May is the month when things start growing, and that certainly was the case at Sunstone headquarters.
Our industry contacts continued to grow when I was asked to participate in an invitation-only work session at the prestigious Milken Institute Global Conference at the Beverly Hills Hilton Hotel. Our session explored strategies to finance rebuilding public infrastructure after disasters like the Los Angeles-area wildfires in January.
The following week, we sponsored another panel in Long Beach about different partnerships between entrepreneurs and investors, as well as how to develop leadership skills. Vandinika Shukla, the Deputy Director of Global Programs at the Obama Foundation, offered insights – and another Sunstone connection with a national power.
Clean Energy Innovation Day
Another big highlight of the month was the launch of our new Public-Private Partnerships (P3) education series. We hosted more than 60 people at the Sunstone Presentation Stage on May 23 for the Clean Energy Innovation Day.
I had the opportunity to interview Ross Zelen, the chief consultant for the state Senate and the Joint Legislative Committee on Climate Change Policies in the California legislature. I’ve known Ross for a while, and he is the expert when it comes to how state government can help entrepreneurs and innovators finance and bring to fruition projects to help positively impact the climate.
The second half of the afternoon was a slight twist on our weekly Sunstone Connects event put on by Sunstone Investors. The principals of Evolectric and Alternative Fuel Leasing Company talked about their progress putting more electric-powered delivery trucks on our roads.
This is the first in what will become a series of great interviews with experts on aspects of P3 development. Thanks to Ryan and Jennifer and their teams for getting this off the ground in such a great way.
May saw seeds sprout in all of our components. I can’t wait to see what type of growth the summer brings on the way to our fall harvest.
Thank you, and remember, always be a Sunstone!
John Keisler
CEO & Managing Partner
©Sunstone Management, Inc. 2025