A year after participating in ClimateLaunchpad, alumni from the 2023 cohort report that the programme brought about some of the biggest mind shifts they’d ever experienced. Here’s a look at how ClimateLaunchpad’s unique approach has reshaped these startups. Get the right product For many, the ClimateLaunchpad journey began with ambitious, but loosely defined, ideas. As… Read more »

One of the biggest challenges that start-ups face is navigating the financial side of their businesses. Securing funding can often feel like an uphill battle, yet it’s not impossible. Just look at our participants! It’s truly exciting to witness how our ClimateLaunchpad start-ups are thriving and securing significant funding. This not only underscores the value… Read more »

Among all the teams that managed to secure a top 3 spot in their Regional Final, there was one expression shared by everyone: pure joy! Ok, and a bit of pride too, but happiness clearly took centre stage in the first few minutes after the jury’s announcement. And no wonder—they outperformed over 1,100 start-ups in… Read more »

Behind the scenes of the ClimateLaunchpad programme* We often say it: ClimateLaunchpad is so much more than just a competition. It’s a journey, one that teaches start-ups how to build and sustain a successful business. It’s almost like the Olympics – participation is often more valuable than winning. While it’s great to have innovative ideas… Read more »

Green Entrepreneur Trend #2 2024 Not every green start-up has a technical fix for climate change. While many focus on transforming industries like fashion, this year we’ve seen an inspiring influx of applications centred around raising awareness, education, and empowering individuals to take action themselves. The thing is, how can people adopt sustainable habits if… Read more »

Five essential lessons from former participants: ClimateLaunchpad is a competition, of course. But it’s so much more than that. We offer start-ups and entrepreneurs a unique opportunity not just to compete for the top prize, but to learn how to turn their sustainable ideas into successful businesses. Even if you don’t win, you’ll gain invaluable… Read more »

Green Entrepreneur Trend #1 2024 Each year, we are amazed by the innovative ideas submitted by sustainable entrepreneurs. This year, we’ve seen a remarkable surge in proposals aimed at revolutionising our relationship with clothing. And it’s no wonder—the fashion industry is a major polluter, and our throwaway culture means we’re discarding our garments faster than… Read more »

The idea that cleantech solutions are always complex is often not true. The story of SWEDO Innovations proves this. With a relatively simple product, their brand of bio fire combs reduces coal usage while boosting the well-being and independence of women and young people. In Uganda, many people still cook with charcoal. This is harmful… Read more »

Would you like to meet a persistent and passionate cleantech entrepreneur? We are pleased to introduce you to Nigerian microbiologist Olatunbosun Obayomi. For 20 years, he has been dedicated to converting waste into clean energy. Now, the time seems right to transform his visionary idea into a viable business. A quick Google search for Olatunbosun… Read more »

Hey all,  We are delighted to invite you to the five upcoming ClimateBasics Learning Sessions.   Join EIT Climate-KIC subject experts as they take you through these important issues around climate change in an interactive and accessible way. Buckle up and learn about the challenges and the opportunities, and what it means for you, your business,… Read more »

Every winner of this green competition entered the contest with just one great cleantech idea and lots (lots!) of drive. The trick is to transform these ingredients into a thriving start-up. To help you do the same, the winners of the Regional Finals 2023 share with you their biggest learnings. Charish your passion “Having passion… Read more »

Preventing good stuff from being wasted, contributes to sustainability in so many ways. Perhaps this is why waste prevention inspired many competitors of the 2023 edition of ClimateLaunchpad. The inventive minds of ClimateLaunchpad competitors produce a myriad of solutions to contribute to global green business. They augment food systems, enhance green mobility, clear paths towards… Read more »

Hey all, Blue Economy and Adaptation & Resilience are key climate topics of our time (and of our ClimateLaunchpad themes).  We are delighted to invite you to three upcoming ClimateBasics Learning Sessions.  Join EIT Climate-KIC subject experts Maria Loloni and Ayoub Derdabi as they take you through these important issues around climate change in an interactive… Read more »

When will we phase out fossil fuels? When will global emissions reach their peak? Who is going to finance the loss and damage fund? These are some of the pressing questions that remain after the most recent edition of the UN Global Climate Summit (aka. COP27) In its Emissions Gap Report 2022, the UN states… Read more »

Starting a new business gives you the unique opportunity to build your own powerful and diverse team. Diversity is important. Each team member brings its own voice, background and vibe. And: it makes the market-fit for your start-up more suitable Watch The Power of Diversity in Climate Innovation Panel for interesting perspectives. With: Sara Eve… Read more »

It costs time and money to develop and scale up much-needed disruptive ideas – how can we do it smarter? Tony Ofori, Director, Sustainable Finance Group at Bank of America, believes it is important to invest in green start-ups in our mission to Net Zero. At the Regional Final Europe, he explained why and gave… Read more »

What you toss in the trash can without a second thought could be worth so much more. Just take a look at the finalists in ClimateLaunchpad, the global green business competition. Within the competition, all kinds of ideas come forward, such as extracting energy from the sea, using deep tech to monitor agricultural factors, or… Read more »

“Engineers have an optimism bias,” dr. Gerdien de Vries said in her keynote : It’s hard to be green. Reality check. Of course we – climate innovators – are thrilled about our green innovations and ideas. But how do we convince people to buy or use our inventions? Even if we know our customers want… Read more »

The ClimateLaunchpad Quarterly is a periodic global update on all things climate & cleantech. Sharpen your mind and get yourself up to speed with just one read. World leaders are setting the course During the largest virtual gathering of world leaders to date, the US-hosted climate summit last April saw 40 countries discuss their objectives… Read more »

Bridging the gap from ideation to enterprise A green and clean future demands thousands of innovations challenging old business models. That is why it is our mission to unlock the world’s cleantech ideas. We support the teams behind those ideas. With our local partners around the globe we offer training, coaching, skills and networking opportunities. Creating impact… Read more »

Nima Tisdall and Christine Hebert want to change the way fish is bought and sold. With their app Blue Lobster, the co-founders and Climate Launchpad 2019 alumni enable fishermen to cut out middlemen and sell directly to restaurants and consumers. Their digital marketplace is catching on. “On average”, says Nima, “there are six handling stages between… Read more »

How to succeed as a start-up in these digital times The pandemic has presented the global business landscape with enormous challenges. Even though of course we all crave the ‘old normal’, there is also a lot of energy and creativity in the ways we see start-ups adapt to the ‘new normal’. The pandemic is used… Read more »

How local solutions fix climate change Climate change is caused locally and cumulates into a global problem. For a large part the answers can be found locally and cumulate into global impact. That is why we support early-stage entrepreneurs across the globe and why we partner up with local initiatives to run our competition. Global… Read more »

By Catherine Early. (This article originally featured in our event magazine the CLP Daily #4. Michael Liebreich was one of the speakers at ClimateLaunchpad Global Grand Final, 2 October 2020) Clean energy tech guru Michael Liebreich tells ClimateLaunchpad Daily about the early years of setting up his business, and what being an entrepreneur has in… Read more »

The tailored roadmap to regenerative farming During our 2020 Global Grand Final they pitched themselves to win 2nd place. An amazing accomplishment considering the fact that the project was only born last June. We are of course talking about SOSEI from Uruguay. What they do? SOSEI provides tailored solutions to help farmers ease into regenerative… Read more »

We are extremely proud of the way we’ve been able to keep our ClimateLaunchpad show on the (digital) road this year. We never expected to grow our impact in 2020. But somehow we did: over 3,000 ideas were entered in 56 countries. Due to some regional reshuffling and the Zoom format the amount of Boot… Read more »

By Lucy Woods. (This article originally featured in our event magazine the CLP Daily #3. Michelle Winthrop was on the jury for ClimateLaunchpad Global Grand Final, 2 October 2020) ClimateLaunchpad Daily talks with Michelle Winthrop, Director of Policy at Irish Aid – a part of Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs. “If you are serious about… Read more »

‘Made with carbon emissions’ Carbon Craft Design creates tiles by upcycling carbon emissions They won third place during our 2020 Global Grand Final. Mumbai based start-up Carbon Craft Design works on upcycling solutions for architects, businesses and consumers. They launched the Carbon Tile this year, as their first product where design meets sustainability. With every… Read more »

By Catherine Early. (This article originally featured in our event magazine the CLP Daily #3) Start-ups should measure the impact of a product in the early stages to test assumptions and evolve their thinking. Product design, marketing, business plans, investment potential…there are many things occupying an entrepreneurs’ thoughts in the early days. Measuring their start-up’s… Read more »