Author: Ed Sappin

Is It Too Early To Invest In Space-Related Ventures?

This article was originally posted on Huffingtonpost.com Back in 2012, the launch of the first private spacecraft bound for the international space station brought earthlings into a new era of space exploration. Now, it seems like new space-related startups are launching (metaphorically-speaking) every day. Along with companies such as Planetary Resources and Deep Space Industries, well-known Silicon Valley figures like… Read more →

Changing Work for a Changing Economy: Looking to the Future, Not the Past

This article was originally posted on Huffingtonpost.com Manufacturing jobs, once the backbone of middle class employment, have dwindled to the American economy’s detriment. It’s a fact bemoaned by citizens and politicians alike: jobs that once fueled the nation and its people are outsourced to cheaper laborers overseas or eliminated by advances in technology. If only there were a way to… Read more →

The Internet of Things Promises a Future of Being Coddled by Your Appliances

This article was originally published on Enrepreneur.com and subsequently on Huffingpost.com We interact with countless things each day that support us as we sleep, eat, work and play — the bed we get out of in the morning, the shower head, your toothbrush, the car steering wheel, your watch and your lunchbox. Your stove, blender and refrigerator — you get the picture. What if these objects,… Read more →

The Connected City: Trends and Developments Driving Smart City Innovation

This article was originally posted on Huffingpost.com Human beings have ascended from barbarism into civilization in just 10 million years, thanks in large part to modern science and systems of governance. Urbanization is one of the results of our advancement, with cities representing our technological prowess and the rich culture our species has achieved over millennia. Cities throughout the world… Read more →

Ed Sappin

Businesses Leading The Shift to Low-Carbon Economy

Companies of various sizes and across many industries are taking concrete steps to lower their carbon emissions as consumers focus more on clean and green initiatives and climate change grows increasingly visible. Some companies are driven by core environmental concerns, and many by the fact that low carbon and other green sectors increasingly make good business sense on outright economic… Read more →

4 Steps From Startup to a Growth-Stage Company

You’ve taken the plunge and started a new business. You made it through the first year and turned a profit — congratulations. When an entrepreneur takes an idea and turns it into a profitable business, it’s a cause for celebration. But it’s not enough to just keep doing the same thing — continued success is going to depend on different and evolving strategies. In… Read more →

Thoughts on President Trump’s Economic and Jobs Plans

It has been a week since the bombshell election of 2016. Depending on where you live and your views you are depressed, ecstatic, protesting, hopeful. Putting aside politics for the moment, let’s examine how President Trump’s economic and jobs plans could look: 1) Trying to Bring Back Offshored Jobs to the US I’ve written before about the difficulty of onshoring… Read more →

7 Ways Entrepreneurs Drive Economic Development

Why do entrepreneurship and innovation fuel economic growth? On the surface, the answer seems intuitive: entrepreneurs create businesses and new businesses create jobs, strengthen market competition and increase productivity. Here in the United States, entrepreneurism is part of our American identity and self-image. It’s non-partisan, too; both sides of the political spectrum celebrate entrepreneurial small business as a fount of… Read more →