I was inspired by an email I read today from one of our GridWeek sponsors. A Cleveland-resident, he has chosen to cancel his plane ticket to D.C. next week and instead hop on his motorcycle in a personal memorial ride for those who died on September 11.  His first stop, the 9/11 memorial in Stonycreek Township, Pennsylvania, where United Airlines Flight 93 was brought to the ground. There, he will pay his respects to victims, make a donation, and witness the memorial's unveiling on the 10th anniversary Sunday. 

Our Smart Grid conference falls very close to this tragic anniversary -- one that’s certainly tugging on the heart strings of most Americans right now. While it’s tough to think a message about our electric grid could resonate with anyone in D.C. next week, I’m beginning to think … it really should.

Our electric grid will continue to play an increasingly important role in our country’s long-term freedom, in our national security, and in America’s economic competitiveness. The smarter our grid is, the better off -- and more secure -- we are as a nation.

Why?

  • Smart Grid will lower our demand for foreign fuels and make America more “energy secure.” With Smart Grid, we can integrate higher percentages of “home-grown” renewable power; manage the widespread adoption of electric-powered vehicles; and improve our grid’s efficiency to lessen our overall energy demand. Perhaps, once and for all, we can sever our ties with the petro-dictatorships that have created so many hardships and social injustices across the globe.
  • The grid will be more reliable to help us manage through increasingly common severe weather, without the costly power outages that take such a huge economic toll on our country.  And in the event of a crisis, smarter grids across the nation will be more resilient, helping us to literally weather the storm without such a hit to our productivity.
  • Smart Grid will create jobs, which is a focus of the Obama administration and almost every president who’s ever taken the oath to office. And it’s not just domestic Smart Grid deployments that will create jobs, but it’s the international demand for Smart Grid technologies that will provide a market for U.S. exports to fuel our economy.

In a nutshell, a national Smart Grid will help us overcome the challenges of our times. It will foster the freedoms, securities, and comforts we’ve grown to love in this country -- which so many young men and woman have been fighting for.

I am proud of the conference we’ve put together. Starting Sept. 12, close to a thousand energy, policy, and technology leaders will gather in D.C. for the fifth-annual GridWeek to discuss “the way forward” for Smart Grid, and the ways in which we can ensure our electrical infrastructure is suited to meet the demands of our times.