The State of Georgia leads the country in planned jobs around CleanTech jobs, driven by investments in e-mobility, renewable energy, and new infrastructure projects.30,661 new jobs have been created in the state alone over the last two years in sectors like battery innovation, electric vehicles (EVs), grid transformation, solar, wind, and hydrogen, according to a 2024 report from Climate Power.Some of the most notable projects are being driven by household brands. In 2024, car manufacturer Kia started production of its first-ever Georgia-built electric vehicle, the EV9. While the company had already started manufacturing EVs, Kia’s $200 million plant expansion of its plant is set to help power more local automotive work.Also on the EV front, manufacturer and automotive technology company Rivian recently received nearly $6 billion in Federal loans to restart its long-fought Georgia plant. And then there is international clean energy company Qcells, which completed its facility in Dalton, Georgia late last year and is set to be fully operational in 2025. The plant, which represents the largest single solar manufacturing site in the Western Hemisphere, is one of the largest projects highlighting opportunities in Georgia’s Cleantech space, according to the Technology Association of Georgia’s (TAG) Cleantech and sustainability ecosystem report.What Role Do Local CleanTech Startups Play?Georgia startups are also part of driving CleanTech growth across The Peach State. The state is currently home to 47 startups in the CleanTech and sustainability space, according to TAG’s report.Some to keep an eye on that have made a splash recently include: Nexus Circular, Carbice, Goodr, NuGen Systems, Green Badger, Cherry Street Energy, EnviroSpark, Metzev, Racoon Eyes, Retaaza, and JTEC Energy.Others, like food-to-fertilizer startup AquaOrganix, recently pitched at Techstars WaterTech and Sustainability’s Demo Day in Alabama, and Owanga Solar, a solar solution founded by recent Emory Law graduates that took home pitch competition prizes from Fusen World and EO Atlanta this year

In addition to the Black Engagement Program, Climate Power launched Climate Power En Acción in 2023, an expansion of its political communications operation tailored specifically to Latinos.

Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google NewsSenator Ed Markey (D-MA) has promoted US climate action for the majority of his long Congressional career. Part of that work is to acknowledge the ascendancy of renewable energy projects, both in the US and abroad.“This year, there is going to be 36,000 new megawatts of solar [electricity] installed in the United States, and 8,000 new megawatts of wind installed in the United States,” Markey told the Boston Globe. Solar power is projected to be 58% of the total new electrical capacity added this year. Installed wind power generating capacity has increased substantially in the US over the last 25 years, growing from 2.4 gigawatts (GW) in 2000 to 150.1 GW in April 2024.Nonetheless, the transition to renewable energy in the US is still taking hold, and Markey is keenly aware of skeptics of the transition from burning fossil fuels like Tesla CEO Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump. A continued focus on burning fossil fuels would clearly interfere with US progress toward a net zero future and relegate clean energy manufacturing to global competitors, like China.“Economically, it makes no sense to just cede the future to China,” Markey argues.Chip in a few dollars a month to help support independent cleantech coverage that helps to accelerate the cleantech revolution!Yet without China’s electric vehicles (EVs), solar panels, wind turbines, and batteries, reducing planet-heating pollution will continue on longer and cost more across the global board