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Details on how small businesses may benefit from Valley Strong Credit Union’s recent certification by the U.S. Department of the Treasury as a community development financial institution, and access to capital are among topics of this week’s free webinar presented by the Small Business Development Center at CSU Bakersfield.  

Host and SBDC director, Kelly Bearden is joined by Deanna Blaise, Valley Strong’s senior vice president of member business services, and Shontay Smith CDFI director. The pair discuss the recent CDFI certification for the credit union and what opportunities this presents for small businesses.

Economist Mark Evans, an emeritus professor from CSUB joins the webinar with a look at the challenges and opportunities of carbon capture. This marks the 292nd episode of the weekly “Webinar Wednesday” business series that provides news and information helpful to employers and business owners.

The CSU Bakersfield SBDC provides free one-on-one consulting to help small business owners. New and existing businesses can sign up for assistance by clicking here!

TIMESTAMPS Link in bold blue below is where Deanna Blaise with Valley Strong begins 
00:00 Intro
00:31 What’s up today September 27, 2023
02:54 Poll question #1: “Chat GPT is considering going public. What valuation will that be?
05:32 Poll question #2: “What is the revenue that Chat GPT is experiencing in 2023?
06:29 Kelly introduces Dr. Mark Evans, our Webinar Wednesday resident economist
06:55 Dr. Evans begins to speak on: Carbon Capture: Opportunities & Challenges
07:08 Carbon Capture and 2050 Climate Goals
08:36 Direct Air Capture & Carbon Capture Storage
09:02 Two California Green Energy Drivers
10:47 Carbon Capture: The $Value Proposition$
11:46 DAC & CCUS: Opportunities & Headwinds
11:55 Renewable Fuels Production Industry
13:05 Direct Air Capture Industry
14:25 CCS Services Industry for SoCal Region
16:05 Manufacturing Industry
16:42 Thoughts …
17:24 Change is necessary
18:04 Kelly rejoins Dr. Evans
18:28 Capital Corridor: Debt ceiling for small businesses – factors that can limit your raising capital
19:59 SBA Disaster Loan Comparisons
 
22:01 Want to run a day care business? $1,000 start-up grants
22:33 FREE HR Hotline phone numbers for employers by county in CA
22:49 Bakersfield Entrepreneurship Grant Program – Basic Requirements and Process
23:12 Bakersfield Foodservice Management Program
23:43 How to give us feedback on today's webinar!
24:27 Kelly introduces today’s special guest: Deanna Blaise, Valley Strong Credit Union
25:33 Deanna Blaise begins to speak & introduces Shontay Smith, CDFI director at Valley Strong
26:37 Shontay Smith begins her presentation
27:27 Executive Summary
29:09 Our CDFI why
31:04 Our Goals
32:32 Our Plan
33:49 Potential collaboration
34:44 Small Business Loans Funded YTD
36:35 Deanna joins Shontay for discussion
42:12 Kelly rejoins Deanna and Shontay for Questions & Answers
 
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Funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration and a Grant with the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. All opinions, conclusions, and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA or the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact the California SBDC closest to you.