Sigma Nu Tau Entrepreneurship Honor Society Inc’s Post

⏰ It’s almost time! The Solar Prize Round 8 submission deadline is Sept. 26. Do you have a bright idea to make #solar better in the U.S.? The #AmericanSolar Prize offers a $4.2M+ prize pool of non-dilutive funding, plus access to business support and other critical resources for #startups. This round also includes the optional Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (#JEDI) Contest with a $200,000 prize pool available to competitors focusing on advancing solar in underserved communities. Plus, up to 10 teams can win funding in the Power Up Contest, designed to support and advance new and diverse teams that have compelling applications but aren’t selected to advance to the Set! Contest. It's not too late to apply! Learn more and submit your application before the 5 p.m. ET deadline on Sept. 26: https://lnkd.in/ePVdKHnW #AmericanMade #AmericanSolar

One of the biggest pre-budget announcements was the Future Made In Australia policy, designed to foster #investment into priority industries in #Australia. What wasn’t divulged was a $1.7 billion #innovation fund aimed at early-stage development. The 2024-25 budget papers are somewhat vague regarding specifics, but do state the #funding will support “innovation, #commercialisation, pilot and demonstration projects and early stage development in priority sectors”. The papers specifically call out renewable #hydrogen, #GreenMetals, #LowCarbon liquid fuels and #CleanEnergy #manufacturing such as batteries as target areas for the fund. Read more at: https://lnkd.in/dVkYykiz

Congrats to Third Derivative companies CalWave Inc., Capture6, and NxLite (Formerly 3E Nano Inc) for being named to the Cleantech 50! The Cleantech Group 50 recognizes leading early-stage startups combating climate change across the full range of sectors, from renewable energy to sustainable materials to natural resources. It's rewarding to see Third Derivative specifically highlighted for the impact it's having on the cleantech / climate tech landscape, alongside Breakthrough Energy Fellows and other outstanding programs. "For the second year in a row, we saw at least 3 participants in Third Derivative (NXLite, Calwave, Capture6) and Breakthrough Energy Fellows (Nitrovolt, Rift, Macrocycle, HyperHeat) programs land on the list, indicating the global competitiveness of the companies accepted to and graduating out of those programs." The innovation and impact potential of these startups is inspiring. CalWave is unlocking the power of the ocean by developing reliable, cost-effective ocean wave technologies for sustainable energy access. Capture6 is building scalable technology that removes CO2 from the atmosphere while producing additional freshwater for local communities. Nxlite is creating innovative coatings for windows and transparent barriers - dramatically reducing energy consumption, with products that can be applied to existing structures. I'm honored to serve as a mentor with Third Derivative and help accelerate the growth of pioneering companies like these. Congrats to all the startups recognized in this report! Cleantech 50 report: www(dot)cleantech(dot)com/50towatch/ RMI New Energy Nexus

In a significant boost to Nigeria’s clean energy landscape, Madica, a prominent investment initiative, has announced its financial backing of Earthbond, a groundbreaking climate technology enterprise. Earthbond’s innovative platform connects small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with affordable solar energy solutions, financing options, and certified installation professionals. This strategic investment is poised to catalyze Earthbond’s growth, enabling the startup to expand its services and scale up operations. With ambitious goals to facilitate $10 million in specialized loans and introduce carbon credit discounts, Earthbond is set to revolutionize Nigeria’s $14 billion off-grid generator market. MedicaEarthboundClimate https://lnkd.in/dgTSk_Zs

Next week I will be representing Vireo Ventures at the SolarPower Europe Summit 2024 in #Brussels, the flagship event of SolarPower Europe. This gathering will bring together over 450 senior industry leaders and decision makers from across the EU and beyond to focus on the strategic, policy and market developments that are critical to the future of solar power in Europe. I am particularly honoured to join Jenny Chase, Michael Schmela and Stefan Mueller on the judging panel for the Solar Startup Award, which recognises innovative companies that are driving the growth and sustainability of the solar sector. The finalists are: SOLAR MATERIALS: Specialising in the recycling of crystalline silicon solar panels, this startup excels in the recovery of all raw materials, with a particular focus on silver. Their process aims to offer low recycling fees to their customers, which include solar farm operators and module manufacturers, by maximising the value recovered from discarded panels. encentive GmbH: Using AI-based data analytics and automation, Encentive offers a solution that can reduce energy costs in industry and logistics by up to 20% and significantly reduce CO2 emissions. Their system optimises power demand to match the availability of green power, creating a sustainable shift in energy consumption patterns. LIFEPOWR: Since 2015, LIFEPOWR has been at the forefront of solving energy challenges. Their advanced control algorithms for distributed energy storage and charging points deliver significant benefits to homes, businesses and society by stabilising electricity grids. Their FlexiO product intelligently controls the flow of energy into buildings, reducing costs for consumers and facilitating a carbon neutral electricity system. If you are also planning to attend the Summit and would like to catch up, please ping me! I look forward to both contributing to and learning from the dynamic discussions that will shape the future of solar in Europe.

🌞 Have you checked out SolarHub's comprehensive plan to bridge research and industry through their Acceleration Programme? Here’s what it entails. 🚀 SolarHub Ignition (2024): Starting with an Open Call by the end of April, this first stage aims to engage early-stage startups, entrepreneurs, researchers, and research teams focused on solar energy. 📈 SolarHub Momentum (2025) and SolarHub Synergies (2026) will follow, each designed to further catalyse growth and collaboration. The SolarHub Acceleration Programme offers: 🔸 Training and Education 🔸 Mentoring and Coaching 🔸 Networking 🔸 Access to Cutting-Edge Solar Technologies 🔸 Market Entry and Expansion Support 🔸 Sustainability and Growth Focused Learn more: https://lnkd.in/d-btNjm8 #energytransition #decarbonisation #renewables #solar #solarenergy #solarhub #solarthermal #solarheat #acceleratorprogram #innovation

Win 50 000€ prize to develop your idea! Fortum Spark Innovation Challenge: Side Event at Slush 2024. Deadline for submissions 29.9.2024 Read more: https://lnkd.in/dwi552sc Fortum Spark is an idea competition for visionary innovators, early-stage startups, and future founders, who we can support to incubate their ideas towards success. Final pitching will take place in Fortum’s Side Event in Slush 2024. We are looking for innovative ideas and solutions to drive electrification and decarbonisation and to support flexible energy systems. Challenge prize consists of monetary prize of up to a total of 50k€ and 6 month incubation support to develop your idea further. All submitted ideas will be evaluated based on these four overall criteria: Fit for set Challenge Themes – Technological and/or – business model novelty – Scalability – Nordic proximity     CHALLENGE THEMES  The energy sector is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by the urgent need to tackle climate change. This change is accelerating, and no organization can navigate it alone—collaboration is crucial. We are seeking impactful ideas and solutions on these two challenges:   Challenge 1: ELECTRIFICATION AND DECARBONISATION Climate change continues to be one of the greatest challenges of our time. A lot has already been done to decarbonize and electrify our society, but all the necessary solutions do not exist yet. No stone can be left unturned to find solutions that can make a real impact. What else can we do together for faster electrification and decarbonization?   Challenge 2: ENERGY SYSTEM VOLATILITY The amount of renewable energy is growing, thanks to the continued efforts to decarbonize energy production. At the same time, electricity prices have become volatile and unpredictable, creating both challenges and opportunities for energy users. So far, we have only seen a fraction of the solutions to deal with this situation. What else can we do together to manage energy market volatity? SCHEDULE Application period open until September 29th. Evaluation period and coaching of the finalists during October. The top ideas will be presented in Fortum’s Slush 2024 Partner Side Event in Helsinki on 20th of November in a final pitching event, and the winning idea(s) will receive support to scale the solution forward.

Energy tech startup Greenely grabs €8M to reach more households and support Europe’s energy transition. The energy transition is a marathon, not a sprint. But opportunities for acceleration are growing. Swedish startup Greenely* has just spotted one. It’s closing an €8 million Series A funding round to expand its energy management platform into neighbouring Nordic countries (so around $8.7M at current exchange rates). The energy tech startup is serving around 200,000 households in its home market. It offers freemium energy consumption analytics combined with energy optimization services that allow paying customers to achieve savings on their electricity consumption. Examples include smarter charging of electric vehicles when the energy price is low or accessing government payouts as a result of Greenely being able to reduce energy demand on the grid through automated (aggregated) optimization of customers’ energy demand. Currently, these energy optimization services are only available to customers who pay Greenely for energy supply. But it plans to decouple that requirement as new European legislation is implemented in its home market — hopefully by the end of this year. The startup also offers its energy customers the ability to install a home battery (it currently resells the Pixii Home) so they can store energy for later use. This enables households to respond to changes in wholesale electricity prices and optimize when they are/aren’t tapping the grid to reduce their energy costs. https://lnkd.in/gCP-nqEN #Greenely #EnergyTech #Europe #Startup

"Climate-tech investors at the IGF plan to invest about $7 billion over the next 12 months, and this event is to help you get some of these important funds to go to the next level and accelerate your work.” - Read about our participation at the NREL IGF here: https://lnkd.in/dv377VJs #NRELIGF National Renewable Energy Laboratory