October has been a bit of a whirlwind as I racked up the frequent flier miles with visits to New York Climate Tech Week, the national conference hosted by the Small Business Investor Alliance in Florida and squeezed in a trip to New Orleans for my birthday!
Everyone on the Sunstone team has been working extremely hard to start the fourth quarter and the NEW! Campaign, with several new strategies on various fronts – the Clean Energy Economy, a Public Infrastructure Financing Program, the Sunstone Climate Fund and more. Yet while they all sound new, they all fit within the Sunstone mantra of making our community a better place.
Sunstone Symposium
Oct. 23 was a red-letter day for Sunstone as more than 170 people visited Sunstone headquarters for a day-long symposium exploring aspects of clean energy, investing, education and more in light of public-private partnerships.
Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan opened the day with a keynote speech that emphasized collaboration and the city’s goal of becoming an innovation hub – a goal we share. A strong partner in that effort is the Beall Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at UCI, and that entity’s director Prof. Larry Wilk explained the importance of the Stella Zhang New Venture Competition sponsored by our own Stella Zhang.
The day rolled on with panels of experts explaining aspects of the impact of Artificial Intelligence on entrepreneurs and investors, paths of alternative investment, and how to leverage government loan guarantees for capital to grow businesses.
Many stayed for the final panel of the day, addressing the climate tech revolution and approach of the clean energy economy. I was able to converse with our new partners, the founders of Pen Hill Capital Jesse Yanocha and Preston Hayes. One conclusion was that we need to have a pro-active government – like the one in California – to make the transition quickly enough to make a difference.
Praise during the final reception was unanimous. Congratulations and many thanks to the entire Sunstone team for making it happen. It was a resounding success.
LA Tech Week
Thanks to Jennifer Huang, Jayro Sandoval and the rest of the team for sponsoring and organizing two very successful events during LA Tech Week this year. We partnered with two universities, Pepperdine and the University of Southern California, for two very different discussions and happy hours.
On Monday, Oct. 14, it was Women Who Raise, focusing on successful female founders. Then we moved across town on Wednesday, Oct. 16, to USC where we hosted Electrifying the Future focusing on (you guessed it) the Clean Energy Economy. Both events were near sellouts.
One More
Our partnership with the California State University system was back on stage on Friday, Oct. 18, when the third annual CSU Demo Day Powered by Sunstone took place at Cal State Long Beach. Our good friend Dr. Wade Martin continues to lead this event forward.
Eleven campuses were represented and more than 200 people attended. Sunstone’s presence as the title sponsor was acknowledged.
Boo!
And October wouldn’t be October without Halloween and the famous Sunstone Costume Contest. Thanks much to Jessica Dela Rosa for coordinating and for all of those who participated.
That’s being a Sunstone!
John Keisler
CEO & Managing Partner
Sunstone Management, Inc.
©Sunstone Management, Inc. 2024