Highlands Ranch - Alternative Fuel City of the Future

Abu Dhabi has started the Masdar Project that will create a sustainable energy city that is not dependent on fossil fuels. Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber has been contacted so Highlands Ranch and Abu Dhabi can begin the process to share goals and ideas and work together to solve tough energy problems. Below is the text of the letter.

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January 17, 2009

Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber
Chief Executive Officer
Mina Road, ADPC Admin Bldg, Second Floor
P.O. Box: 45005, Abu Dhabi
United Arab Emirates

Dear Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber:

Coincidently, in May 2006 I started an initiative in Highlands Ranch, Co (population of 100,000) to transform the community to an energy municipality and become self sustainable. It’s like the Masdar project but on a much smaller scale.

My vision is to create a city-owned clean technology wet lab incubator that attracts clean technology start-up companies. The incubator would also have solar, wind and geo-thermal to produce clean energy. The energy start-up companies become successful and the future City of Highlands Ranch would receive an income stream from these start-ups. All revenues would get reinvested back to the residents of Highlands Ranch to eventually take the new energy city off the power grid by the year 2020.

Our local high school students have been involved in this project for almost three years and their efforts have gained local and national support. Supporters have been NREL, CH2M Hill, Invenergy (wind), Merrill Lynch and Colorado Governor Ritter.

I would like to extend the invitation to you and your Masdar initiative staff to visit Highlands Ranch, Colorado to learn more about our project and form a partnership to share ideas and learn from each other.

Below are some website links that pertains to our clean energy initiative:

http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_9050942
http://www.denverpost.com/ci_5324427
http://www.hrcleantech.com
http://renewablehighlandsranch.blogsome.com
http://denver.yourhub.com/HighlandsRanch/Stories/News/General-News/Story~568022.aspx

ThunderRidge Seniors Meet With Local Leaders to Discuss Energy Empowerment

On Friday, January 2, 2009, ThunderRidge high school seniors, Ahbi Rahman and Miranda Carey met with Senator Ted Harvey (R) and Legislator Frank McNulty, District 43 (R) to discuss how Highlands Ranch can explore various avenues to take Highlands Ranch off the grid by the year 2020.

This is the third year that ThunderRidge seniors are exploring creative and innovative strategies and tactics to empower Highlands Ranch to nurture and grow a local energy economy and create an energy city that owns and manages a clean technology wet lab incubator. The clean technology incubator would become the spring board for new energy start-ups to come to Highlands Ranch and mature their clean tech business. Once the business leaves the Highlands Ranch energy incubator, the energy city receives an annuity on energy revenues and patent royalties earned by the energy start-up company.

Miranda Carey states, “Highlands Ranch has the opportunity to develop a one-of-a-kind clean technology business and social environment to attract and retain energy business start-ups.” Carey further stated, “What makes this unique and innovative is that Highlands Ranch could become the first community in the world to develop its sole charter that focuses on one service - energy. What kind of message does that say to new energy businesses looking to relocate to an area that will help their enterprise grow and thrive.”

Ahbi Rahman, who is also a senior at ThunderRidge remarked, “We are excited for the opportunity to meet with our local political representatives to discuss new ideas and solutions on how to solve our energy empowerment problems.” Rahman further mentioned, “The meeting we had with Mr. McNulty and Mr. Harvey was the first step in the direction of discussing how Highlands Ranch can empower the entire community to become less reliant on 3rd party energy sources.”