If we are what we eat, cities can be defined by the businesses they host. Buffalo is still trying to shake the reputation it earned from all the local manufacturers that polluted Lake Erie (by the way Lake Erie is now one of the cleanest lakes in the country). The Wall St. Journal reported reported today that several US cities including San Jose and Austin are vying to be the home for “clean technology” companies. These cities clearly see the competitive advantage they could gain by hosting a concentration of companies focused on making the world a little greener. The Journal noted:
San Jose, considered the capital of Silicon Valley as home to high-tech bellwethers such as Cisco Systems Inc., eBay Inc. and Adobe Inc., is trying to reinvent itself as a center for clean tech — and in the process is providing a glimpse of where the Silicon Valley economy may evolve next. While the region has long been a cradle for high tech, the area has in the past 18 months become fixated on investing in clean-tech companies. In 2006, North American venture-capital investment in this sector soared to $2.9 billion from $1.6 billion a year earlier, according to the Cleantech Venture Network, an industry group.
Whether or not San Jose officials are doing this out of concern for the environment or simply because they think it can improve the tax base of their fair city, this concerted effort to attract “clean technology” companies qualifies as Marketing for Good. The result of their efforts will ultimately be good for their city and the world they share. Seems to me more and more companies will soon know the good way to you know where.