Brent Zettel’s Post

Sharing the VOI's journey! Hopefully it will inspire other social entrepreneurs! Thanks Cambridge Enterprise for featuring VOI and the story of our social venture! #VOI #SocialImpact #peacebuilding #localcommunities #SocialVentures #socialentrepreneurship

Our friends at Mercy Corps Ventures just released their 2023 Annual Impact Report highlighting their progress propelling climate innovation and adaptation in emerging markets. Key results from the last year include: 🚀 7 investments and 3 pilots launched 💰 $59M raised in co-investments and follow-on funding 🤝 5M customers served by portfolio companies 🏦 $212.6M in financing provided to small businesses and individuals 🌍 Their portfolio now spans 90 countries, including 30 of the most climate vulnerable countries. We're most intrigued by their findings about the impacts of entrepreneurial ecosystems: ”The most successful companies are those that build strong communities of support around them,” says the MCV team. 🤝 Strong communities matter: Surrounding founders with a supportive network is critical for overcoming challenges and navigating the complexities of the climate space. 🆘 Early assistance is key: Founders who more clearly and frequently ask for help are best equipped to leverage opportunities and weather difficult economic circumstances. ⤴️Reduced learning curves: Strong communities equip founders with shared knowledge and resources, allowing them to execute faster, streamline processes, and focus on core competencies. Congrats to the Mercy Corps Ventures team Scott Onder Tim Rann Kenneth Kou Lillian Alexander on all you've achieved so far! Climate Collective is proud to support your work developing high-impact technologies and solutions for climate resilience.

Mentorship is as crucial as capital in business. #startupmentorship #knowledgesharing Follow RAIN - Redsalt Angel Investment Network GmbH for more opportunities to grow your business.

Interested in grants? Here are a few takeaways from Max Reinertsen and the grant sessions he attended at 🌎 #NYClimateWeek: 1. Maintain R&D authenticity - grants supplement, not dictate, your vision. Too many startups let grants distract them from mission critical items 2. Develop early relationships - sounds cliché, but you need to engage with grant funders as early as you can; relationships lead to opportunities 3. Use grants as momentum builders - leverage grants not just as funds but as catalysts for broader financing, recruiting, and partnerships 4. Recognize the motives - each financier, whether venture, grants, or project financing, have varying motives. Learn their language and tailor your approach 5. Design your partnerships - strategic collaborations can be the difference between being overlooked and winning major grants. Many startups have raised several million dollars without ever 'leading' a grant themselves 🙏 Thank you to the panelists: Doug from DOE Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, Maddie Hall from Living Carbon, Joel Armin-Hoiland from Climate Finance Solutions, Dimitry Gershenson from Enduring Planet 🌿 and to Helena Merk and the Streamline Climate team who put on the event! 🧊 Curious to learn more, or discuss partnership with us? Reach out in the comments #grantwriting #climateweek #coldchainlogistics

🚀 Calling all startup founders! Want to skyrocket your business to new heights? 📈 RAIN - Redsalt Angel Investment Network GmbH believes that access to knowledge is just as crucial as access to capital. That’s why we don’t just offer investment, we provide invaluable mentorship from successful local and international business leaders from all over the world. Our experienced mentors will share their insights on: - Overcoming business obstacles - Strategies for scaling - Industry-specific challenges Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn from the best and take your startup to the next level! Visit our website at https://lnkd.in/dEqCY-2a to learn more about how we can support your entrepreneurial journey. #StartupMentorship #AngelInvestment #EntrepreneurialGrowth #BusinessKnowledge #RedsaltNetwork #UgandaStartups Are you ready to take your business to the next level? Let's connect! Juliet NakawesiMugisha Emmanuel Redsalt Foundation gGmbHPatrick Pulvermueller StartHub Africa Microsoft for Startups

New ep. of Building the Future w/ Mike Rubin, M.D., Ph.D., the founder and CEO of Northpond Ventures, shared insights into investing in life sciences. North Pond Ventures is a multi-billion dollar venture capital firm that is notably active in the life sciences sector. The firm operates out of three headquarters in Cambridge, San Francisco, and Bethesda. North Pond Ventures stands out due to its deep integration with academic institutions like Harvard, MIT, and Stanford, focusing on transforming scientific discoveries into business opportunities. This insightful conversation not only shed light on the intricate connections between venture capital and scientific research but also underscored strategic investment's critical role in driving medical and scientific innovation. You can listen to the full interview here: https://lnkd.in/e2wVHTYh For more insights into their impactful work, visit Northpond Ventures. https://www.npv.vc/ #VentureCapital #ScienceAndTechnology #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #WomenInTech #Bioengineering #LifeSciences #StartupFunding #AcademicInnovation #TechLeadership

Big moment for Nadav Steinmetz and myself: The Climate First 2nd cohort program kicked off yesterday. Participating companies met the Climate First team members, we discussed the program's highlights, and already dove into a first session with Ashwin Shashindranath - Partner at Energy Impact Partners who gave us in-depth look into climate fundraising. Participants were excited and motivated, and so are we. In such tough, challenging time for Israeli startups, the best thing we can do is keep building, and supporting great companies in doing so. Even now. Especially now. We're just getting warmed up. #climatetech #climate Arielle Evan Keren Jason Dor Bershadsky Gilad Ben Ruby

Join us and the Advocacy Chiefs LLC team as we dive into SBIR/STTR and how you can leverage resources to prepare yourself to apply for this non-dilutive funding opportunity! Sign up for FREE Here: https://lnkd.in/dNhwSAvZ We are excited to bring to you a Virtual Lunch & Learn about SBIR/STTR in the Clean Economy industry. The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program is a transformational federal grant program that invested over $4.3 billion in 2023 alone into small business research and development. It is the pinnacle of federal investment for early-stage startups, with 11 participating agencies, including the National Science Foundation, investing up to $2 million dollars into a small business without taking any equity from that company. We are proud to partner with Advocacy Chiefs and UC Davis Venture Catalyst in providing awareness, education, and direct grant writing support to city and regional small businesses for this unique grant program. Advocacy Chiefs recently launched a program with the support of the City of Sacramento. In addition, this offering is brought to you in support through the Sacramento Entrepreneurial Growth Alliance designation as an Accelerate CA Hub funded by the California Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA). Our goal is to connect with local entrepreneurs to support them in applying for the SBIR by connecting them with vital resources such as direct grant writing supports and agency-like reviews prior to submission. Please join us to learn about relevant SBIR programs in the life sciences industry. #SBIR #STTR #capital #grants #research #innovation #startups #technology #innovativetech #Sacramento StartupSac Startup Folsom CleanStart NorCal Entrepreneur Hub AgStart California Mobility Center FourthWave.io Sacramento Valley SBDC Sacramento Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce Sacramento Black Chamber of Commerce Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

We know that #climatechange touches everything, so how do we empower everyone? ‎ More than ever before, people understand that climate change and biodiversity loss threaten the places, people, and things we love. But change isn’t happening at the speed and scale required, leading to feelings of powerlessness and despair. Wider systemic changes seem too slow, and our individual contributions feel too insignificant. And yet, things are shifting, because our individual contributions do matter! ‎ Ashoka and Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship have just launched the Climate Changemaker Playbook, a collection of strategies and tactics for how to move people from caring, which so many do, to acting. ‎ ‎ With a foreword by Christiana Figueres (Former executive secretary of the UNFCCC) and case studies of five leading social entrepreneurs who have been activating others around the world, this playbook is for anyone who has wondered, how do I get the people around me to act? ‎ ‎ Read more from the report co-authored by Pip Wheaton, Marya Hill-Popper Besharov and Jessica Jacobson 👉 https://buff.ly/4brPvxN

We have 212 incredible people backing Maslow® on Birchal to build a finance industry that serves humanity! But, EVERY founder of a social impact startup has a wish list of backers. This was mine for this raise: Pete Ceglinski from Seabin™ ✅ Kirstin Hunter from Techstars ✅ Adam Verwey from Sustainable Investment Exchange ✅ Aaron Chipper from FrankieOne ✅ Cris Parker from The Ethics Centre ✅ Doone Roisin from Female Startup Club ✅ John-Paul Monck from in1bank Ltd ✅ 🌊 Vinko Grgić from Aussie Angels ✅ 🧠 Andy Miller (米乐) from Heaps Normal Mike Smith from zeroco.com.au Kate Watson from zeroco.com.au Simon Griffiths from Who Gives A Crap Adam McCurdie from Humanitix Joshua Ross from Humanitix Georgia V. from Human Health Kate Lambridis from Human Health Hugh Barrett from Human Health Dan Kelsall from from Marketing Heaven (it's a real place, look it up). Anyone who's built an impact business knows the value of support, and we'd love the support of these amazing leaders as we try to pull the extraction out of the world's largest industry! If anyone can help get me front of mind with these amazing humans I will wash your car, walk your dog or be judged by your cat. Our birchal offer is here: https://lnkd.in/g56HQFHW They'll be joining 212 incredible supporters (so far) on a very important mission, and we'd be thrilled to have every single one of them! But, we also won't annoy them again with a cheeky Linkedin post like this because the line between cheeky and annoying is very fine 😅 Always consider the general CSF risk warning and offer document before investing.