Silicon Valley company Bloom Energy revealed its heavily hyped and closely guarded solid oxide fuel cell on Wednesday, heralding the technology as a likely clean-tech game-changer. The system is already in use by companies like Google, eBay, FedEx, Staples and Wal-Mart.

Online sites like Babyloan or Kiva have taken the idea of lending small sums to help lift people out of poverty to create a direct personal link between lenders and borrowers.

Microfinance: Trading bread for briquettes—MFIs are a new type of charity. Just because the holidays are over doesn’t mean you have to give up on giving. While supporting traditional environmental charities is a wonderful way to make a difference, you might also want to consider giving to eco-oriented microfinance institutions (MFIs). An MFI differs from a traditional aid program in that it lends, rather than donates, money at a low interest rate, which allows people to invest in small scale entrepreneurial projects of their own choosing.

M&I Marshall & Ilsley Bank is adding to its mobile banking capabilities by launching an iPhone application for retail banking customers.

USAA is offering mobile banking to customers that have Google’s Android-powered smart phones. USAA launched its Deposit@Mobile application for the Apple iPhone last year. Since then, USAA customers have deposited more than $300 million worth of deposits using their iPhones.

Is Mobile Banking Safe: Redefining Mobile Security through App Verification Author: Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com

Time to market has been a well-worn mantra of the electronics industry. Unfortunately it’s been elevated to the level of panacea – and it’s not. Don’t get me wrong. Getting to market early is a good thing. It’s just not the stepping stone to success that it used to be. Today it’s just part of a much more complex equation. Electronics companies and designers need to solve the whole equation in order to survive and remain competitive as a new generation of electronics products begs for creation.

There is a banker who is still feted across the world, collecting accolades and honours wherever he goes. The institution he founded more than 20 years ago is unscathed by the current financial crisis, and his opinion is more sought after than ever before as politicians and economists desperately try to fix our bankrupt system. Muhammad Yunus is to economic development what Nelson Mandela is to world peace.

The former prime minister is attracting wealthy donors to back his health and harmony projects. "The Blairs are using all their resources to tackle things they care about," said Sue Wixley of New Philanthropy Capital, a think tank that connects charities to donors. "In this case, the Blairs' resources are their contacts."

The Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology (ABI) hosted its fourth annual Women of Vision Awards banquet on April 30th to honor three leaders in technology: The evening highlighted the winners' accomplishments and contributions in three areas: Innovation, Leadership and Social Impact.

The Economist Intelligence Unit has released its latest world innovation rankings, which show China climbing up the ranks faster than other countries. But while the emerging markets are moving up the pecking order, the developed world still hogs the top spots. Japan and Switzerland remain first and second respectively. The report includes innovation predictions for the next five years, and more gains for the emerging world are expected. China, India and South Africa will continue to rise. Even so, Japan, the US and European countries such as Switzerland, Finland, Germany and Sweden are expected to retain their top-ten rankings in 2013.

Sean Moroney, chairman of AITEC Africa, whose core business since 1987 has been focussed on ICT publishing, event management, professional development and training in Africa, spoke to Hilary Okeke on the forthcoming AITEC Banking and Payment Technologies Conference and other issues.

The world's major greenhouse gas emitters gathered in Washington D.C last week, trying to lay the groundwork for a global deal to fight climate change, but progress was limited. The two-day major economies meeting on climate change was meant to pave the way for international talks in Copenhagen in December, seeking to forge a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012.

A searchable global map forms the new heart of www.reegle.info, the specialist search engine for renewable energy and energy efficiency. Users can click on a specific location and get the latest events, news, and a sampling of green energy development projects in that area. There is also a catalogue of stakeholders and an energy-oriented profile of the relevant country, including up-to-date statistics and information on local green energy policies and regulations.

A hive of social activity: where French entrepreneurs benefit from collective intelligence. After graduating, Charlotte Hochman worked with several grassroots organisations in India and Brazil, one of which was Village Action. She then launched La Ruche, or ‘The Beehive’ in English, a NGO that is open to anyone proposing an innovative solution to a social or ecological challenge...

The idea all began when Emeka Okafor mused aloud at ned.com, “While the ICT space has developed a head of steam in some parts of Africa… a ‘Maker Philosophy’ is yet to occur. I would be interested in getting a sense of everyone’s thoughts on a Maker type Faire within the continent… an event where Afrigadget type innovations,inventions and initiatives can be brought to life, supported,amplified,propagated etc.” This can be dangerous. Today, along with Afrigadget and the International Development Design Summit - and with a nod from Maker Faire - Maker Faire Africa is moving forward into planning stages for a summer 2009 kick-off.

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a specialized agency of the United Nations, has announced the theme for its annual World Intellectual Property Day to be held on April 26 will be “promoting green innovation as a key element in meeting the challenges of climate change”. In his message to mark the day, WIPO Director General Francis Gurry highlights the contribution that a balanced intellectual property (IP) system can make in enabling the development of technology-based solutions to mitigate the impact of climate change.

The European Microfinance Platform [e-MFP] was founded formally in 2006. They are a growing network of approximately 100 organisations and individuals active in the area of microfinance. Their principal objective is to promote co-operation amongst European microfinance bodies working in developing countries, by facilitating communication and the exchange of information. They are a multi-stakeholder organisation representative of the European microfinance community. e-MFP members include banks, financial institutions, government agencies, NGOs, consultancy firms, researchers and universities.

The Innovation Fund is a special facility within EFInA that seeks to promote innovation in the development and deployment of financial services and thus expand financial access to the underserved population in Nigeria. EFInA will share the risk of developing and implementing new innovations by providing a grant subsidy (up to 50%) for new commercial projects.

“Innovation” is one of those rich words, a word that carries significant weight in our society. It’s a word we immediately recognize, even if we can’t properly define it. But who needs to define innovation? We all know what innovation is. We know what it looks like, where to find it, how to value it, and how to chase it. We can all point to examples of innovation as seen through our eyes: ultra-thin cell phones, shiny MP3 players, new engines in sleek new cars. We see products, ideas, services and toys…and we see innovation, the cool, sleek child of invention.

An industry group recently launched a project to analyse how biometrics could strengthen customer identification and help prevent fraud in the banking industry.

Although Aneesh Chopra is a new name for most, he is well know in Virginia as Governor Tim Kaine's Secretary of Technology. For the Commonwealth, he was charged with leading the state's strategy to effectively leverage technology in government reform. If his strategy for the state can be used as an indicator for his plans in President Obama's administration, you should take a look at Virginia's Strategic Plan for Information Technology.

About one third of the world's people spend nights in darkness, fearful of venturing out, unable to read, cook, sew or do anything else but sleep. But a business man in Houston, Texas named Mark Bent is on a mission to change that with flashlights that use the sun's energy to light up poor homes and villages at night.

Those most in need of new renewable technologies are often least able to raise the finance necessary to fund such development. Now, a new commodities exchange scheme is bringing renewables to the South Pacific using a novel rural payment method. Binu Parthan explains how the scheme works.