Cisco Backs Green Tech X Prize

Cisco has become the latest technology company to get behind a popular scheme to support and reward inventors of new technology.

The networking company announced this week that it has become the main sponsor of the X Prize Foundation’s Energy and Environment Prize Group, which is focused on backing the development of clean and energy-efficient technology.

Commenting on the announcement, Guido Jouret, vice president and chief technology officer of Cisco Emerging Technology Group, said the company is planning to work with the foundation to launch future X Prizes focused on energy-saving.

“Cisco’s vision is for information technology to transform how the world manages its energy and environmental challenges,” said Jouret. “Through collaboration with dedicated organisations such as the X Prize Foundation, we can break down existing barriers and foster unparalleled innovation while making real progress on climate change and energy.”

Cisco is the latest technology company to get involved with the X Prize Foundation. Other backers include Google, which is backing a Lunar X Prize to reward amateur attempts to land a robot on the moon. Bill Gates has also supported the foundation through the Bill & Melinda Foundation while Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen backed the first X-Prize winner in 2004 – the world’s first private spaceship.

Smart Grids and Cities

Technology areas which Cisco is considering for future environmental X Prizes include smart grids, smart buildings, climate modeling and alternative energy sources such as wind and geothermal.

In February, Cisco announced that it was donating “green” technology to a project which aims to help the struggling Irish economy recover from the impact of the financial crisis. The “Your Country, Your Call” project will benefit from a variety of Cisco collaborative technologies, including web application and Cisco WebEx conferencing systems.

Late last year Cisco said that it was working with the Dutch city of Amsterdam to provide detailed information on carbon emissions and allow residents to compare their output with neighbouring districts or postal codes. Cisco’s Urban EcoMap application was originally developed in San Francisco and, according to Cisco, residents in Amsterdam can even choose to compare their emissions with those of the US city.

In July 2009, Cisco and IBM announced that they were working with the Dutch utility Nuon and the city of Amsterdam to develop smart grid technology – part of a wider Amsterdam Smart City Initiative. Around 500 selected households will make use of smart metering and “home energy management technology”, which should help to cut C02 emissions by at least 14 percent, according to the organisations.