Climate Solutions Summit
Our Signature Spring Conference
THE CSS WILL RETURN SPRING 2026
The beginning of student-driven innovation.
What is the Climate Solutions Summit?
In Spring 2023, a coalition of sustainability and business organizations launched the first ever Climate Solutions Summit.
The event explored scaling and implementing clean energy technology in the wake of the Inflation Reduction Act.
The centerpiece of the summit was a cross-disciplinary conference that connected over 150 enthusiastic students with clean energy professionals. The conference featured a keynote speech from Governor Jay Inslee and dynamic panel discussions focused on Disruptive Innovation, Scaling Adoption, and Workforce Development.
The second element was a residential decarbonization case competition. 16 student teams learned about the IRA and proposed solutions to increase the speed and scale of decarbonization projects. Teams presented their ideas to expert judges and the top teams competed in a final round for cash prizes.
The Climate Solutions Summit returned in Spring 2024, featuring a convention on disruptive innovation and community solar.
The event featured a keynote speech from Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson, and speakers such as Washington State Representative David Hackney and Nora Hawkins of the Washington State Department of Commerce.
This year’s case competition was focused on making residential solar renewables accessible and affordable for diverse individuals, where 20 student teams competed for $6,000 in cash prizes.
The Climate Solutions Summit returned again in Spring 2025, featuring a convention about gender equity in the climate space.
The event featured a keynote speech from Kara Hurst, Chief Sustainability Officer at Amazon, and speakers such as Kris Nelson (Senior Director & Head of Sustainable Investing Management, Russell Investments), Lisa Dulude (Director of Sustainability, UW), and Paul Lee (Project Manager, Natural Power).
This year’s case competition focused on developing innovative approaches to advancing gender equity within the climate space. The case charge will task student teams to develop recommendations for a local organization to improve its sustainability initiatives through promoting gender equity and intersectionality.
