EIT Climate-KIC supports European green recovery with €4 million for start-ups affected by COVID-19

EIT Climate-KIC shortlisted 19 businesses and invited them to participate in a 'Climate impact forecast' workshop and to deliver their five-year 'Climate Impact Potential'. Different metrics were used to calculate the greenhouse gases emissions reduction potential of the innovation and assess the suitability of the business for the grant. EIT Climate-KIC shortlisted 19 businesses and invited them to participate in a 'Climate impact forecast' workshop and to deliver their five-year 'Climate...

EIT Climate-KIC shortlisted 19 businesses and invited them to participate in a 'Climate impact forecast' workshop and to deliver their five-year 'Climate Impact Potential'. Different metrics were used to calculate the greenhouse gases emissions reduction potential of the innovation and assess the suitability of the business for the grant.

The nine ventures selected for funding develop innovations in agriculture, energy and industry. They will receive between €320,000 and €500,000 and are now invited to sign an investment agreement.

"Our entrepreneurship community has been severely affected by the COVID-19 crisis, be it through last-minute investment cancellations, losing customers, global supply chains being interrupted or even just distraction from prioritizing the climate emergency in the face of immediate economic crisis," says CEO of EIT Climate-KIC, Kirsten Dunlop. "The volume and geographical spread of applications we received for this call shows how much support is needed across Europe, it also confirms that there is both an urgent need and an opportunity for the innovation community to focus on building capability for resilience and renewal. Our team has selected ventures that will significantly contribute to building back better – maximizing the opportunity to accelerate decarbonisation and introduce sustainable solutions – and ventures that can achieve significant milestones in crisis prevention and resilience given the likelihood of further shocks."

The funding will help the selected ventures to overcome this unprecedented situation and continue delivering innovative solutions for Europe and its citizens. The support package is one of the two elements of the 'EIT Crisis Response Initiative', a €60 million additional funding mobilised by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) to power innovations in health, climate change, digitisation, food, sustainable energy, urban mobility, manufacturing and raw materials. Eleven climate innovation projects across Europe had already been selected by EIT Climate-KIC to receive funding as part of the "Pandemic Response Projects", the other instrument of this European initiative.

About EIT Climate-KIC

EIT Climate-KIC is the EU's climate innovation agency, working to accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon and resilient world by enabling systems transformation. Headquartered in Amsterdam, it operates from 13 hubs across Europe and is active in 39 countries. Climate-KIC was established in 2010 and is funded by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union. 

As a Knowledge and Innovation Community (KIC), it brings together more than 400 partners from business, academia, the public and non-profit sectors to create networks of expertise, through which innovative products, services and systems are developed, brought to market and scaled-up for impact.

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