The WCNC would like to thank Perkins Coie LLP
for sponsoring this part of the Sand Hill Road Clean Tech Series
With the world stirred by “An Inconvenient Truth” and the Nobel Peace Prize recently awarded to former Vice President Al Gore, global warming and the future of the planet’s environment have emerged as some of the decade’s most prominent headlines. Here in the bay area, Venture Capitalists have responded by investing aggressively in Clean Tech emerging technology and alternative energy startups. As part of the WCNC’s newly launched Sand Hill Road Clean Tech Series, we will be hosting Tom Arnold, WG ‘05, and founder of TerraPass. Tom founded TerraPass while at Wharton with Professor Karl Ulrich as part of a class project to offset carbon emissions responsible for the greenhouse effect. TerraPass has been prominently featured in Businessweek and has garnered the support of over 85,000 consumers whose contributions have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by over 600 million pounds.
During this WCNC exclusive session, Tom will talk about how he grew TerraPass from a Wharton class project to recruiting the former CEO of Expedia and turning the company into a market leader selling carbon offsets to consumers. He will also address pivotal industry and entrepreneurship questions such as:
- Trends in Clean Tech initiatives on Sand Hill Road including the future of consumer driven carbon offsets
- The intricacies of launching a consumer driven startup spanning sales, marketing, and partnerships
- Raising capital and building a world class team
- Recruiting a top notch CEO to lead the company
Register Online
Date: Monday, January 7, 2008
Time: 6:00-6:30pm Networking Reception and light dinner. 6:30pm-7:45pm Talk and Q&A.
Location: Perkins Coie, 101 Jefferson Drive, Menlo Park, CA
Registration: WCNC Members, members of affiliate clubs, and their accompanied guests: $20 per person. Non-member alumni and other guests: $40 per person. If available, $10 additional for tickets purchased January 7. The WCNC's standard cancellation policy applies for this event.
Tom is a 2005 Honors MBA graduate of the Wharton School. At Wharton, he was co-chair of the Wharton Technology Conference and a VP of the Wharton Technology and Wharton Outdoor Clubs. He also participated in the first Wharton Leadership Venture to Antarctica where he learned first hand the impact of global warming on higher latitude ecosystems.
Prior to Wharton, Tom, a self-proclaimed recovering technologist, held Senior Manager positions at Redback Networks and spent two years on strategic technology issues at Mercer Management Consulting. In addition to his professional pursuits, Tom is also active in the community, most recently as a business advisor for Pacific Community Ventures, a non-profit organization offering capital and services to low-income businesses in California. Tom is also an avid outdoorsman, athlete, and cyclist. Notable accomplishments include a solo walk across Spain (800km) and a 10:32 double century. Tom holds an AB in Economics from Dartmouth College.
