Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation seeking eco-friendly innovators

The Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation (ECCI) is searching for a new batch of budding Scottish entrepreneurs eager to take their markets by storm for its EIT Climate-KIC Accelerator and ClimateLaunchpad programmes.

Alireza Abbassi Monjezi, founding director of Waterwhelm. Picture: contributed.

The recruitment drive is part of ECCI’s partnership with EIT Climate-KIC – deemed Europe’s largest climate entrepreneurship programme. The Accelerator initiative gives low-carbon start-ups the funding, tools and coaching they need to grow into great businesses.

ECCI runs the ClimateLaunchpad green business competition – with cash prizes of up to €10,000 ($8,800) – in Scotland. To enter, budding inventors and entrepreneurs simply have to submit an idea or innovation that is tackling climate change. The proposals can be at a very early stage.

Both programmes are being adapted to meet the challenges of Covid-19, moving coaching and mentoring sessions online while restrictions are still in place.

ECCI said that while current circumstances may be difficult and uncertain, its climate entrepreneur programmes can help businesses adapt and access opportunities that will help deliver a fair and sustainable future.

The centre’s head of innovation and skills Jamie Brogan said: “We want to bring together a group of like-minded entrepreneurs that can help build a sustainable, better future… we’d really like to encourage applications from all over Scotland to join this year’s programme and share their unique ideas and insights with those in other parts of the country.”

Since launching in 2017, ECCI’s EIT Climate-KIC Accelerator firms have secured more than £1.75 million worth of investments, and won more than 50 awards.

Highlights from 2019 include-low carbon technology start-up Waterwhelm, which won a string of awards and accolades while progressing through stages one and two.

Waterwhelm founding director of Alireza Abbassi Monjezi said: "The Climate-KIC Accelerator at ECCI has significantly improved Waterwhelm’s proposition and we look forward to building on this momentum and speeding up commercialisation of our technology in order to make clean water available and affordable for all."

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