While technological breakthroughs have helped create the green and clean market, financial programs have paved the way for their adoption. Solar exploded after solar leasing. Car networks, a la ZipCar, seem destined to become the way most Americans will initially experience electric cars.

And economic solutions are having a big impact in energy efficiency and green building. Programs such as Serious Solutions that deliver an end-to-end comprehensive building upgrade service at no upfront cost to building owners, are "genius" said David Pogue, the National Director of Sustainability at CBRE during a panel discussion on green building and efficiency finance sponsored by Wells Fargo in Palo Alto this week. "The technology has been there but no one has had the guts to do it," he continued.

Kevin Surace is the CEO of Serious Energy, and he's also the one of the best speakers in the country when it comes to detailing the opportunities created through energy efficiency. Energy efficient buildings consume less energy, which means lower power bills, which means cleaner air and less demand for burning coal or natural gas.

Green buildings also achieve higher rental and resale values, creating money in a relatively frictionless way, and put assembly line employees, contractors, electricians, and architects to work. It's a virtuous cycle if there ever was one.

But it's tough to do the performance justice in words. So here you can find some of his most recent speeches and press interviews.

If you are in real estate, you already know new building and housing starts are down. Now, the AIA has put some numbers around it. A new report shows that construction spending is down 27 percent since 2008, a loss of $300 billion in economic activity. Leanne Tobias at Greenbiz writes:

"As reported in a new study by the American Institute of Architects, construction spending in the U.S. has declined by 27 percent since 2008, an economic loss of close to $300 billion. (An additional $470 billion in construction-related spending also has been lost.) Private construction projects have been particularly hard hit, declining by more than a third, while public construction is down roughly 10 percent.

Freezing right now? Broiling? Can't see because of glare? Blame your windows. Serious Energy is holding the I Want Better Windows contest. You could be one of the winners of 250 square feet of iWindows. (click here to enter) or vote for one of the entrants.

Today's entry comes from Michael in New Jersey. He's at a hospital:

"We are a non-profit hospital. Our windows are 30 or more years older... It would be great to have warmer patient rooms and offices for the staff. My office is in the basement... No windows for me but it would be realy good for the building."

If you're sitting in your office freezing because of chilly weather outside or baking because of accumulated solar heat, you have a problem. And Serious Energy has the solution: the iWindow. It's an easy-to-install window we've created to help better insulate your building. The iWindow snaps into existing frames over the top of existing windows: no disruption to people indoors, no high installation costs. Fast. Easy.

And to let the world know about them, we're holding the "I Want New Windows" contest. Write in why your building needs new windows and you could be one of the winners of 250 square feet of iWindows. (click here to enter) or vote for one of the entrants. (See list here.) We will later tally the votes and select the winners.

Today's entry comes from Tanya W in Northern California. Unlike Nash in Montana, who is freezing, Tanya is being pounded by the heat:

TEDxHarkerSchool was held in San Jose, CA, on October 22nd, 2011. The event "focused on fostering youth entrepreneurship through inspiration and learning from successful entrepreneurs." Our CEO, Kevin Surace, was on hand to inspire and instruct. His major takeaway? Well, to paraphrase the famous Platonic quote, the dramatic rise in global CO2 levels is now the mother of all re-invention.

Energy efficiency, as you've no doubt heard, is the low-hanging fruit when it comes to operating expenses. Commercial buildings consume 18 percent of the energy in the U.S., according to the DOE, and roughly 30 percent of it gets wasted or consumed inefficiently, according to the EPA.

If a building owner has a $1 million energy bill and cuts it by 10 percent with no upfront costs, something you can do with building analytics tools like SeriousEnergy Manager and SeriousCapital, there's $100,000 in savings right there.

We love this recent article by Ronald Hicks on SustainableFacility.com: “The Facility Manager’s Role.” In it, Hicks insightfully calls attention to the importance of facility teams for ensuring the success of any sustainable building project. We couldn’t agree more.

BOMA Magazine’s recent “Green Guide” issue (May / June 2011) places sustainable commercial buildings at the center of business management – exactly where they should be. As the article’s author, Stephanie Oppenheimer, states, “The surveys are in, and the evidence is growing.” Sustainability isn’t just a quaint add-on, an afterthought, or the icing on the cake. It has moved from a nice-to-have branding initiative to a need-to-have, bottom-line driver.

Serious Materials announced today that it has changed its name to Serious Energy. The new name reflects the company's suite of energy software services and advanced building products designed to increase the value of America’s buildings, for both owners and occupants. For building owners, the goal is to increase net operating income. For occupants, the goal is to increase comfort, productivity, and health at lower operating cost.