LumaNEXT, a provider of lighting and energy management and a leader in 21st century smart lighting technology, is back from the first international Climate Leader Summit held in Los Angeles, CA, where they participated as invited attendees and exhibitors. Hosted by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, the Summit brought together thought leaders, business owners, government officials and dignitaries to work toward the goal of global reduction in energy emissions. Guest speakers included Vice President Joe Biden, California Governor Jerry Brown and filmmaker/environmental activist James Cameron. Attendees included officials from the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Department of Commerce, business leaders from the U.S. and China, and the newly formed Compact of Mayors, a nationwide coalition of city leaders pledging to address climate change. A special Declaration was signed, stating an unprecedented commitment to decreasing carbon emissions, increasing climate resilience and strengthening bilateral cooperation.

The highlight of the summit was a historic meeting between President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping in which a joint announcement was made declaring each country’s 2020 national climate targets. That meeting resulted in the formation of the United States Smart Cities Alliance, a collaboration of 24 leading U.S. technology companies from the green building sector. Recognized as a leader in the next generation of smart lighting, LumaNEXT was among the small number of select companies in the Smart Cities Alliance invited by the United States government to be part of a trade delegation to China to review new city plan projects. With its knowledge and expertise on the cutting edge of DC-based energy sources and smart distribution systems for lighting and power generation, LumaNEXT was on hand to impart knowledge and offer recommendations to the delegation. Meeting with their Chinese counterparts and touring cities together laid the groundwork for discussing initiatives at the Los Angeles Climate Leaders Summit.

Bob Radcliffe, Vice President of Business Development at LumaNEXT explains further. “Our goal was to learn, network and identify next steps for implementing systems to support many of the China-based initiatives stemming from the benchmarks set by President Obama and President Xi. We were pleased to participate in the Summit and are grateful to be part of the Smart Cities Alliance. Understanding that our technology is a natural fit, we look forward to working collaboratively toward a global reduction in energy use, while establishing energy efficient best practices with DC-based power distribution systems.”

The retail industry is among the largest consumers of energy, a key factor in the invitation of LumaNEXT to join the Smart Cities Alliance. With a smarter and greener distribution system for lighting, LumaNEXT is changing the face of the industry, bringing a similar type of “plug and play” energy efficient approach to the lighting world that has been in practice across other technologies for years, such as televisions and computers. LumaNEXT systems are currently in use or in testing at national retail operations throughout the United States, including Rainbow Shops, Rent-A-Cente®, and Vitamin Shoppe®, In addition to retail, LumaNEXT is also available for other industry sectors and commercial environments. Upcoming for LumaNEXT will be a presentation of its proprietary technology for pilot programs as requested by Karl Kress, Regional Director at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, for East Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and Eurasia Region.