Proposals are invited for virtual presentations at the Sustainability Virtual Summits scheduled for March, September and November of 2010. The three summits will focus on sustainability issues pertaining to the Information and Communications Technology, Smart Business Operations and Smart Infrastructure sectors respectively. Presentation proposals may include new ideas, technologies, strategies, practical outcomes, research and case studies in line with conference themes. All three events are global in scope and participation as an attendee is free of charge. They will feature virtual exhibitions, conferences and keynote speeches in order to save travel time and eliminate associated greenhouse gas emissions.

Marie Hattar, vice president of marketing in Cisco’s Network Systems Solutions group in an interview with LaMonica of CNet stated “Our expectation is that this network will be 100 or 1,000 times larger than the Internet. If you think about it, some homes have Internet access, but some don’t. Everyone has electricity access–all of those homes could potentially be connected.”

This is quite a large helping of hyperbole, possibly the product of an unguarded moment of enthusiasm, but it makes a good headline. Kidding aside the Smart Grid is going to be big business for technology companies. In the same interview Hattar said that Cisco believes that just the communications portion of the Smart Grid represents a $100 billion opportunity — “$20 billion a year over the next five years.”

Michigan’s Tax Credits Lure 4 Advanced Battery Makers Bringing 6,700 Jobs. Mayor Diaz Unveils Energy Smart Miami Program. Walmart to Place Solar Panels on Their Commercial Rooftop Which will Create About 130 Green Jobs in California. Vision Energy’s $1 Billion Wind Bet in Illinois will Create 290 Jobs. Many Private-Sector Companies Not Hiring Green Jobs Yet in Madison.

EPA today released a list of the nation’s top green power purchasers. These organizations are all participants in the EPA’s Green Power Partnership. The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that encourages organizations to buy green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with purchased electricity use. The Partnership currently has hundreds of Partner organizations voluntarily purchasing billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500 companies, small and medium sized businesses, local, state, and federal governments, and colleges and universities. The list this year’s top green power purchasers is led by Intel Corporation, PepsiCo, Kohl’s Department Stores, Dell Inc., Whole Foods Market, The Pepsi Bottling Group, Inc., Johnson & Johnson, U.S. Air Force, Cisco Systems, Inc. and the City of Houston.