Prosperity NOLA Sustainable Industries Prosperity NOLA is a data-driven plan created by the New Orleans Louisiana Business Alliance

to be completed in 2018. This plan will further Mayor Landrieus vision of a diverse, sustainable, and prosperous economy for all citizens. Prosperity NOLA provides action steps and aligns efforts to make New Orleans more competitive. Prosperity NOLA has taken place in three phases. In the first phase, they commissioned an initiative for Competitive Inner City to develop a body of date to serve as the baseline for the planning process. The second phase, which took place between October 2012 and May 2013, created a strategic advising council of 75 board members to outline a focus for the city. Phase three is the implementation of these plans. Prosperity NOLA determined five industry structures, one of which is sustainable industries. Sustainable Industries, created by Greater New Orleans, Inc., consists of companies that strive to solve environmental issues in construction, energy, waste disposal, and water and natural resource management. This has created around 1700 jobs thus far. SI boasts institutionalized knowledge and hopes to encourage kids to look into jobs that take place along the coast. It was created mainly to help companies manage and profit from environmental issues and challenges such as resource scarcity, rising industry costs, increasing regulatory oversight, environmental risk, and shifting consumer preferences. These issues create the opportunity to develop solutions for these often-talked-about issues. Sustainable Industries plans to create new jobs, increase revenue, and improve the sustainability of the region by creating a cluster of businesses, encouraging local colleges and universities in research, creating a platform for commercialization of innovation and entrepreneurship around sustainable technologies, supporting economically and ecologically healthy communities, and enhancing the regional brand to attract businesses. SAIL Capital Partners recently launched a new capital fund, Louisiana Sustainability Funds (LSF) to invest in clean technologies within Louisiana to invest in large state growth companies with proven technologies that are making significant contributions. The key regional assets of this are: Infrastructure: major port, rail, and interstate systems Manufacturing Assets & Expertise: New Orleans has facilities and a knowledgeable workforce Access to capital: capital entities like LSF prepared to invest in high-growth sustainable businesses. Incentives: federal, state, and local incentives are available to sustain industries.

There are very many incentives available to entice businesses to work with Sustainable Industries. Just to name a few, there is the Gulf Opportunity Zone, which offers a competitive advantage for relocation and expansion in the gulf region; the Industrial Tax Exemption Program, which cuts back taxes for a 10-year period; Louisiana FastStart, which provides customized recruitment, screening, and training to new and expanding companies at no cost;

Modernization Tax Credit, which provides a 5% refundable state tax credit for manufacturers modernizing or upgrading; the Technology Commercialization Credit and Jobs Program, which provides 40% refundable tax credit for companies that invest in the commercialization of Louisiana technology and 6% payroll rebate for the creation of new jobs; and a Research and development tax credit, which provides up to a 40% refundable tax credit for costs related to research and development. Many companies have already taken advantage of this. Blade Dynamics recently moved their company from the United Kingdom to New Orleans to manufacture innovative wind turbine blades. In Norco, LA, Diamond Green Diesel is currently developing a renewable diesel facility. Free Flow Power harnesses the power of the Mississippi River to convert hydrokinetic power to electricity. Dynamic Fuels, out of Geisman, LA, converts non-food-grade animal fats leftover from Tyson into ultra-clean fuels. Success in this field will be determined when New Orleans is recognized for its expertise in these areas.

Resources "ProsperityNOLA." New Orleans Business Alliance. NOLABA, n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2013. <http://nolaba.org/prosperitynola/>. "Sustainable Industries." Greater New Orleans Inc. Mobile. GNO, Inc., n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2013. <http://m.gnoinc.org/sustainable-industries.php>. Sustainable Industries. YouTube. NOLABA, 11 June 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2013. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yqhrlX6quc&feature=youtu.be>.