Big Easy Ideas

In the last decade, there has been tremendous investment and focus on software tools, electrification, and clean energy technology. The UN’s recent climate summit, COP26, highlighted natural systems as a major component of the response to climate change, on par with anthropogenic solutions such as wind, solar, and CCUS. The gulf coast is rich in the natural resources, skills, and experience to tackle blue carbon and nature based solutions to climate change. This session highlights how large enterprises can partner with startups in complementary ways to accelerate the pace of climate innovation, with a focus on natural solutions.

In this session, the panel will share stories and explore electric vehicle transportation – what’s working, where are the gaps, and identifying where the industry is headed. Join us for some quick insights into the burgeoning electric vehicle industry and the unique challenges presented as society moves toward embracing this technology.

Complex real world problems require even more innovative solutions. Once the glacially paced cousin of software-based tech, "hard tech" has emerged as the forefront of innovation driving solutions to some of society's most pressing challenges including climate change. Local hard tech founders share their journey as startups tackling huge problems. As the ambition of hard tech startups grows, what is needed to continue to fuel this industry, and what new tools are needed to promote disruption in industries so long resistant to change?

What would it take for Louisiana to lead in climate innovation through technology? Nish Acharya is a national thought leader focused on creating place-based innovation clusters. A senior policy official for the Obama administration, Nish helped create the Regional Innovation Strategies framework that has guided federal investment in innovation for the last decade. A contributor to Forbes and advisor to the Clinton Foundation, Nish is a leader in democratizing innovation by helping communities identify and build upon their regional strengths. Justin Ehrenworth is the CEO of the Water Institute, a non-profit and applied research institution that advances science and develops integrated methods to solve complex environmental and societal challenges. One of two such centers of excellence in the world, The Water Institute has helped to build a resilience industry in southeast Louisiana by helping us understand and commercialize how to live with water and the effects of climate change. Together, Nish and Justin explore what "climate tech" is, how to turn our existing competencies into a comprehensive industry cluster strategy, and why this emerging industry represents a unique opportunity for Louisiana and the gulf coast region.

Investment in climate tech startups doubled from 2020 to 2021. With over $40B deployed across 600 deals in 2021 alone, climate tech investing is one of the hottest growth areas within venture investing. What is driving this trend and where is the opportunity frontier for climate tech going? Chante Harris is a leading pressed and seed-stage investor, go-to-market expert, and supporter of early stage climate tech startups. Hank Torbert is an experienced executive, operator, and private equity investor specializing in industrial tech. John Elstrott is a co-founder of Resource Environmental Solutions, a global ecological restoration leader. He recently co-founded an ecological venture design studio, Applied Ecological Institute, and a VC fund: EcoExChange. The design studio has launched its first two ventures: Climate Foods and StratifyX. Together, the three panelists will discuss how investors look at opportunities in climate tech and the unique outlook that founders must have to build in the "hard tech" space.

What can startups and investors learn from CleanTech 1.0?  What does the future of ClimateTech investing look like? How do incumbent sectors better manage disruptive forces and embrace change? Paul Holland is a successful veteran of Silicon Valley and serves as Managing Director and VC-in-Residence at Mach49, where he leads the company’s Corporate Venture Investing Practice. Paul has been a GP at Foundation Capital for 18 years, helping take startup companies from zero to IPO or acquisition. He had a stellar operating career, joining Reed Hastings at Pure Software and later Mark Gainey at Kana Communications. In total, Paul helped generate over $13B in market cap during his operating career. Linda Yates is the Founder and CEO of Mach49, the leading growth incubator for global businesses. She is a seasoned CEO with over 25 years of experience creating global strategy and driving innovation for large multinationals around the world. She is currently working on her book, “The Unicorn Within: How Companies Can Create Game-Changing Ventures at Startup Speed,” to be published by Harvard Press in summer 2022. Dale Winger is the managing director of Halliburton Labs which offers participant companies a twelve-month ‘scalerator’ experience. Prior to this role, he served as vice president for Halliburton’s global specialty chemicals business and has been with Halliburton since 2014. Together with Walter Isaacson, a world renowned author and business leader, this keynote panel will explore the challenges ahead for corporations and startups alike as they drive towards a sustainable energy future.

Learn how these entrepreneurs have used technology to solve unique problems in the sound recording ecosystem, while building future forward companies!

With the rapid adoption of Web3, media and digital strategy for corporations and cultural institutions have undergone a considerable transformation in recent years. In this fireside chat, Chris Cummings, the CEO and Founder of Iconic Moments, will discuss how he's building a marketplace for museums and cultural institutions to "mint" their unique assets as NFTs. In conversation with Chris will be The Walt Disney Company's Vice President of Product Management, Doug Vance. These two will discuss the unfolding frontier of the NFT space and some ways in which this digital innovation will be used in the future.

The opportunities for creatives to benefit from the world of #WEB3 are endless. Learn about how creative talent in New Orleans can benefit from the immense possibilities within Web3 and how creatives can be onboard into this new space for experienced local artists and entrepreneurs participating in Web3. 

Alongside the explosion of interest in digital ownership through NFTs, Web3 has brought an age-old phenomenon to the forefront of the technological frontier: community. Through anything from jpeg images of Bored Apes to Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (or "DAO's") aiming to buy a copy of the Constitution, Web3 has presented new ways for people to coordinate digitally, along with new objects and objectives around which to gather. Through this panel, we'll highlight three unique projects being built locally in Web3 spaces that give individuals the opportunity to build community around music, gaming, and civic leadership.