Antler’s Post

The B.C. Centre for Innovation and Clean Energy (CICE) has recently initiated a new non-dilutive investment avenue aimed at supporting emerging B.C.-based ventures led by recent university entrepreneurship program graduates. Navigating the early stages of securing funding and establishing partnerships can be particularly daunting for entrepreneurs emerging from university settings. By offering this crucial support to post-secondary graduates starting new ventures, CICE plays a pivotal role in nurturing a skilled and diverse workforce. This, in turn, contributes to fostering a clean and prosperous economy, helping new leaders and innovators to flourish in their respective fields. The first two beneficiaries of this initiative are VulcanX Energy Corp. based in Vancouver and Curat Innovations Inc. from Victoria, each receiving $75,000 in funding. https://lnkd.in/gKTfiE4N

Thank you Global Water Summit organizers and fellow attendees for a truly inspiring and insightful event. While I've got some trends and takeaways related specifically to #corporatewatersecurity in the blog, I wanted to share a personal note... Much of the rhetoric and discussion revolved around the underappreciation of water as an investment theme. Leaders spoke about the need to learn from carbon's marketing blitz and the resulting "popularity" of decarbonization financing. Some drew parallels to energy, and how water innovation could "fit in" with clean energy portfolios. My advice? It's the same as I share with my middle and high school daughters, who naturally struggle with social hierarchy (I shudder as I recall my own awkward middle school years). Embrace our uniqueness. Being unique is awesome and bold. Find self-acceptance, and in self-acceptance, you find the people who are worthy of your treasure. There were 1,000 of us in attendance at #GWS2024. That's one hell of a clique.

Building systems that aim to foster the development, showcasing, and advancement of technologies and products that integrate climate considerations into business development is an approach that is building resilience against the climate crisis. Such initiatives The Innovation Village are focused on creating a collaborative space where researchers, entrepreneurs, and policymakers can innovate and test solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Promoting market-based approaches will mainstream climate resilience in business practices, encouraging companies to adopt sustainable technologies and models. This integration helps drive economic growth while addressing environmental challenges, positioning businesses to thrive in a low-carbon future.

*UK breakthrough could slash emissions from cement* The BBC story today on a Cambridge breakthrough with potential to decarbonise cement is important in it's own right. After all 'if cement was a country, it would be the third biggest source of emissions after China and the US, responsible for 7.5% of human-made CO2'. But it also demonstrates the importance of research intense Universities, working with industry, focused on the innovations we need to achieve Net Zero. The International Energy Agency (IEA) says *we need to drive huge leaps in clean energy innovation* to reach Net Zero by 2050. - On one hand *most of the reductions in CO2 emissions through 2030 come from technologies already on the market* today. So in the short term we need the political leadership, policy frameworks and incentives, financial innovation, citizen-confidence to roll out and and scale up proven technologies (eg let's get on with EVs, solar, heat pumps, smart homes and insulation for a start). - On the other hand *in 2050 almost half the reductions come from technologies that are currently at the demonstration or prototype phase*. So for the long term - but acting now - we need to invest in discovering and proving new technology for 2050. From my vantage point in University of Cambridge and Canopy (CISL) I can see that there is *an abundance of ideas and technologies* being developed in research intensive universities around the world, with the potential to solve for Net Zero and improve lives and social outcomes at the same time. Cambridge recently announced a reduced equity take for spin outs to incentivise academics to commercialise their ideas with the University. I hope the next UK Government shows the political will and foresight to invest in Universities, new ventures, a multitude of ways in technology breakthroughs but also all the support structures for commercialisation via spin outs, licencing, and new ventures. Public funding is needed here, and private investment - but the opportunities and the economic, social and environmental returns are huge if we firmly direct the UK's innovation efforts into solving society's greatest challenges. ------------------------ *UK breakthrough could slash emissions from cement* https://lnkd.in/eQ4KNwQ7 The lead scientist, Cyrille Dunant, told the BBC it could enable the production of zero-carbon cement. “We have shown the high temperatures in the furnace reactivate the old cement and because electric arc furnaces use electricity they can be powered by renewable power, so the entire cement making process is decarbonised” he said. The hope is 'electric' cement will be cheaper to manufacture because it uses what is essentially waste heat from the steel recycling process.

In 2020, when I looked into the water sector from an investors point of view, all numbers pointed into a direction of increased investments on average across the water sector, which is broad. An x 4-5 is on average needed across the industry only to be "on par" with the existing and new application areas, driven by infrastructure gaps, population growth and climate changes. It's going to be interesting to look back at the current investment development by end of 2024, as most of the major investments in potentially large scale innovations takes between 4-8 years to materialize for investors.

#CA-based Cultivo secures $14Million in series A round #funding. With the participation of Peña Verde and Salkantay Ventures, the round led by MassMutual Ventures and Octopus Energy Generation boosted the total #sum to $20 million. The money will be used by the business to improve its AI-driven science and technology platform. Cultivo is a public benefit #organization that accelerates investment to #regenerate nature at scale, under the leadership of CEO Dr. Manuel Piñuela. It enhances the value of natural capital by #mobilizing various financial pools for land #regeneration projects that reduce carbon emissions, boost biodiversity, and enhance water storage, as well as by employing its AI-driven science and technology platform for project #origination. Scale-up investment in nature is accelerated by Cultivo. They accomplish this by #demonstrating how investments in natural #capital may yield robust financial returns that are beneficial to both society and the environment. Cultivo Salkantay Ventures MassMutual Ventures To share your startup story write us on - contact@startuprise.io #cultivo #funding #startup

September brought TONS of news for our startups—including major funding ($150M for Form Energy, $150M for American Battery Technology Company, $75M and an offtake agreement for Sublime Systems, $40M for Dandelion Energy, $30M for Mantel, and much more) and some ultra-exciting partnerships: 🎍 Haffner Energy turning biomass into e-SAF with IðunnH2 and France's leading bamboo provider ♻ Nth Cycle's begun the U.S.' first recycled production of nickel and cobalt mixed hydroxide precipitate 🍺 Clean Crop Technologies, Inc. is increasing crop germination and resilience in 60,000 smallholder farms in East Africa 🌊 SeaDeep is helping to create a comprehensive map of the ocean floor with Seabed 2030 This is just a small sampling of this month's chock-full member milestones roundup—and some HUGE momentum for climate action as we head into the fall. Cheers to our amazing community for raising money, winning awards, and getting their tech out of the lab and into the world! 👏 https://lnkd.in/gA6beCtV

I'm excited to share that I've completed the "Renewable #Energy and Green Building Entrepreneurship" course! This program has equipped me with cutting-edge knowledge in renewable energy technologies, sustainable building design, and innovative entrepreneurial strategies. I'm eager to apply these insights to drive #sustainable projects and contribute to a greener future. #RenewableEnergy #GreenBuilding #Sustainability #Entrepreneurship

We have big news! Head over to the website to get the full story about our successful seed investment raise and what that means for Soil Link in the future. https://zurl.co/5Hai #circulareconomy #sustainability #construction #investment #techstartup

Great news for Alberta Businesses! I look forward to helping with any IT Staffing needs. Let’s chat about #staffaugmentation #itneeds Dasro Consulting Inc.