Material Impact
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DATABASE (81)
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ARTICLES (261)
Founded in 2013 and based in Silicon Valley, AgFunder invests in agrifood tech startups globally with the mission of “investing in technologies to rapidly transform our food and agriculture system.” The VC firm has already built a global ecosystem of 85,000+ members and subscribers, which helps grow and scale its portfolio companies. It recently established the New Carnivore fund to invest in startups working to create animal-free protein alternatives including plant-based meat and cultured meat. In 2019, AgFunder and the Australian agrifood accelerator Rocket Seeder co-launched GROW Impact Accelerator in Singapore to accelerate seed and Series A agritech startups from Southeast Asia.
Founded in 2013 and based in Silicon Valley, AgFunder invests in agrifood tech startups globally with the mission of “investing in technologies to rapidly transform our food and agriculture system.” The VC firm has already built a global ecosystem of 85,000+ members and subscribers, which helps grow and scale its portfolio companies. It recently established the New Carnivore fund to invest in startups working to create animal-free protein alternatives including plant-based meat and cultured meat. In 2019, AgFunder and the Australian agrifood accelerator Rocket Seeder co-launched GROW Impact Accelerator in Singapore to accelerate seed and Series A agritech startups from Southeast Asia.
Based in Seattle, Washington, Pivotal Ventures was founded by Melinda Gates in 2015 as a separate, independent organization from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The VC-arm and incubator aim to foster social innovation in the US, focusing on the social progress of women and families. It has supported diversity & inclusion, healthcare and impact startups by providing early-stage funding to enterprises with philanthropic and scalable goals. In October 2020, Pivotal launched a fund for adolescent mental health in partnership with Panorama Global. In September 2020, it also joined Techstars to create a new accelerator program to find innovative eldercare solutions for seniors and their caregivers.
Based in Seattle, Washington, Pivotal Ventures was founded by Melinda Gates in 2015 as a separate, independent organization from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The VC-arm and incubator aim to foster social innovation in the US, focusing on the social progress of women and families. It has supported diversity & inclusion, healthcare and impact startups by providing early-stage funding to enterprises with philanthropic and scalable goals. In October 2020, Pivotal launched a fund for adolescent mental health in partnership with Panorama Global. In September 2020, it also joined Techstars to create a new accelerator program to find innovative eldercare solutions for seniors and their caregivers.
Shell Foundation is the not-for-profit investment arm of the global energy giant Shell. Based in London, the foundation was set up in 2000 to invest in social and environmental impact companies, including startups with the potential to reach out to over 10m low-income consumers and achieve financial viability within 10 years. The foundation mainly invests at the pre-seed and seed funding stage and currently has 77 startups in its portfolio. In January 2021, it joined the $790,000 seed round of African agritech social enterprise AgroCenta and also gave a $350,000 grant to sustainable mobility platform Easy Matatu in Uganda.
Shell Foundation is the not-for-profit investment arm of the global energy giant Shell. Based in London, the foundation was set up in 2000 to invest in social and environmental impact companies, including startups with the potential to reach out to over 10m low-income consumers and achieve financial viability within 10 years. The foundation mainly invests at the pre-seed and seed funding stage and currently has 77 startups in its portfolio. In January 2021, it joined the $790,000 seed round of African agritech social enterprise AgroCenta and also gave a $350,000 grant to sustainable mobility platform Easy Matatu in Uganda.
Not-for-profit social impact investor, Rabo Foundation, is a subsidiary of Rabobank based in the Netherlands. The bank specializes in sustainability-oriented banking, food and agriculture financing.Founded in Utrecht in 1974, Rabo Foundation actively invests in the Netherlands and 22 emerging markets across Africa, Asia and Latin America. It mainly focuses on funding for social enterprises, especially savings and credit cooperatives and producer organizations for smallholder farmers. It currently has investments in 26 startups including participation in AgroCenta’s $790,000 seed round in January 2021. Rabo has also pumped in $500,000 in Dutch fintech Geldfit.nl, a debt prevention and counseling app service.
Not-for-profit social impact investor, Rabo Foundation, is a subsidiary of Rabobank based in the Netherlands. The bank specializes in sustainability-oriented banking, food and agriculture financing.Founded in Utrecht in 1974, Rabo Foundation actively invests in the Netherlands and 22 emerging markets across Africa, Asia and Latin America. It mainly focuses on funding for social enterprises, especially savings and credit cooperatives and producer organizations for smallholder farmers. It currently has investments in 26 startups including participation in AgroCenta’s $790,000 seed round in January 2021. Rabo has also pumped in $500,000 in Dutch fintech Geldfit.nl, a debt prevention and counseling app service.
Green Monday Ventures is the impact investment arm of Green Monday Group founded by longtime Buddhist David Yeung to produce plant-based meat and operate Hong Kong’s first plant-based concept store.Founded in 2012, the Green Monday movement is a social enterprise aimed at promoting sustainable lifestyle concepts like "green food" to address challenges relating to public health, climate change, food security and animal wellbeing. The Hong Kong-based VC was set up in 2013 to focus on investments in alternative protein companies worldwide.
Green Monday Ventures is the impact investment arm of Green Monday Group founded by longtime Buddhist David Yeung to produce plant-based meat and operate Hong Kong’s first plant-based concept store.Founded in 2012, the Green Monday movement is a social enterprise aimed at promoting sustainable lifestyle concepts like "green food" to address challenges relating to public health, climate change, food security and animal wellbeing. The Hong Kong-based VC was set up in 2013 to focus on investments in alternative protein companies worldwide.
Lupa Systems is a private investment company with offices in New York and Mumbai. It was founded in 2019 by Rupert Murdoch’s son James Murdoch with $2bn funding from the overall $71bn sales of the family's 21st Century Fox empire to Disney.Lupa focuses on tech companies in the media industry, as well as impact-driven startups focused on environmental sustainability and emerging markets, particularly in Asia. According to a recent report, Lupa is looking to launch new funds, raising about $150m for each fund from family offices in India. The firm has invested in about 12 companies to date.
Lupa Systems is a private investment company with offices in New York and Mumbai. It was founded in 2019 by Rupert Murdoch’s son James Murdoch with $2bn funding from the overall $71bn sales of the family's 21st Century Fox empire to Disney.Lupa focuses on tech companies in the media industry, as well as impact-driven startups focused on environmental sustainability and emerging markets, particularly in Asia. According to a recent report, Lupa is looking to launch new funds, raising about $150m for each fund from family offices in India. The firm has invested in about 12 companies to date.
CEO and Co-founder of Plastic Bank
David Katz is the Canadian co-founder, president and CEO of Plastic Bank, a-first-of-a-kind social enterprise startup that monetizes plastic waste collection for some of the world’s poorest communities. Katz was inspired by a university seminar about recycling plastic waste in 2013 and founded Plastic Bank with CTO and brand strategist Shaun Frankson in Vancouver.In 2019, he became a fellow for the Unreasonable Group’s Impact Hub in Vancouver, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. In 2011, he also founded Vancouver’s Core Values Institute, a consulting and global thought leadership platform for entrepreneurs.In 2014, he was also president of Vancouver’s chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization for one year. He was named Global Citizen of the Year in 2014 by the international organization that has a network of over 10,000 business owners in 131 chapters across 40 countries. He also won the 2017 UN Lighthouse award for Planetary Health and Plastic Bank received the Paris COP21 Climate Conference Sustania Community Award in 2015.Katz completed a diploma in Hospitality Administration & Management at the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 1991 and started his own business in 1992 as founder and CEO of Nero Alarms. From 2005 to 2014, Katz worked full-time as the founder and president of Nero Global Tracking, a SaaS platform created to monitor the operations of mobile service vehicles. Nero SaaS is used in many Canadian cities and by the nation’s Defence Ministry. The company is now part of Vecima Networks Inc.
David Katz is the Canadian co-founder, president and CEO of Plastic Bank, a-first-of-a-kind social enterprise startup that monetizes plastic waste collection for some of the world’s poorest communities. Katz was inspired by a university seminar about recycling plastic waste in 2013 and founded Plastic Bank with CTO and brand strategist Shaun Frankson in Vancouver.In 2019, he became a fellow for the Unreasonable Group’s Impact Hub in Vancouver, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. In 2011, he also founded Vancouver’s Core Values Institute, a consulting and global thought leadership platform for entrepreneurs.In 2014, he was also president of Vancouver’s chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization for one year. He was named Global Citizen of the Year in 2014 by the international organization that has a network of over 10,000 business owners in 131 chapters across 40 countries. He also won the 2017 UN Lighthouse award for Planetary Health and Plastic Bank received the Paris COP21 Climate Conference Sustania Community Award in 2015.Katz completed a diploma in Hospitality Administration & Management at the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 1991 and started his own business in 1992 as founder and CEO of Nero Alarms. From 2005 to 2014, Katz worked full-time as the founder and president of Nero Global Tracking, a SaaS platform created to monitor the operations of mobile service vehicles. Nero SaaS is used in many Canadian cities and by the nation’s Defence Ministry. The company is now part of Vecima Networks Inc.
Since 2005, Demeter Partners has been one of the major VC and private equity funds supporting technology companies in developing solutions for ecological and energy transitions. The firm typically invests €1m–€30m in early and growth stages of startups. With assets worth over €1bn under management, its portfolio in 2019 was estimated to have cut 4.3m tons of CO2 with 575 GWh of clean energy produced. In 2021, Demeter was named the “Best Sustainable Equity investor” by a panel of former Fortune 500 individuals, global experts and industry leaders to recognize Demeter’s commitment to the UN’s SDG and ESG strategy.
Since 2005, Demeter Partners has been one of the major VC and private equity funds supporting technology companies in developing solutions for ecological and energy transitions. The firm typically invests €1m–€30m in early and growth stages of startups. With assets worth over €1bn under management, its portfolio in 2019 was estimated to have cut 4.3m tons of CO2 with 575 GWh of clean energy produced. In 2021, Demeter was named the “Best Sustainable Equity investor” by a panel of former Fortune 500 individuals, global experts and industry leaders to recognize Demeter’s commitment to the UN’s SDG and ESG strategy.
R&D and business lead and co-founder of Graviky Labs
Anirudh Sharma is one of three co-founders of Graviky Labs, which makes ink out of carbon that is captured from pollution and purified using proprietary technology. This concept was born from Sharma’s experiments making ink from candle soot while doing his master’s at MIT Materials Lab. He currently leads R&D and business at the firm. Sharma’s interests include augmented reality, wearable computing and environmental projects. Over the years, he has developed and patented various technology products with social and environmental impact. He was formerly CTO and co-founder of India’s first wearable technology company, Ducere Technologies, which was later sold. This company makes Lechal, the world’s first smart haptic device for shoes, initially designed by Sharma as a navigation aid for the visually impaired. Sharma also previously worked for Imagin Group at Hewlett Packard Labs, on a multimodal speech and touch-based computer-aided design interface for large displays.Sharma holds a master's from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-led the activities of MIT Media Lab India from 2013–2015. He is a TED and TEDx speaker and has been included in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 for Asia, MIT Technology Review’s 35 Innovators Under 35, and Foreign Policy magazine’s 100 Global Thinkers of 2016.
Anirudh Sharma is one of three co-founders of Graviky Labs, which makes ink out of carbon that is captured from pollution and purified using proprietary technology. This concept was born from Sharma’s experiments making ink from candle soot while doing his master’s at MIT Materials Lab. He currently leads R&D and business at the firm. Sharma’s interests include augmented reality, wearable computing and environmental projects. Over the years, he has developed and patented various technology products with social and environmental impact. He was formerly CTO and co-founder of India’s first wearable technology company, Ducere Technologies, which was later sold. This company makes Lechal, the world’s first smart haptic device for shoes, initially designed by Sharma as a navigation aid for the visually impaired. Sharma also previously worked for Imagin Group at Hewlett Packard Labs, on a multimodal speech and touch-based computer-aided design interface for large displays.Sharma holds a master's from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-led the activities of MIT Media Lab India from 2013–2015. He is a TED and TEDx speaker and has been included in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 for Asia, MIT Technology Review’s 35 Innovators Under 35, and Foreign Policy magazine’s 100 Global Thinkers of 2016.
CTO and co-founder of Everimpact
Alain Retière is CTO and co-founder of Everimpact, a GHG monitoring company that uses satellites, ground sensors, AI and machine learning to deliver more accurate carbon emissions data to public bodies, municipalities, and businesses.Retière has rich experience in sustainable development, climate change, as well as satellite technology. He was previously an agro-economist and senior scientific advisor at sustainable development organizations, public bodies, and international organisations, with three decades of field experience across 120 countries. In the course of his career, Retière spent a total of 13 years as director of two satellite-related agencies under the UN. This included three years managing CLIMSAT, a specialized center under the UNDP helping local government bodies assess the impact of climate change by using satellite and geo-spatial data, as well as 10 years at the helm of UNOSAT, the UN emergency satellite service. For his service at UNOSAT, he received the UN21 Award from UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 2005.Retière graduated from Groupe Ecole supérieure d'Agriculture d'Angers and holds a postgraduate degree from Université Pierre et Marie Curie, which is now part of Sorbonne University.
Alain Retière is CTO and co-founder of Everimpact, a GHG monitoring company that uses satellites, ground sensors, AI and machine learning to deliver more accurate carbon emissions data to public bodies, municipalities, and businesses.Retière has rich experience in sustainable development, climate change, as well as satellite technology. He was previously an agro-economist and senior scientific advisor at sustainable development organizations, public bodies, and international organisations, with three decades of field experience across 120 countries. In the course of his career, Retière spent a total of 13 years as director of two satellite-related agencies under the UN. This included three years managing CLIMSAT, a specialized center under the UNDP helping local government bodies assess the impact of climate change by using satellite and geo-spatial data, as well as 10 years at the helm of UNOSAT, the UN emergency satellite service. For his service at UNOSAT, he received the UN21 Award from UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 2005.Retière graduated from Groupe Ecole supérieure d'Agriculture d'Angers and holds a postgraduate degree from Université Pierre et Marie Curie, which is now part of Sorbonne University.
ICONIQ Capital is a private investment management company that is known for serving a wide variety of famous clients, including Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey and Asian billionaire Li Ka-shing, among other Silicon Valley elites and world-famous billionaires. The company is led by Divesh Makan, Chad Boeding and Michael Anders, who were coworkers at Goldman Sachs and joined Morgan Stanley together before establishing ICONIQ in 2011.The investment company is a mix of family office and venture capital, with specialized verticals in tech startup investing, real estate, and impact investments. Its VC arm, ICONIQ Growth, manages over $9b in capital commitments, and has invested into companies like stock brokerage app Robinhood, short-term accommodation startup Airbnb, and online signature company DocuSign.
ICONIQ Capital is a private investment management company that is known for serving a wide variety of famous clients, including Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey and Asian billionaire Li Ka-shing, among other Silicon Valley elites and world-famous billionaires. The company is led by Divesh Makan, Chad Boeding and Michael Anders, who were coworkers at Goldman Sachs and joined Morgan Stanley together before establishing ICONIQ in 2011.The investment company is a mix of family office and venture capital, with specialized verticals in tech startup investing, real estate, and impact investments. Its VC arm, ICONIQ Growth, manages over $9b in capital commitments, and has invested into companies like stock brokerage app Robinhood, short-term accommodation startup Airbnb, and online signature company DocuSign.
The Plantbase Foundation is a non-profit institution run by entrepreneur and impact investor Willem Blom based in The Netherlands. Most of the Plantbase activities are backed by donors. At least 80% of the donations are used to support enterprises that facilitate the shift from animal agriculture to a vegan lifestyle. The foundation has invested in foodtechs involved in the meat, fish and dairy industries; as well as food delivery and apps. Its portfolio includes fast-growing startups like Heura, Meatable, Livekindly and Mission Barns. It also works with investment partners like Kale United, Mile High Vegan Network, Vegan Entrepreneurs Network and GlassWall Syndicate.
The Plantbase Foundation is a non-profit institution run by entrepreneur and impact investor Willem Blom based in The Netherlands. Most of the Plantbase activities are backed by donors. At least 80% of the donations are used to support enterprises that facilitate the shift from animal agriculture to a vegan lifestyle. The foundation has invested in foodtechs involved in the meat, fish and dairy industries; as well as food delivery and apps. Its portfolio includes fast-growing startups like Heura, Meatable, Livekindly and Mission Barns. It also works with investment partners like Kale United, Mile High Vegan Network, Vegan Entrepreneurs Network and GlassWall Syndicate.
Founded in Washington DC in 2016, AV Ventures is co-founded by US not-for-profit organizations, the Agricultural Cooperative Development International and Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance.AV Ventures focuses on supporting SMEs that facilitate financing for farmers to improve sustainable supply chain management and boost social impact in Africa and Central Asia. Investments in tech startups include the $790,000 seed round of AgroCenta in January 2021. Through AV Frontiers in Bishkek, the VC also recently participated in April’s investment round of Kyrgyzstan-based ololoAkJol Resort, a hub for digital nomads, or independent remote workers.
Founded in Washington DC in 2016, AV Ventures is co-founded by US not-for-profit organizations, the Agricultural Cooperative Development International and Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance.AV Ventures focuses on supporting SMEs that facilitate financing for farmers to improve sustainable supply chain management and boost social impact in Africa and Central Asia. Investments in tech startups include the $790,000 seed round of AgroCenta in January 2021. Through AV Frontiers in Bishkek, the VC also recently participated in April’s investment round of Kyrgyzstan-based ololoAkJol Resort, a hub for digital nomads, or independent remote workers.
Green Innovations is an impact fund that invests in large-scale projects addressing global sustainability challenges, focusing on the agriculture, biotechnology, education, energy, housing and water sectors. It is headed by Angola-based Portuguese businessman Jorge Marques, and linked to Israeli group Mitrelli. Green Innovations took control of Biocant, Portugal’s biggest biotech park, in a privatization move in 2017–2018. Green Innovations's stable of companies includes Green Biotech, created to invest in biotechnology in Portugal, and Green Services Innovations, linked to the exploration of phosphates in Congo.Its recent investments include in the June 2021 $85m Series C round and February 2021 $25m Series B of Portuguese home physiotherapy tech solution SWORD Health, the world’s fastest-growing musculoskeletal solution.
Green Innovations is an impact fund that invests in large-scale projects addressing global sustainability challenges, focusing on the agriculture, biotechnology, education, energy, housing and water sectors. It is headed by Angola-based Portuguese businessman Jorge Marques, and linked to Israeli group Mitrelli. Green Innovations took control of Biocant, Portugal’s biggest biotech park, in a privatization move in 2017–2018. Green Innovations's stable of companies includes Green Biotech, created to invest in biotechnology in Portugal, and Green Services Innovations, linked to the exploration of phosphates in Congo.Its recent investments include in the June 2021 $85m Series C round and February 2021 $25m Series B of Portuguese home physiotherapy tech solution SWORD Health, the world’s fastest-growing musculoskeletal solution.
Cambridge Enterprise Venture Partners
A Cambridge-based investor, founded in 2006, that exists to support spin-off companies created at the city’s university with an emphasis on social impact. It currently has 57 companies in its portfolio, almost entirely in the areas of life and physical sciences, which have, in total, raised over £2bn in further investment and grant funding.Its most recent investments include in the June 2021 £3m seed round of Gallium Nitride semiconductor engineering company Porotech and in the January 2021 $20m Series A round of quantum computing innovators Riverlane.
A Cambridge-based investor, founded in 2006, that exists to support spin-off companies created at the city’s university with an emphasis on social impact. It currently has 57 companies in its portfolio, almost entirely in the areas of life and physical sciences, which have, in total, raised over £2bn in further investment and grant funding.Its most recent investments include in the June 2021 £3m seed round of Gallium Nitride semiconductor engineering company Porotech and in the January 2021 $20m Series A round of quantum computing innovators Riverlane.
Xampla: Making strong, low-cost biodegradable plastic from peas
Inspired by the strength of spider silk, the Cambridge University spinoff has produced a plant-based, completely compostable alternative to microplastics
Oceanium: Supporting sustainable seaweed farming
Scottish startup Oceanium has developed a proprietary biorefinery and processing model to create seaweed-based compostable materials, alt-protein ingredients and nutraceuticals for use across industry verticals
Beyond Leather Materials: Turning apples into alt-leather for sustainable fashion
Through its Leap brand, the Danish startup cuts food waste by turning apples junked in cider factories into affordable vegan leather for the $100bn leather market
Auara: Social enterprise and environmental sustainability in a bottle
Auara, with its 100% recycled-plastic mineral water bottles, aims to reduce its manufacturing carbon footprint while helping the most water-stressed citizens
Petit Pli: Origami-inspired clothes that still fit, even after the body has grown
Founded by a young aeronautical engineer, Petit Pli produces stylish, sustainable pleated garments made from recycled plastic that expand up to seven sizes
Oimo: Biodegradable marine-based bioplastics for environmentally friendly food packaging
Its pellets already work well in current factory machinery, so Oimo wants to scale when the EU’s ban on single-use plastics kicks in next year
Mi Terro turns milk waste into eco-friendly clothing and packaging
With food giants like Danone, Arla and Dole as partners, US-Sino startup Mi Terro plans to extend its technology to plant-based food waste like soy to get plastic and fiber alternatives
Wondaswim recycles dumped fishing nets to make sustainable swimwear, reduce ocean pollution
Lisbon-based startup by German co-founders creates sustainable swimwear for all body sizes, targeted at millennials
NANOxARCH: Pioneering awareness and use of sustainable materials in China
Founder Lei Yuxi reckons Covid-19 could usher China into a new era of sustainability, as her startup seeks to make sustainable materials more affordable
Rheaply: Pioneering B2B asset reuse through technology
Through its SaaS platform, this Chicago-based startup finds success in the under-served corporate second-hand market, essential to any successful circular economy, recently landing $8m Series A
SOURCE Global's solar-run panels turn air into drinking water
The US startup’s adapted solar panels extract water vapor from the air to produce potable water, a vital resource for distressed communities in disaster zones and remote areas
QOA: Gourmet guilt-free chocolate, without the cocoa
Munich-based QOA transforms industrial food waste into vegan chocolate, enabling consumers to avoid the sustainability and ethical issues of cocoa production
ADBioplastics primed to help EU manufacturers transition to circular economy
ADBioplastics has developed a biodegradable and compostable bioplastic additive for use in food packaging and is seeking up to €5m in funding
Future Food Asia 2021: Impact assessments – getting the metrics right
Common impact measures are useful but each situation requires specific, sometimes subjective considerations. The priority is to gauge if the impact has led to positive changes
Start with the little things: 5 Indonesian social impact startups
From providing student loans to empowering marginalized groups and farmers, these Indonesian startups are revitalizing local communities
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