On Aug. 23rd Facebook will be changing the way marketers work with Facebook. This is a reminder that when you use Facebook, you do not own your content. So when Facebook changes, you have to change with them.

The biggest change is the removal of boxes that once appeared in the sidebar. This is where marketers used to be able to add ”Opt-In” boxes for their Constant Contact lists, or badges from Twitter and Skype. Boxes are what allowed people to tie in many components of their social media campaign into their Facebook landing page. They were very powerful. On August 23rd, they’ll be gone. So any content in a Facebook “box” will need to be recreated.

Boxes were also used to appease lawyers. They were where you put “community guidelines” and “rules” to keep everyone out of trouble. Now, this content will have to be moved to the “About” tab or “Info” tab. Neither tab supports FBML, but URLs do turn into hyperlinks, which is nice.

Over time, I think marketers will need to make more use of Facebook Markup Language to get the utility of boxes. FBML is HTML used specifically for Facebook. FBML allows you to create landing pages in Facebook that look and feel just like regular Web pages on the Internet.

If you’ve ever wondered, “how do I make a Facebook page engaging,” this is how. Examples of FBML are Gain detergent, Coca-Cola and Chick-Fil-A. 

Facebook pages will also appear more narrow. If you’ve developed banners or images for Facebook, you may need to resize them. (Did a whole lot of graphic designers just make money?)

If you haven’t figured it out yet, all these changes are to make more room (and provide more value) to Facebook advertisers. Facebook is taking real-estate away from “free sites” and giving it to those willing to pay.

To see an example of the new Facebook page layout, look at a Facebook Event, like the one taking place at  Big Island Seafood Farmer’s Market.

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Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaiʻi (NELHA) at Keahole on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi

It all started at Keahole …

If you live on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi, you may remember the Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) research program at the NELHA Laboratory, sandwiched just makai of Keahole Airport in Kona. For years, this tiny slice of scientifically valuable real estate was the center of the universe for deep ocean and OTEC research, and scientists from around the world descended upon its deep ocean bound pipes to test theory after theory on renewable energy solutions, as well as a myriad of other applications. Although the pipes still remain today for commercial deep ocean water production, the OTEC research pilot facilities were decommissioned and disassembled in the late 90’s once all was said and done and everybody had all the information and scientific data they had come for.

From this crucial period,  a few of these scientists were able to take their findings and perfect a modular power plant design for mass commercial use. One of these scientists was Dr. Stephen Oney: Chief Technology Officer and Executive Vice President at Honolulu based Ocean Engineering And Energy Systems (OCEES). When asked where the technology lies in our present day, Dr. Oney had this to say:

“Today, it’s simply a matter of scaling up; we know that the technology works and because of its modular design, we’ll soon be able build power plants of significant size to fit modern day needs. In the next few years, we should be able to power anything from a small tropical community to larger island populations; it’s all essentially the same design.”

Dr. Oney was a ripe young sponge of a grad student back in the hay-day of OTEC research, and studied  through the University of Hawaiʻi at the Keahole research facility on the Big Island of Hawai‘i. “I was simply in the right place at the right time,” he humbly adds. Today, Dr. Oney is widely recognized himself, as one of the world’s leading experts on deep ocean technologies.

Example of an OTEC plant complex – Image courtesy of OCEES International

Perpetual, Limitless Energy

The resounding advantage to an OTEC power plant is that it is essentially perpetual — once you kick it off, it runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and powers itself from the solar energy stored and replenished from the tropical oceans each day. It’s that simple!  In stark contrast to the more intermittent power sources garnering all of the attention these days, particularly solar and wind.

Although solar and wind are viable and valuable technologies, they share a common drawback – they only work half time, at best! Photovoltaic panels rely on sunshine to produce electricity, and unless you’re at the extreme poles at certain times of the year, they can only average a half day of sun. Same with wind; “If it’s not blowin’, electricity ain’t flowin’.”

Nutrient-Rich Deep Water, Energy Savings

The other highly beneficial attribute of an OTEC power plant is its incredibly useful by-processes. From one OTEC plant a multitude of resources can be produced – the likes of which have never been seen before in such sheer quantity. Starting of course, with the production of electricity to power the plant itself and the grid of the tropical island or city;  millions of gallons per day of fresh desalinated potable drinking water can be produced, simply as part of the energy production process.

Beyond that, since OTEC produces nutrient-rich and pathogen-free deep ocean water, many high-value saltwater species can be cultivated for the rapidly growing industry of aquaculture. Already, a number of cold water species such as Maine lobster and abalone are being successfully farmed in the arid desert of Hawaiʻi’s Kona coast — the last place they would  be expected to survive.

Cold water makes all the difference.  A similar principle applies to chilled-soil agriculture, allowing for the propagation of a plethora of temperate plant species that would otherwise not survive a day in the hot Hawaiian soil. The cold water can also be used to air-condition surrounding homes and businesses, reducing energy consumption by as much as 50 to 90%. Hydrogen can also be produced via electrolysis, using the limitless energy of the ocean, and the resources of the OTEC plant.

Is the time right for OTEC?

OCEES International is at the forefront of what may be one of the greatest natural energy resources this planet has ever seen. Energy leaders have been looking closely at this technology for decades. Is the time ripe to fully leverage this technology? Hawaiʻi offers promising answers for many of the world’s sustainability questions. As the home to many small and growing energy innovators, Hawaiʻi truly is the world’s ideal petri dish.

@oceansforenergy, @alleyesonhawaii

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