Beyond RE-ENERGYSE, the federal government should work to expand these programs into a clean-energy education strategy on par with the National Defense Education Act of 1958, which helped reposition the U.S. in the space race and achieve revolutions in information technology.

FORBES: Racing for Clean-Tech Jobs: Why America Needs an Energy Education Strategy

One is the alt.space movement, which consists of people funding attempts to get into space using money made in the information-technology boom.

ECONOMIST: Lost in space