Join VertueLab's Ken Vaughn and Oregon's Treasurer Tobias Read for this event that brings together state and national finance leaders to highlight how the Oregon Treasury is investing strategically for a cleaner future.

Presented by OEN and VertueLab, this event (formerly known as BEST FEST) brings together innovators, entrepreneurs, and impact investors to ensure clean technology innovations are impacting the world in powerful, positive ways. Portland

October 23-26 | SOCAP
SOCAP is the world’s leading conference activating the capital markets to drive positive social and environmental impact – convening the marketplace at the intersection of money and meaning. San Francisco

October 16-18 | VERGE 2018
This conference and expo is the platform for accelerating a clean economy. Join people from companies and utilities, city and regional governments, policymakers, NGOs, solution providers and startups - to explore scalable solutions at the intersection of technology and sustainability. Oakland, CA
OPPORTUNITIES

Application Deadline: August 8th
$50K - $100K | Bend Venture Conference
Apply to compete at the Bend Venture Conference on October 18-19 in one of three competitions: Growth Stage, Early Stage, and Impact. Cleantech startups should consider applying for the Impact Competition.

RocketSpace and BP have teamed up on this accelerator to shape the future movement of people, goods, and services. Up to 21 startups are selected to participate.

If your product or service is “Made in America,” your company could qualify for this matching grant funding from the Northwest Trade Adjustment Assistance Center.

Up to $2M | Oregon Venture Fund
A group of investors contributes time, expertise, capital, and connections to help founders gain access to the right people and resources to grow their business their way.
LEARN MORE - CONTACT US!
Let's Collaborate and Make an Impact!

Resources and expertise for innovators and investors

We at VertueLab support great ideas from entrepreneurs and help investors ensure that their dollars are making a positive impact on the planet. We collaborate to help transform ideas into successful enterprises and measure the success all along the way. Contact us !