Oak Ridge National Laboratory recently announced its Global Venture Challenge which will be held on April 2 – 4, 2008.  While the conference will still encompass nanotechnology, it has been broadened to embrace a broader range of technologies.  This year’s focus in on the business of energy.  Like last year’s Nano Nexus, this year’s event will also host an Idea to Product Competition between 12 teams of graduate students in which the winning team will receive a minimum $25,000 cash prize.  The conference will also hold an Energy Venture Showcase in which start-up companies can present their business plans to a panel of leading venture capital investors.