Reusable shipping bags made from recycled truck tarpaulins, mobile distillation of essential oils directly in the forest or energy generation from the movement of motor vehicles: the ten best climate-friendly business ideas – selected by an expert jury – from Greenstart (start-up initiative of the climate and energy fund in cooperation with the Ministry of Climate Protection) are certain. The founders can look forward to starting capital of 10,000 euros. In addition, they will receive professional support from Greenstart over the next few months in order to turn their ideas into marketable business models.
“This year, the ten award-winning startups once again show a wealth of ideas with which young companies are working towards a resilient and climate-friendly future. I am enthusiastic about these innovative and original solutions, we need exactly such visions. I wish the startups every success,” says Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler. On May 23, the top 10 presented their business ideas in short pitches for the first time at the Greenstart Kick-Off Event in the Impact Hub Vienna.
Greenstart 2022: These are the winning startups of the year
These are the ten startups in this year’s Greenstart program
2nd Cycle – Second Lifecycle for PV-Modules
Rapid further developments in photovoltaic modules make so-called “repowering” (the replacement of PV modules) more and more attractive for system operators. The reverse flow of used PV modules will therefore increase exponentially in the coming years. These will include defective PV modules, but also many technically flawless ones. For these reasons, an efficient process is needed that cleans, tests and, if necessary, repairs used PV modules. This is exactly where the startup 2nd Cycle comes in, which develops an automatic upcycling system for used PV modules and thus enables PV modules to have a second life cycle.
BergWind cable car power plants
BergWind-GmbH (in formation) develops wind turbines for the mountains. The wind turbines can be mounted on drag lifts, chair lifts and gondola lifts without complex towers, cranes or helicopter transport. The startup uses the existing cable car infrastructure. This should make it possible to generate electricity outside of operating hours without affecting seasonal operation. The company is aimed at ski areas, mountain railway operators and communities that want to use more renewable energies.
Circle One
Circle One produces reusable shipping bags from old EU-standard truck tarpaulins and rents them out to online shops. The shipping bags that have already been developed are returned via an automated system in supermarkets and drugstores. The young company charges a deposit for each shipping bag. This serves to amortize the acquisition costs in the event of a loss and to provide an incentive for the return.
co2ol catalyst
co2ol catalyst enables the recycling of CO2 emissions into methanol, a valuable raw material for the chemical industry. Methanol is one of the most important basic chemicals and has a wide range of applications, for example as a fuel additive or in further processing into high-quality materials. The technology is based on a new type of catalyst material developed by researchers at TU Wien. It is now to be used not only in the laboratory, but also in the chemical, steel and cement industries.
cobee – Existing buildings as the key to the energy transition
The digital platform cobee acts as an accelerator for renewable energy projects in existing buildings. It helps to enable the leap from the idea to implementation, with the earliest possible involvement of relevant stakeholders. All information and tools are available via the platform. cobee helps to understand the ecological and economic potential of renewable energy in buildings, to define clear project goals, to increase acceptance for them among stakeholders and to find implementation partners.
InFraReD – Intelligent Framework for Resilient Design
Environmental simulations for urban planning measures play a key role in understanding the impact of rapid urbanization on the climate of our cities. The digital platform InFraReD, a spin-off of AIT (Austrian Institute of Technology), makes these complex and computationally intensive simulations of environmental conditions accessible to everyone. Using AI-supported real-time simulations, the interaction between mobility and microclimate can be analyzed and different variants run through.
Kesselwerk – Mobile distillation of essential oils and hydrolates
Kesselwerk practices the mobile steam distillation of essential oils and hydrosols for farmers in herb cultivation and forestry. Immediately after the herb harvest or a felling in the forest, the startup visits the producers and processes the fresh plant material. This is to ensure the best product quality in the essential oil and hydrolate. In addition, Kesselwerk wants to create value from unusable raw materials and enable farmers to step into the new and growing market.
MILA hands-on supermarket
The MILA cooperative promotes the sustainable and climate-friendly purchase of everyday goods. In the MILA hands-on supermarket, there should be high-quality food at fair, low prices for all members. In addition to organic, regional and handcrafted food, everyday products are also on offer. In order to be able to offer these high-quality products at affordable prices, all members work together in the supermarket. Through the cooperative, the members own their supermarket. They make decisions together, help shape the supermarket in various working groups and work together on the shifts.
REPS (Road Energy Production System)
REPS stands for “Road Energy Production System” and converts previously lost energy – specifically the vertically acting force – from motor vehicles into clean electricity. The floor panels from REPS absorb the kinetic energy of vehicles driving over them in the interior and convert this into electricity using a special mechanism. This can be used directly or fed into the power grid.
uptraded
uptraded meets the need of young adults to keep their wardrobe up to date in a simple and sustainable way. The idea: via the platform, users can exchange their unused clothing with the clothing of other users. The app combines the successful swipe & match principle of dating apps with the offer of peer-to-peer second-hand platforms. The use of optimized matching algorithms should result in maximum added value.
#believeinyourself Challenge: REEDuce is Startup of the Year 2023
Greenstart pitching competition in the fall
“The climate fund has already been able to support 70 start-ups on their way in recent years, many of which are very successful in the market today. You make a significant contribution to making our economy climate-friendly and, very specifically, to saving greenhouse gases,” says Bernd Vogl, Managing Director of the Climate and Energy Fund. The ten startups will now receive support for six months in the form of workshops, coaching, targeted public relations work, expert support and financial support.
In the fall of 2023, the Greenstart start-ups will face another expert jury, which will evaluate their progress. The public then chooses their three favorites by means of online voting. In November 2023, the top 3 startups will be awarded an additional 20,000 euros as support for their business plans and presented to the public at the release event.