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Greentown Labs and BASF Launch Circular Economy Challenge
The six-month accelerator program seeks ideas in the plastics, energy storage and recycling value chains.
3 Min Read
Greentown Labs, a cleantech startup incubator in North America, and BASF, a global chemical company, are now accepting applications for the Greentown Labs Circularity Challenge, a six-month accelerator program. Greentown Labs and BASF are seeking innovative ideas from startups with a proof of concept solution to disrupt the plastics, energy storage and recycling value chains to enable a sustainable and circular economy. This program is supported by Stanley Black & Decker, a global diversified industrial and a customer of BASF.
"The circular economy is all about resource efficiency and implementing sustainable practices across value chains," said Emily Reichert, CEO of Greentown Labs, in a statement. "We believe deeply in the impact innovations across the circular economy can have on our planet, and we are eager to see all the great ideas startups have to improve energy storage, plastics and recycling value chains. BASF has been a wonderful, supportive partner to the Greentown Labs community, and we are proud to be running this challenge with them!"
The Greentown Labs Circularity Challenge, located at Greentown Labs in Somerville, Mass., offers a collaborative environment to explore, pilot and develop disruptive approaches to circularity, joining forces between corporates at different positions in the value chain and the startup ecosystem. Selected startups will gain access to industry advisors and mentors, business and technical resources as well as physical infrastructure, among other benefits.
"BASF believes that the chemical industry and its innovations can lead the way in circular economy thinking and action," said Peter Eckes, president of bioscience research and regional research representative North America for BASF, in a statement. "Yet, solving the challenges for a sustainable and circular economy requires innovation across the value chain to provide benefits to customers and suppliers, and in many cases may require completely new business models and partners. By teaming up with Greentown Labs and Stanley Black & Decker we have already initiated a collaborative environment and look forward to working with startups to explore disruptive ideas in plastics, battery materials and digital tools."
Specific areas of interest within the plastics, batteries and digital tools categories for the Greentown Labs Circularity Challenge include, but are not limited to:
Plastics
Advanced recycling technologies
Novel designs
Energy-efficient processes for depolymerization (including enzymes), pyrolysis or gasification to recover building blocks
Batteries
New business models to improve the collection of batteries/cells after initial use
Ways to optimize recycling of battery materials, including valuable metals such as cobalt, nickel, lithium, etc.
New batteries that can be reused, repurposed or recycled more often and more cost effectively
Digital tools
Digital platforms that enable new business models in circular economy
Tools that help simulate and predict recyclability and guide designs
Technologies that support tracking and reporting of value streams
Submissions for the program will be evaluated based on potential technological impact, strength of team and relevance for partnership with BASF and Stanley Black & Decker, among other factors. Applicants must disclose the status of any intellectual property (IP) relevant to their submission. Selected applicants' IP will be fully protected throughout the review process, the companies noted.
Selected Circularity Challenge awardee(s) are eligible for the following awards and benefits:
Acceptance into Greentown Launch, a six-month accelerator program for startups at Greentown Labs
$25,000 in non-dilutive grant funding
Partnership with and/or potential investment from BASF by the end of the program
Access to select BASF testing capabilities, global technical facilities and expertise
Exclusive access to the Greentown Labs and BASF networks
Desk space at the Greentown Labs Global Center for Cleantech Innovation
Potential access to BASF-sponsored bench in Greentown's wet lab
Potential for joint ISO-standardized eco-efficiency analysis with BASF
Opportunity to connect with multiple stakeholders across industries, including BASF customer and special program affiliate Stanley Black & Decker
Applications for the Greentown Labs Circularity Challenge are due by August 30 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
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