Silicon Valley: Epicentre of Technology and Innovation

It's only when you travel around California that you can really appreciate quite how geographically diverse this region is. 

In just 10 days, we experienced the hot, barren Mojave Desert, with its imposing geological features; lush palm oases sustained by underground aquifers; snow-capped peaks of Mount San Jacinto; 7.6 million year old cinder cone volcanoes; the flat, smog-covered Central Valley; lush rolling hills of the Carrizo Plain; the cool, damp climes of Monterey Bay; and jagged towering mountains of Pinnacles National Park.

But it's not just these geographical elements that enable solar and wind power to be captured and anthropogenically utilised by this state. This innovation and implementation is the result of an element which was not central to our biogeographical field-trip, but is something we could not help but account for. The human population. 

We started our trip in the low-lying, sprawling city of LA and finished in the foggy urban environment of San Fransisco. But it was my trip to the latter than really made me question the catalyst of California's word-leading stance on sustainable technology. 

Whilst in San Fransisco, we visited the US Geological Survey, located in Palo Alto. Driving through Silicon Valley, home to countless entrepreneurial start-ups and many of the world's largest tech companies, we passed Stanford University. This world-renowned institution, with its high-calibre STEM research, has created an hub of scientific, engineering and technological knowledge, with 70% of residents in Menlo Park (to the east of Palo Alto) holding a degree.

In addition, this region has a high-density of venture capital and private equity firms, which fuel these  innovative ideas, propelling them into successful companies.

Therefore, it is this combination of world-leading research, significant capital investment and high-density of passionate, highly-intelligent individuals that has formed this powerhouse of innovation, including many discoveries in the world of environmental sustainability which has driven California's renewable energy expansion.

Entrance of the US Geological Survey in Palo Alto, California

Tesla is just one of these world-leading corporations, founded and headquartered in Silicon Valley. The company started with a focus on electric cars, but are now world leaders in the research, design and production of renewable home energy storage, with the higher capacity, second generation Tesla Powerwall battery unveiled in late 2016.

However, Silicon Valley has much more to offer in the renewable space than just the well known global companies. In my next post, I will will explore some of these smaller companies, focusing on their innovative research and exciting products on offer.