You can’t put your hand on a noiseless and odorless bank of fuel cells that is pumping out hundreds of kilowatts of power for the building next door and not believe in its potential. Along with others on the Net Impact tour of Bloom Energy, a group of Smeal MBAs met with Bloom representatives, saw (and touched) the technology, asked a lot of questions, and came away believing it’s a serious innovation for energy generation. Bloom’s fuel cell technology is highly reliable and financially viable—both of which are prompting Fortune 500 companies and others to invest in the energy source.

The tour was the opening gambit for the Net Impact 2013 Conference. Smeal MBA Net Impacters joined other business school students and professionals for tours of Google, Tesla, and Bloom, followed by a couple days of panels and networking. Hosted in San Jose this year, the fall conference is the premier venue for b-school students to hear about and discuss the latest business developments in sustainability and social innovation.

By all accounts the conference was as inspiring as it was informative—look no further than the glowing tweets marked by #NI13. The conference took a cue from its surroundings and featured a number of hallmarks of Silicon Valley and the Bay area—startups, panels on investing in sustainable technologies, the latest in food and tech sectors, CSR, microfinancing… all that you would expect and want. Among others, RSF Social Finance spoke to financing options for startups creating social value. Starbucks related their efforts to improve the ESG performance of their supply chain by collaborating with suppliers. Dosomething.org told gripping stories about their social impact campaigns. Smeal was a constant presence in these sessions, taking advantage of the opportunity to hear from and talk with like-minded students and professionals.

Sixteen Smeal MBAs—one of the larger groups from the East Coast—joined the Smeal undergrad Net Impact Chapter, Jerry Sussman (Smeal Professor Emeritus), Ron Johnson (Smeal instructor and undergrad Net Impact faculty lead), and Erik Foley (PSU Sustainability Institute) for the trip out west. The sizable contingent was a signal to the larger community represented at the conference of Smeal’s growing leadership and commitment to the nexus of business and sustainability and social innovation.

Many contacts were made, ideas formed, and energy reignited. And for a number of first-years, connections were forged in pursuit of meaningful summer internships. Current Smeal MBAs also had the opportunity to connect with alums who attended the conference or now work in the Bay Area.

Thank you to the Net Impact folks and to all those representing Smeal for a great conference!