The Green Alley Award finalists: 6 startups to watch in the circular economy
Drumroll please! We have nominated our six finalists for the Green Alley Award 2018!
Six promising startups from six different European countries are taking up the gauntlet for the circular economy. No matter who will win the Award in the end – we can assure you: They are all ready to fight for a more sustainable world and will definitely shape our future. Let’s have a closer look at them and see which circular economy challenges they can solve.
Here are the six profiles:
Startup: Superseven
Country: Germany
Circular Economy Challenge: Plastic packaging that pollutes sea and land takes between 50 and 100 years until it breaks down.
Idea: The German startup Superseven develops cellulose packaging made from sustainable wood that can technically compete with plastic packaging, but is eco-friendlier in terms of production and disposal. The TÜV-certified packaging biodegrades completely in nature within 42 days and the material is optimized so that even large and heavy products can be optimally packed.
Team: Katja Seevers and Sven Seevers, both with a diploma in product design and experienced in designing trade fairs and exhibitions as well furniture.
Startup: Refurbed
Country: Austria
Circular Economy Challenge: With 44.7 million tons each year, electronic waste is the fastest growing waste stream worldwide.
Idea: That's why the Austrian start-up company Refurbed has launched a marketplace for independent merchants that offers used but remanufactured electronic devices. Buying your smartphone or tablet from Refurbed not only means cost savings and minimal risk through a one-year warranty but also reduction of electronic waste and of CO² emissions during the manufacturing process of new products.
Team: Kilian Kaminski, former Amazon refurbished Lead Germany, and Peter Windischhofer, holding a master in international business from HULT International Business school, with experience in consulting the largest marketplaces in Europe.
Startup: MIWA
Country: Czech Republic
Circular Economy Challenge: A total of 18.16 million tonnes of packaging waste was generated 2016 in Germany alone. The amount is equivalent to 220.5 kg per capita.
Idea: MIWA has invented a unique technology that could revolutionize supermarkets and retailers of the future. Their retail solution for distribution and sale of products of daily use is built around the circular use of smart capsule through which goods are transported from producers to retailers and then dispatched to shoppers in the quantity ordered. This idea of circularity eliminates loads of primary to tertiary packaging and might become the way we shop in the 21st century.
Team: The project has been founded by Petr Baca, a serial entrepreneur with over 20 years’ experience in the FMCG packaging industry. Ivana Sobolíková holds a master in natural and social sciences and worked for a Czech based Private Equity fund and 9 years at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Lukáš Otevřel has a master degree from the University of economics Prague and has been leading mid-sized communication agency.
Startup: Ecoplasteam
Country: Italy
Circular Economy Challenge: Recycling of waste consisting of multiple layers like plastic and metal is still a challenge for the circular economy. Globally, counting only the polylaminated waste from food containers there are over a million tonnes per year that can only be recycled partly.
Idea: The Italian start-up Ecoplasteam has invented a new process for recycling 100% of polylaminated aluminium packaging like Tetrapak. Instead of separating composites of plastic and aluminum layers in a complex process, the Italians have simply developed a new material from both components that is just as valuable as primary raw material.
Team: Stefano Richaud holds a master degree in corporate finance and financial markets and is now managing stakeholder relations as CEO of Ecoplasteam. Carlo F. Maggi holds a master degree in economics and business administration from the University of Turin and has extended experience in corporate finance and the real estate sector.
Startup: Circular IQ
Country: Netherlands
Circular Economy Challenge: Making sustainable purchasing decisions requires detailed information on the sustainability of products.
Idea: ‘Circular IQ’ is an application that collects and aggregates data across the entire supply chain, from the source of the materials to the supplier contracts. This enables companies to monitor and optimise the sustainability of their products and to create transparency for customers and buyers.
Team: Roy Vercoulen, Co-Founder and CEO, is also founder of C2C ExpoLAB, former VP & head of
EU operations for C2C Certified. Niels van der Linden, head of product, is co-founder of various companies with focus on learning, collaboration and gamification.
Startup: Aeropowder
Country: UK
Circular Economy Challenge: 10,000 tonnes of waste feathers produced every day in the world
Idea: The British startup Aeropowder has developed an alternative insulating material that can be used instead of polystyrene for the transport of refrigerated food and goods. "Pluumo" is the world's first packaging material made of feathers that would otherwise be disposed of as waste.
Team: Elena Dieckmann, Co-Founder and Director of Aeropowder, holds an Msc and MA in innovation design engineering and is now working on a PhD from Dyson School of Design Engineering.