BERKELEY, Calif., Feb. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- UC Berkeley Extension to Host Expert Panel on Future of Solar and Renewable Energy Industry on February 12th.

BERKELEY, Calif., Feb. 3 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- California's solar and renewable energy industry continues to grow dramatically, despite the current financial crisis. The amount of investment in clean tech in the state nearly doubled from 2007 to 2008, reaching as high as $3.3 billion, according to the 2009 California Green Innovation Index, which reported that the state also holds 38 percent of the nationwide solar energy patent registrations made in recent years. "Solar installations under the California Solar Initiative were up 100% in 2008, with the last quarter being among the busiest on record," says Adam Browning, Executive Director of Vote Solar.

Browning will be part of an industry panel discussing the future of solar and renewable energy for California businesses, jobs, and government agencies. The free event will be held on February 12 at 7 pm at UC Berkeley's Alumni House and is sponsored by UC Berkeley Extension which offers a professional program in sustainable energy management.

The event brings together experts from both the private and public sectors of California's solar industry, including Chuck Hornbrook of PG&E, Sue Katley of Calseia, Doug Payne of Regrid Power and Gianluca Signorelli of MMA Renewable Ventures, to discuss the impact of public policy in the state, including HR 1424, and the potential for job growth in the sector. In addition, energy program officers from the City of San Jose and the City of Berkeley will discuss their cities' innovative energy programs and plans for expanding solar power to city residents.

Jobs at green companies in California grew 10 percent over the past two years, and UC Berkeley Extension has created professional programs to meet the need for education in this expanding sector. "Whether you're an architect, engineer, contractor, energy consultant or entrepreneur, renewable energy and sustainability education is a growing need," says Stephen Chan, Program Director of Sustainability Management & Systems at UC Berkeley Extension. "We've created an interdisciplinary approach to provide practical sustainability knowledge to professionals and businesses. Our certificate programs and courses highlight corporate management skills as well as clean technology, green building design and construction, energy, water and natural resources, land use planning, transportation," says Chan, who has a mechanical engineering degree from MIT and twenty years of international management experience in sustainable and technology industries.

For more about this free event and UC Berkeley Extension's sustainability programs, visit www.unex.berkeley.edu/gogreen.

Founded in 1891, UC Berkeley Extension is the continuing education branch of the University of California Berkeley. Today, Extension offers 1,500 courses each year, including online courses, along with more than 30 certificate and professional programs. Free and low-cost public programs are also frequently offered as a community service.

Web site: www.unex.berkeley.edu/gogreen/

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