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Smart Grid Leaders Commit to Declaration of Energy Independence at ConnectivityWeek 2010

Major Stakeholders Pledge to Create Broad Coalition of Support for Energy Management

Smart Grid innovators from utilities, academia and technology companies today committed to develop a Declaration of Energy Independence and Consumers' Bill of Rights that will ensure a sustainable energy economy for the United States. Speaking at ConnectivityWeek 2010, the group pledged to create a coalition of broad support for the mutual benefit of utilities, business, government and consumers. This pledge is based on the premise that opening the door to innovation and service delivery will align all stakeholders' goals of energy efficiency, cost control and consumer empowerment.

Nearly 1,300 energy and business leaders gathered in Santa Clara, CA for the eighth annual ConnectivityWeek 2010 conference and expo to explore how smart technologies converge to maximize energy efficiency and empower consumers to manage energy costs.

"We're here at ConnectivityWeek because we want to encourage participation in Smart Grid," said George Arnold, National Coordinator for Smart Grid Interoperability, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). "Smart Grid is going to touch everyone and many stakeholder groups, and they're all here at ConnectivityWeek. I can't think of a more efficient way to go about our work."

Plenary and keynote highlights include:
- The important role of information technology in creating a successful Smart Grid. In an explanation of the information architecture for the Smart Grid, Dr. Vinton G. Cerf, VP and Chief Internet Evangelist of Google, cautioned that security and privacy are major issues that must be addressed now and woven into the "fabric" of the Smart Grid.

- The importance of energy consumers in the overall success of Smart Grid, as indicated by the results of the EcoPinion survey presented by EcoAlign and Clasma Events. The survey found that consumers are largely positive in their expectations of the Smart Grid, but also pointed to some critical challenges to create a system perceived as valuable by consumers;

- The importance of collaboration among all stakeholder groups. For this reason, the conference was held in Silicon Valley, which stands at the intersection of energy, utilities, smart technologies and innovation.
"Clasma Events is happy to organize this event as a platform for collaboration among Smart Grid stakeholders," explained Anto Budiardjo, CEO of Clasma Events and organizer of ConnectivityWeek. "Being in Silicon Valley allows us to focus specifically on high-tech innovators and entrepreneurs."

Recipients of the 2010 Buildy Awards were announced at ConnectivityWeek. These winners are leaders in the vertical venues that define the scope of energy consumption and how Smart Grid, smart buildings and smart devices and services play a vital role. The winners include:
- Lawrence Berkeley for PG&E's OpenADR implementation for wholesale markets;
- EnergyHub for its EnergyHub Home Energy Management Solution;
- Cisco for its Building Energy Management with Cisco EnergyWise;
- Southern California Edison for its 2010 Edison SmartConnect Customer Journey;
- Cisco for its Smartest Connected Building on the Network; and
- Sensus M.I. for its Demand Response Optimizer.

ConnectivityWeek will return to Santa Clara May 23-26, 2011 to explore the next phase of the Smart Grid and related technologies.

About ConnectivityWeek 2010
ConnectivityWeek 2010 is a collection of events focused on the application of Information Communication Technology (ICT) for energy management and efficiency. Its unique format creates a cohesive understanding of how smart, connected devices and systems will shape our future. Keynotes and sessions are focused on implementation technologies, business development and market growth in a new energy paradigm. ConnectivityWeek 2010 was sponsored by Cisco, Elster, Itron, Aclara, Bridge Energy Group, ClimateTalk Alliance, Ember, EnerNex Corporation, HomePlug Powerline Alliance, OSIsoft, Sensus M.I., Southern California Edison, The Brattle Group, Trilliant, Wi-Fi Alliance, Z-Wave Alliance, Akuacom, Convergence Wireless, Echelon, EnerNOC, Subnet Solutions and Tantalus. Learn more at http://www.connectivityweek.com/2010/ and on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

ConnectivityWeek is produced by Clasma Events, Inc., a global company specializing in strategic conferences at the center of the worldwide energy discussion. Clasma's major events include ConnectivityWeek, GridWeek and Grid-Interop.