The Climate Collective
The Climate Collective is a non-profit focused on unleashing the innovation and entrepreneurial talents of people to solve the myriad environmental challenges that we face in South Asia. For this, the Collective is building local climate entrepreneurship ecosystems throughout South Asia through a regional partnership model to execute programs across the Subcontinent.
The Collective focuses three areas, or “circularities“, where there is a lack of ecological balance — Climate Change, Pollution, and Consumption.
What we do
To solve these problems and strengthen these circularities, the Collective is building an integrated set of platforms and tools ( Startup ) to support climate entrepreneurship holistically throughout early stages of the Startup Journey.
In addition, to strengthen the ecosystem holistically, the Collective is developing educational platforms ( School ) to increase the skills and knowledge of soon-to-be climate entrepreneurs, funding platforms ( Capital ) direct early-stage capital to promising startups, and research programs ( Think ) to provide all stakeholders with research and tools to build a sustainable world through well-developed innovation roadmaps. As well, to increase networking, knowledge sharing, and collaboration, the Collective is working on community solutions ( Presence ) to build online and offline platforms among all stakeholders in climate entrepreneurship.
May Peace radiate there in the whole sky as well as in the vast ethereal space everywhere. May Peace reign all over this earth, in water and in all herbs, trees and creepers. May Peace flow over the whole universe.
– From Yajur Veda 36-17
CIRCULARITIES
The Collective looks at supporting solutions in three imbalances that are contributing to extreme stress on our society and on our planet, and where we need to strength “circularities”…
- Climate Change
- Pollution
- Consumption
Climate Change
Modern society, driven substantially by energy derived from fossil fuels, has significantly altered the way the Earth maintains its energy balance, creating a non-circularity that is leading to significant climate changes. Innovation can play a role in developing new solutions in the transition to energy sustainability… Read More
Pollution
South Asia has seen a significant degradation of our environment, whether in our cities, countryside, rivers and lakes, etc. Much of this is largely due to the lack of closed-loop solutions, or non-circularities, that captures or transforms pollutants before they are released into the environment. Innovation can play a role reduce the polluting nature of many of our products and processes… Read More
Consumption
Although we can innovate and create many ways to become more efficient, in the end we will still face the fundamental problem of too much consumption that may overwhelm nature. To solve this, we need to design new products and solutions that are ‘inherently’ more sustainable (think re-use). More so, we may need to design more than just our products, but also our societies themselves to have sustainability built values… Read More
The most sustainable way is to not make things. The second most sustainable way is to make something very useful, to solve a problem that hasn’t been solved.
– Thomas Sigsgaard
START
The heart of the Collective is the set of startup programs to support climate entrepreneurs. And as climate entrepreneurship is in a nascent stage in South Asia, the Collective is focusing on building an holistic set of platforms across the early-stage startup journey of entrepreneurs, from supporting the imagination of new ideas and innovation to the first commercial pilot or early sales.
- Climate Labs – to help entrepreneurs think and design new and innovation solutions
- Climate Incubation – to help entrepreneurs develop their ideas into working prototypes and business models
- Climate Acceleration – to help startups develop commercial products and solutions and reach out to the market
- Climate Simulators – to help startups develop their products further on testbeds
- Climate Pilots – to help startups attain their first commercial pilot or deployment
- Climate Diffusion – to help startups reach out to customers across South Asia and beyond
Climate Labs
Without the ability to imagine a truly new future, it will be difficult for many stakeholders to support exciting new climate innovation, whether through funding, deployment or policy. The Collective is building new programs to increase imagination capabilities of entrepreneurs and increasing acceptance of new innovation among all stakeholders… Read More
Climate Incubation
Innovation for the environment requires a significant amount of technical expertise and insight coupled with significant entrepreneurial risk-taking to generate promising startups. The Collective supports climate incubators and startup studios across many environmental domains… Read More
Climate Acceleration
From prototype to commercial pilot, the Collective is building an integrated set of accelerator platforms to support promising technologies and ideas… Read More
Climate Pilots
If your startup is ready to deploy but still need to demonstrate benefits to customers, then a high-quality commercial pilot may be required. The Collective is building a platform to connect startups to corporate clients willing to take a chance on an innovative solution to solve a pressing need… Read More
Climate Simulators
For some cleantech startups, technical demonstration of the product is often required before securing sales from clients. However, this is often either expensive or perhaps even not possibble. The Collective will work with corporates, government institutes, and others to set up technical testbeds for cleantech solutions… Read More
Climate Diffusion
For climate and cleantech startups to grow and reach their full potential, they will need more and more markets. The Collective is looking to build platforms to increase diffusion of exciting technologies across South Asia and to international markets, and vice versa… Read More
If you want to see all the Collective startups in our community, Click here
If you want to meet the Collective mentors, Click here
ECOSYSTEM
Without a supporting ecosystem, the potential for climate entrepreneurship in South Asia will be significantly limited.
The Collective is supporting climate entrepreneurship ecosystems in three key ways:
- School – to help climate entrepreneurs learn the technical skills of becoming a startup
- Capital – to help direct early-stage capital to promising climate startups
- Think – to support local governments in creating sufficient space to allow climate startups to thrive
School
Climate and cleantech is a technical field. And without more educational and skilling programs, it will be hard to generate the thousands of climate entrepreneurs needed to innovate and take risks… The Collective is developing programs and tools help support would-be climate entrepreneurs… Read More
Capital
Without early-stage funds, even the most promising climate startups will find it difficult to sustain themselves until they become sustainability on revenues.. The Collective is developing several platforms to increase funding to early-stage climate entrepreneurs…. Read More
Think
Without significant alignment with the government, it will not be easily possible to realize the full potential of climate actions and climate innovation. The Collective is developing policy research to support state and local governments in creating enabling environments to bring climate innovation to the market… Read More
Let us live together; Let us be nourished together; Let us be able to do great deeds together; Let us be brilliant together in our study; Let us be loving; Peace, peace, peace.
– Shanti Mantra
PRESENCE
Although startup and ecosystem programs and tools are necessary, a thriving community of climate startups need platforms and venue to network, share knowledge, and collaborate. The Collective is launching online and offline platforms to strengthen the community:
- Climate Hubs – to bring together the climate and cleantech community into physical community centers in key cities
- Climate Spaces – to extend Climate Hubs virtually to coworking spaces across metros and into smaller cities
- Mosambi – to extend the climate and cleantech community virtually
Climate Hubs
Climate Hubs is a climate and sustainability-focused coworking and community center to strengthen the ecosystem in major metros… Read More
Climate Spaces
Climate Spaces is a coworking partnership platform to extend the benefits of a Climate Hub membership widely in partnership with existing coworking spaces in large metros and smaller towns… Read More
Mosambi
Mosambi is a social network to connect the community virtually, complimenting the on-the-ground presence of Climate Hubs and Climate Spaces… Read More
In addition, the Collective is working on meetups, festivals, job and internship postings, and other community platforms to bring the climate entrepreneurs and other stakeholders together. Please look at Presence for more info.
Mission
The aim of the Climate Collective is to build and support people on the ground who are redesigning our world for sustainability.
History
Although the partners in the Climate Collective have 10-20 years of experience in climate and cleantech, the Collective itself only started in 2017 to build a pan-South Asia platform together.
Team
The team behind the Collective holds it all together.
The best way to predict your future is to create it.
– Abraham Lincoln
Services
If you are looking to for tools to develop corporate innovation programs focused on sustainability, the Climate Collective can work with you in several ways.
Climate Challenges
If you are need a corporate startup challengeto solve a sustainability problem or find new eco markets, a Climate Challenge is for you…
Climate Consultancies
If you need help in developing your own climate innovation programs, we can help you on both design and support in execution.
Climate Intrapreneurship
If you have a talented workforce and looking to unleash their innovative capabilities to solve your sustainability problems or even to develop new products for your clients, the Climate Collective can work with your organization to help leverage your employees into internal climate intrapreneurs
Solutions
If your organization is committed to a strong sustainability goal and needa a comprehensive solution to get there, the Climate Collective can bring a consortium of leading players together to work with you to achieve taat goal
Carbon
If your organization is looking to achieve carbon neutrality by 20XX, the Collective and our partners can help you develop a detailed roadmapg, develop and build energy and data platforms, develop and run renewable energy programs, set up carbon offset prorams, and run innovation programs to achieve the same at the optimal balance of cost and speed.
Circularity
If your organization is looking to becoming 100% circular by 20XX, the Collective and our partners can help you develop the right framework, redesign processes to build in circularity, build a circulate data platform, and run innovation challenges to achieve your goals.
Resilience
If your organization is looking to build up its resilience to climate change risks, both natural and policy-related, the Collective and our partners can help you understand climate change risk, collect data and build a climate risk model, and design strategies to increase resilience in the future.
Climate Collective Network
The Climate Collective Network is an association of climate and cleantech partners throughout South Asia and beyond coming together to build and execute programs to promote climate entrepreneurship locally throughout the region.
M/s APSCC
Since its inception in 2011, APSCC serves as an impetus, not-for-profit, and voluntary organization that envisions a world where campuses and communities are environmentally, ecologically and economically sustainable by successfully addressing all the challenges at a more decentralized level.
- Dr. M. Nandhivarman
CLP Lead - Puducherry
Circular Cities Asia
Circular Cities Asia is an innovation alchemist, with a specialized focus on discovering and nurturing circular economy startups operating in the urban context. Our specialized innovation process facilitates 'learning-by-doing' through live testbedding and addresses the inter-disciplinary nature of innovation in the space.
- Mitali Poovayya
CLP Lead - Karnataka
Circular Cities Asia
Circular Cities Asia is an innovation alchemist, with a specialized focus on discovering and nurturing circular economy startups operating in the urban context. Our specialized innovation process facilitates 'learning-by-doing' through live testbedding and addresses the inter-disciplinary nature of innovation in the space.
- Shiva Susarla
CLP Lead - Karnataka
Unlock Impact
Unlock Impact was founded with a singular mission to help solutions that create social impact scale and create systemic change. We believe that impact-driven entrepreneurs are a key part of the solution to solving social challenges. Our work revolves around providing strategic advisory to get ideas to market and scale.
- Priya Thachadi
CLP Lead - Goa
Unlock Impact
Unlock Impact provides strategic and business advisory to startups who want to create change. We engage with startups on a one-on-one basic on areas like go-to-market stratefy, fundraising, customer acquisition and brand. We also work with startups in partnership with donors and investors.
- Aditi Seshadri
CLP Lead - Goa
Bask Research Foundation
I am an off-grid solar specialist, with a penchant for technology innovation. Former CEO of Boond, a social enterprise in energy access domain, am well versed with off-grid and rooftop solar engineering, supply chain, quality management, financing and policies.
- Simran Grover
CLP Lead - Rajasthan
Sustera Foundation
SUSTERA had organized Climate Leadership Programs locally to find young talents who have been working in the area of climate change and sustainability. They are given a 6-day training on the subject and are motivated to take action.
- Sanju Soman
Lead - Kerala
Bask Research Foundation
BRF provides knowledge platform and technical support to cleantech start-ups.
- Vishal Narula
Lead - Rajasthan
Civitas Sustainability Foundation
We support the local start-ups & ecosystem players by bringing in mentorship, networking and knowledge sharing support. We have successfully organised idea competitions, bootcamps and workshops on promoting social and environment innovations.
- Karan Shah
Lead - Gujurat
SM Renergy (P) Ltd
Having a long and strong presence in Andhra Pradesh, we support start-ups through our existing networks to scale and flourish and also provide a conducive environment through infrastructure and funding.
- Samay Mangalagiri
Lead - Andhra Pradesh
AtWorks
With the Climate Collective, we are partners in running a pan-India multi-city climate acceleration ecosystem to build platforms for climate and clean-tech startups to scale and grow.
- Shravan Shankar
Lead - Tamil Nadu
Real Time Renewables
We work in climate change – renewable energy, water, waste management and are always keen to partner up with other start-ups in similar sector from different parts of the world in search of synergies.
- Siddharth Bishnoi
Lead - Uttar Pradesh
If you want to learn more about the Climate Collective Network, Click here
Our Key Partners
The Collective has partnered with leading global partners who have significant experience in supporting climate entrepreneurship.
ClimateLaunchpad
ClimateLaunchpad is the world’s largest green business competition. As part of ClimateKIC, the European Union’s leading climate innovation initiative, ClimateLaunchpad has grown to more than 54 countries and accelerated over 2000 early-stage cleantech startups since inception.
The Climate Collective has been running ClimateLaunchpad in India since 2017, growing now as well to Sri Lanka, Maldives, and the UAE.
New Energy Nexus
New Energy Nexus is a leader in supporting clean energy startups globally. Having started as California Clean Energy Fund (or CalCEF) in San Francisco, Nexus has expanded to the East Coast of the US, Southeast Asia, and Africa.
The Climate Collective has partnered with Nexus to set up New Energy Nexus India.
The Incubation Network
The Incubation Network, or TIN, is a leading ecosystem building in South and Southeast Asia focused on the menace of plastic pollution. Supported by the Circular Initiative, an initiative of Circulate Capital, and in partnership with Second Muse, the goal of TIN is to support the emergence of a successful startup ecosystem in plastic waste.
The Climate Collective is a member of the Network aiming to support plastic waste startups in India.
Founders
The idea of the Climate Collective came from the Founders of Climate Studio who developed solar and wind projects across India, Asia, and Africa, pivoting to support startups as they saw the need to leverage innovation to accelerate the transition to a greener plane.t
Pratap Raju
Partner
Pratap has been in the climate and cleantech space since 2009. From being one of the pioneers in solar in the early days of the National Solar Mission (24MW commissioned), he has know pivoted to supporting climate and cleantech startups throughout South Asia as one of the necessary and key enablers or a transition to a truly sustainable world. From founding the Climate Collective, he leads, among other things, the Climate Launchpad program in India as well as Nexus South Asia.
He has degrees from Harvard and Oxford.
Pramod Raju
Partner
Pramod Raju has been advising Indian Companies since 2000 as an Investment Banker with UBS Warburg and Goldman Sachs. He has worked with India’s leading infrastructure companies, giving him a deep understanding of the Indian Energy Sector. He founded PR Group, an investment advisory for the infrastructure sector which grew into renewable energy as well as cleantech incubation. Pramod has a B.A. from UPenn and a M.D. from NYU School of Medicine.
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