Ammonia-Powered Semis, Literal Moonshots, V4C Recruitment, & More!
Welcome to For ClimateTalk – For ClimateTech’s monthly newsletter highlighting upcoming opportunities for climate innovators, thought leaders, and community connectors.
A Note From The Editor
My name is Chris Carpenter and I’ve been on the For ClimateTech team since the brand launched at the end of 2020. I worked in the documentary/broadcast journalism world on and around Capitol Hill and the local news scene in Rochester, NY before making the jump to writing about For ClimateTech cohort companies and the startup climate tech world.
In an effort to keep this newsletter dynamic – I try to test a new section or idea a year (like “What’s the Consensus”). This year we’ll be integrating some new contributors from the For ClimateTech crew, adding a new section, The Climate Tech Current, where I’ll share some of the month’s top 3 impactful climate tech related ideas, news, multimedia content, or happenings worth your time. In addition, a Founder Feature section where we’ll be introducing you to the incredible founders we have the privilege of working with and who we think you should get to know too.
Thanks for sticking along for the ride and don’t hesitate to shoot our team a note at info@forclimatetech.org. Now back to your scheduled programming!
Venture For ClimateTech is Now Recruiting for Cohort 3
Each company accepted into the cohort will receive up to $100,000 in non-dilutive funding throughout the six-month virtual accelerator in addition to one-on-one mentorship and supportive programming. PLUS this year we are launching our diverse fellows initiative and have an additional $10,000 for two Black and Latina/Latino founders accepted into the accelerator. Ideal candidates are developing a solution to decarbonize the following key sectors: Buildings, transportation, grid, industry.
Register for an info session through the links below and learn how to apply here!
- Venture For ClimateTech Alumni’s Experience and What to Expect
TODAY from 6:00 to 7:00 PM EST. Register here. - Introducing the Venture For ClimateTech Apprenticeship and Fellowship
February 21, 2023 from 8:00 to 9:00 PM EST. Register here - Open Q&A and Overview of Venture For ClimateTech
March 2, 2023 from 10:00 to 11:00 AM EST. Register here
Find Funding
Governor Hochul announces the launch of a $30M pre-seed and seed matching fund program that will invest up to $250,000 in early-stage startup companies with matching funds from the private sector as a part of New York’s $500 million federal funding allocation to support small businesses – particularly in traditionally underserved communities. Learn more here.
Two weeks left to apply for Round 1 of the 2023 FuzeHub Manufacturing Grants. The Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund Manufacturing Grants are designed to encourage collaboration between not-for-profit organizations and small to medium-sized manufacturing companies in New York State. The grants serve as a resource to help companies achieve success from early stage, proof of concept through maturity. Application period closes February 15 at 4pm EST. Find more here.
The Liveability Challenge is offering $2M in prizes to companies enabling solutions that remove carbon emissions at scale, including: carbon capture, utilization and storage solutions, energy, urban infrastructure, transport, and logistics systems. Learn more here.
Cohort News
Olokun Minerals announces its Pre-Seed Capital raise of $1.1M led by Propeller with participation by Textbook VC as well as strategic angels. Olokun will use the round to further its solution that diverts harmful saline drainage water away from ocean life and marine ecosystems, while also providing critical minerals and metals for various supply chains. Keep reading here.
New Frontier Aerospace is heading to the Moon! Literally… Qosmosys of Singapore and New Frontier Aerospace announced a cooperative technology agreement related to the ZeusX spacecraft – a multifunction vehicle focused on cislunar and lunar surface lunar operations for civil and government customers. Keep reading…
Amogy presented the world’s first ammonia-powered, zero-emission semi truck. The historic showcase presented a retrofitted 2018 Freightliner Cascadia powered by Amogy’s ammonia-to-power system.You might have seen them on CNBC or The Catalyst with Shayle Kahn. Keep reading…
You can now find WeRadiate’s composting tech in the Queens Botanical Garden thanks to the Food Waste Reduction and Diversion Reimbursement Program managed by the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute (NYSP2I) at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). Keep reading…
Atrevida Science is making headlines for its revolutionary blade design. Keep reading…
Founder Feature
Lacey Reddix | CEO and Founder of Olokun Minerals
What’s your elevator pitch?
Olokun minerals is focused on securing clean water by diverting harmful waste streams from our ecosystems while simultaneously extracting vital metals and minerals necessary for the energy transition. Specifically, we’re focused on brine waste streams and recovering lithium and battery metals to solve two problems at once – access to clean drinking water and strengthening the supply chain for the energy transition.
What’s your motivation for your company?
So I’m originally from Jackson, Mississippi – if you’re familiar with what’s going on in Jackson [if not, start here], there’s been a lot of water scarcity and a serious lack of clean drinking water for that community. It was really important for me, even at an early age, to understand how we can solve these kinds of problems. Growing up in Mississippi has made me hypersensitive to the lack of access to clean water that a lot of communities face. So when I thought about, ‘what is the problem that I want to solve within climate?’ Water was a really clear focus area for me.
What are your top 3 go-to places to learn what’s happening in the climate tech space?
1.) The My Climate Journey Podcast
2.) ClimateTech VC
3.) Greenbiz
Outside of Olokun Minerals, what do you do for fun?
So my New Year’s resolution was to focus on one hobby a month, for 12 months. For January, my hobby has been cooking. So I took a cooking class. For February, I will be sewing and starting a side project. But outside of those particular hobbies, I like to spend time golfing and hanging out with friends.
Do you have any advice for other founders on how to keep up with the mental stamina and demands of being a founder?
I literally talked to another founder friend about this, earlier. I really feel like this whole entrepreneurship journey is so spiritual. It’s not even about you achieving a goal, It’s you just growing as a person and achieving a goal along the way. I think it is helpful to meditate and do gratitude practice, which is literally just writing down like five things I’m grateful for. It helps to keep it all in perspective with new things I’m reaching for – that there’s so many things I’ve already achieved that I didn’t even think were possible. It’s hard to be super stressed and grateful at the same time. So being able to shift into a mindset of gratitude has been really helpful for me.
Community Asks
Zinc8 Energy Solutions Inc. is hiring for a Director of Manufacturing position as a part of its New York expansion plan. Check out the posting and apply here.
The Manufacturing and Technology Resource Center, MTRC, and Scale for ClimateTech would like to invite you to participate in our 5-minute Working with Startups questionnaire!
By completing this questionnaire, you will be eligible to:
- Join a special directory of manufacturers for new potential customers to find you
- Benefit from our match-making services between you and new potential customers
Broadly, a startup can be defined as a company that is prototyping, pilot testing, or still building their customer base. Working with companies at this stage provides a special set of both challenges and opportunities, often requiring specific processes to ensure the goals of both the manufacturer and the startup are aligned.
The deadline to complete this questionnaire is TODAY 5pm EST. We look forward to hearing from you!
Should you have any questions, please reach out to MTRC@stonybrook.edu.
The Climate Tech Current
As mentioned above, the Climate Tech Current is a new section where we will share some of the month’s top three impactful climate tech related ideas, news, multimedia content, or happenings worth your time and why.
For your feed… Climate Creators to Watch 2023 – A collaboration by Pique Action & The Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health that recognizes a list of creators and storytellers shaping today’s narrative around climate and climate solutions.
For your bookshelf… The Death and Life of the Great Lakes by Dan Eagan – If you have talked to me for more than 10-minutes, I’ve likely recommended this book to you. Dan Eagan captures the interconnectedness of one of North America’s defining natural wonders and the history and direction of this incredible ecosystem. A must read for any lake-kids out there.
To impress your friends… “Software” Climate VCs And “Hardtech” Climate VCs Are Both Wrong by Rob Day dives into the dissonance of how “software VCs” and “deeptech VCs” have become accustomed to operating and the unique reality that successful solutions in the climate tech space demand a healthy mix of innovative software and hardware.