Accelerator

“There is such potential for startups to solve some of the world’s biggest problems”

Bronagh Loughlin — Tue, 05 Mar 2024 15:47:34 +0000

“There is such potential for startups to solve some of the world’s biggest problems”

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Start-up

Climate Innovation

Accelerator

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Climate Innovation

Insights with Ashley Shak

Head of Sustainability and Innovation Programmes, Dogpatch Labs

I’m probably one of the few people at Dogpatch who hasn’t worked either at or with a startup previously. My academic background is in international sustainable development, which means that up until recently, my professional experience was primarily within the public sector.

I’ve worked for countless NGOs, non-profits, and government and UN agencies around the world. A lot of people may think that someone working in the non-profit sector versus the startup world is like night and day, but there are a lot of similarities in the personality type that succeeds in both industries.

For instance, there’s a huge amount of passion driving the company or organisation forward, paired with a hugely disproportionate lack of money.

These days at Dogpatch, I can call upon my experience in the development sector to work in similar areas, such as emerging markets and ‘reverse innovation’.

I think, eventually, the non-profit sector will play less of a role in international development, and the problems that need solving will be addressed by startups.

The potential behind using a startup as the solution means the business model can be scaled to other countries facing the same issues and have the money to deal with it.

Ashley Shak Head of Sustainability and Innovation Programmes, Dogpatch Labs

The impact that startups can and will have on the global markets and communities is an unknown quality with huge potential, and I’m looking forward to playing a part in the change here at Dogpatch.

It has been a driver for me to have as wide of an impact as I possibly could because I knew there were so many people out there who wouldn’t have the same opportunities that I have been afforded.

I was lucky enough to travel a lot during my childhood due to having such an international family, from the Netherlands to Brazil and Hawaii. I saw firsthand how different people lived around the world, and it impacted the kind of person I wanted to be, the subjects I studied, and the jobs I took.

I wanted to take advantage of that and chose a field where I would directly put back the work into communities that needed it most.

Sustainability has always been at the core of international aid and development, but it’s only recently become the hot topic to focus on in the tech world.

Now that I work with startups and in tech, I see my job as spreading the understanding that sustainability is way more than just the “green stuff”.

In an industrialised and developed economy like Ireland, it’s easy to focus solely on decarbonisation and net zero goals. However, social issues must not fall to the side.

It is our duty as professionals in the tech space, as individuals with power and resources, to have that positive impact.

Before working at Dogpatch, I was with the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), the UN agency working with the private sector, specifically on corporate sustainability.

When I started looking for a job in Ireland, I learned Dogpatch was about to launch a sustainability initiative, the 2050 Accelerator. This was a match made in heaven since I had been running global sustainability accelerators with the UN for the past couple of years.

I started as a programme manager, and that role evolved over the last year into my recent promotion to Head of Sustainability and Innovation Programmes.

Dogpatch has never had a Head of Sustainability before, but it became apparent that this type of role was needed as our organisation started to play an even bigger role in the space.

Each one of our programmes has a sustainability aspect to it, as our corporate clients all have an overarching sustainability strategy for which they will be held accountable.

I hope that in the future, my role won’t be needed anymore. I envision sustainability becoming so integrated into the daily operations, programmes, and strategy of our company that there doesn’t need to be one single source of truth or expertise in that area.

The 2050 Accelerator is one of the most exciting programmes I’ve ever worked on, and it’s been extremely rewarding to welcome the positive reactions since it launched last spring.

The idea behind this program is that we can have a huge impact on global sustainability goals by accelerating the adoption of new technologies from startups around the world.

2050 Accelerator program launch in Spring 2023. Image: Dogpatch Lab

We want to make Ireland a testbed for sustainability innovation by recruiting global startup talent to work with Irish corporate partners.

By pairing them together, we’re enabling corporates to trial new innovations while startups find a new route to market via new partnerships.

Operating alone, startups may struggle with finding the resources, time and customers to validate and improve their technology.

The 2050 Accelerator facilitates this, and the demand for this type of programme is super high.

What sets the 2050 Accelerator apart from other sustainability programmes out there is the focus on business development for startups.

Through the accelerator, we offer startups the priceless opportunity of partnering up with a corporation to develop paid pilots that will validate their tech.

By focusing on ensuring we can create pilot projects, we are making sure we have a real-life and measurable impact during the accelerator.

For example, BladeBridge, a startup that repurposes wind turbine blades into sustainable infrastructure, began working with ESB through the 2050 Accelerator.

Through the programme, they developed an e-mobility hub to charge and store ESB’s expansive network of e-bikes.

By utilising decommissioned wind turbine blades instead of virgin steel, they support vital key objectives aligned with ESB’s Net Zero goals, such as decarbonisation, the circular economy, and empowering customers to live more sustainably.

BladeBridge is repurposing decommissioned wind turbine blades into sustainable infrastructure. Image: BladeBridge

Collaborating with ESB in the 2050 Accelerator also means that we are connecting startups who need access to wind farms, telecommunication poles, e-mobility hubs, and more for their pilots. What Ireland lacks in geographical size, it makes up for in its connectedness.

That is something that Dogpatch has tapped into since its inception, working to create the most connected tech ecosystem in Ireland (and beyond!).

That connectedness is something that will become increasingly important in our efforts to tackle sustainability issues that plague all industries, markets, and communities.

Our response to climate change will have to be quick, efficient, and extremely risky, and these are all characteristics that startups and entrepreneurs embody every day.

Hearing about the most recent political conflicts, natural disasters, or social justice issues in the news can negatively affect the newest generation of business leaders.

The relentless grit and ambition of an entrepreneur are why there is such potential for startups to solve some of the world’s biggest problems.

We had a minister come in and speak at one of our sustainability events and told the audience that with every new policy and regulation his department introduced, that was an opportunity for an entrepreneur to create a new startup.

This is the type of thinking that will propel Ireland forward as a testbed for sustainability innovation, with Dogpatch creating those synergies between government, industry, and startups to get us there.

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Call for entrepreneurs driving circular city transformations

Business Spirit News reporting — Thu, 24 Mar 2022 12:47:33 +0000

Call for entrepreneurs driving circular city transformations

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Start-up teams with innovative circular economy solutions in urban areas are invited to apply to the Circular Cities accelerator program.

The Circular Cities ClimAccelerator public-private initiative offers an extensive programme and funding for entrepreneurs driving the transformation of cities to become more sustainable and climate-resilient.

Start-ups are invited to submit their projects focusing on a circular solution in the textile, food, tourism, mobility, construction sectors and other relevant areas.

“The Circular Cities ClimAccelerator helped us not only to connect to other leaders in this area, but also to connect to relevant stakeholders such as cities to create valuable partnerships,”

says Dominik Campanella, Co-Founder of Concular, and participant of the previous Circular Cities program.

Proposed business solutions need to be scalable in urban areas, particularly to the markets of the partner cities of the program, which includes Dublin, Berlin and potentially other large cities.

Selected teams will go through three stages: working on their business strategy, market validation, and investment readiness.

At the first stage, 25 teams will be supported with €3.000 per team, then 15 teams will continue the next phase when they will each receive up to €15.000 grant.

The final module will be an invite-only option for the best ten projects to present their ideas to investors.

Application is open until 10 April to enterprises with an advanced business model and minimum viable product with a legal entity registered no longer than five years in Europe.

The duration of the program is eight months, starting on 25 April and closing with a demo day on 02 December 2022.

The Circular Cities ClimAccelerator program is managed by Climate-KIC, Luvent Consulting GmbH, DTU - Technical University of Denmark, UPS, Trinity College Dublin, Trinity's Ideas Workspace, Veolia and primeCROWD investment group.

Headline image: CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash

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Dutch Impact Accelerator program open for applications

Business Spirit News reporting — Wed, 09 Mar 2022 12:51:22 +0000

Dutch Impact Accelerator program open for applications

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Start-ups who combine ‘doing good and doing business’ can join an intense hybrid program in The Netherlands that will enable them to grow faster.

Two key players, ImpactCity The Hague and Startupbootcamp launched a joint initiative focusing on increasing the growth of sustainable start-ups in The Netherlands and strengthening the position of The Hague as the leader in building the impact ecosystem in Europe.

The ImpactCity Accelerator program is open to impact innovators already based in or those planning to establish themselves in The Hague.

“The city invests in an attractive climate for start-ups and has acquired a recognizable economic profile with ImpactCity,” says Saskia Bruines, alderman at the Municipality of The Hague.

Ten selected start-ups will get the chance to work on de-risking their value proposition and find the best way to solve a problem while also focusing on their growth strategy to scale their model.

Introduction of the ImpactCity Accelerator

The intense hybrid program will take place mainly online but will also use the facilities of ImpactCity The Hague for in-person activities.

Mercedes de Miranda, Director of Business Development at Startupbootcamp see The Hague as an outstanding place ‘when it comes to the number of impact start-up entrepreneurs who work for a better world.”

She highlighted that they came on board as partners based on their overwhelmingly positive experience at the ImpactFest in 2021, the flagship event of ImpactCity and the largest event in Europe where sustainable, innovative parties come together.

Application is open until 11th March, and sessions will be held from April to the end of June.

Throughout the three months, entrepreneurs are matched with mentors and get the chance to access a worldwide network.

At the final Demo Day event, participants get to present their work to ImpactCity, investors, potential partners and other stakeholders.

Headline image: ImpactCity The Hague

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Business accelerator calls for scaling ocean-focused startups

Bronagh Loughlin — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 11:58:23 +0000

Business accelerator calls for scaling ocean-focused startups

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The Sustainable Ocean Alliance is currently accepting applications for scaling ocean-focused startups.

The Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) is currently accepting applications for scaling ocean-focused startups.

It is a first-of-its-kind initiative for future thinkers with any idea that will solve some of the critical ocean challenges we face today.

The application is open for founders with a profit-oriented, market-driven, ocean-related solution.

The Ocean Solutions Accelerator programme supports startups in developing scalable solutions while addressing the United Nation’s (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets.

They are in their third year of accelerating startups, and throughout that time, they have worked with 29 companies from 12 countries and raised approximately $20 million in follow-on funding.

Ocean Solutions Accelerator programme

Their 2020 Accelerator Programme saw 9 startups from 7 different countries participating in the first all-virtual Accelerator programme, culminating in the most well-attended Demo Day yet.

Over just 4 weeks, entrepreneurs participated in 35 sessions featuring 29 speakers and facilitators and made more than 60 new connections with SOA mentors.

Daniela Fernandez, CEO and Founder of Sustainable Ocean Alliance, says,

“Being an ocean tech entrepreneur, it’s not easy because it hasn’t been done before. We have to work with one another to build it. And that’s what we’re here for, to put all those pieces together for you.”

Some previous startups they have worked with include the first company to make compostable materials derived from seaweed as a plastic alternative, Loliware.

They created the term ‘Hyper-compostable' to reflect on innovative material they designed that allows their products to break down at the same rate as food waste in compost or in the natural environment.

This makes an important distinction from the widely used corn bioplastic (PLA), which is only compostable in an industrial setting.

Another startup that participated in the SOA Accelerator programme is called BlockCycle in Australia, targeted plastics with waste-to-value marketplace using blockchain technology, famously associated with cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin.

Innovative recycled plastic materials and products are trending

Craig Dudenhoeffer, Chief Innovation Officer and Co-Founder at SOA, says, “We get a lot of applications from people saying I am turning ocean plastic into skateboards, I am turning fishing nets into blank.

One good example of a company that then stands out is Ocean Works, it’s enabling technology that we think could actually transform and create a new market for plastic and spur new innovations around what we do with that.

That’s an example of something we didn’t know we were looking for.”

Applying startup's solution must be feasible, scalable, and solving real issues in the ocean sector and work towards improving ocean health.

With an ambitious team, enterprises must have a plan for generating revenue, potentially with initial traction of customers or investors already.

Throughout the programme, founders receive guidance from SOA’s community as they engage with mentors, partners, and potential funders to achieve their goals.

The Ocean Solutions Accelerator will also present founders with a rigorous curriculum that encourages personal development and executive training with a range of world-class facilitators and pitch coaches.

The programmes include virtual Demo Days, connecting entrepreneurs with more investors, mentors and industry experts.

Besides, SOA routinely provides opportunities to gain exposure from its extensive social media network and connections to industry events.

Brandon Levy, Programme Director, says,

“At one point, it’s humbling but also empowering, knowing that as individuals, entrepreneurs and leaders, we can match the challenge with our own ingenuity, and that’s really what SOA is all about.

We are a community of empowered change-makers who are doing what we think is important; what we know is important.”

Headline image: Photo by Pok Rie from Pexels

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