Clean-tech venture capitalist Nancy Floyd spoke at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, saying Barack Obama's energy proposals would make the U.S. economy more competitive.
The speech by Floyd, founder and managing director at Nth Power, is a sign that clean energy and the environment are high-profile issues in this year's presidential campaign. Indeed, Hilary Clinton used her speech to tout "green collar" jobs.
Nancy Floyd, managing director of clean-tech venture capital firm Nth Power.
(Credit: Martin LaMonica/CNET News)Floyd has been doing energy investing for decades and often called on policy-makers to support the domestic renewable energy business.
In her talk, she took the same tack, arguing that Spain, China, Germany and other countries are taking the lead in the green technology field because of "smart, stable, forward-looking energy policies."
She said that the Obama energy plan, which he detailed in a speech in Michigan earlier this month, has the elements to support entrepreneurship in the field and address pressing environmental problems. An excerpt:
Green technology is where the computer industry was in 1984, the year the Macintosh computer was introduced. Think about how far we've come since then. That's how far-reaching and how transformational green technology will be. Thousands of new companies. Millions of new jobs. In fact, investments in wind and solar technologies have already created 2.4 million jobs.
Obama's proposals call for giving U.S. consumers a tax credit for purchasing fuel-efficient vehicles, a renewable energy mandate for electricity utilities, and a cap-and-trade system to regulate carbon emissions.
Floyd appears to represent many of her fellow clean-tech investors political leanings this year. A poll by Earth2Tech found that a majority of clean-tech venture capitalists support Obama.
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