In our latest Belgium environment article we look at The Foundation for Future Generations as it unveils the five SE’nSE 2020 laureates.
Five Belgian start-ups, sustainable and innovative in terms of the environment, have been granted a total financial support of €150.000.
For the fifth consecutive year, the SE’nSE jury (Seed Equity & Sustainable Entrepreneurship) has selected five young companies with a high environmental impact to share €150,000 in the form of convertible subordinated loans. This financial support is made possible thanks to the contribution of the SE’nSE Fund, created by entrepreneur Pierre Mottet, the Aether Fund for Future Generations, the Eurofins Foundation, Wallonia and the Brussels-Capital Region.
The jury has chosen the five for their positive impact on the environment, their sustainable functioning and the solidity of their entrepreneurial project among the applications received. This year, we see the predominance of Brussels initiatives among these SE’nSE laureates, actors of an innovative, local and sustainable social – and often circular – economy, largely participating in the economic renaissance of our capital. The five SE’nSE 2020 winners also distribute their products to other Belgian regions and even as far as France for the GiveActions app.
The five SE’nSE 2020 laureates
Beanlife (Brussels)
Beanlife, a start-up created by Noemi Salantiu and Winnie Poncelet, produces and sells tempeh, a vegetable protein-based food offering a healthy and environmentally friendly alternative to animal proteins. Its raw materials (soya, nuts, black beans) can be produced organically, locally, with a much lower carbon impact than meat production.
Eco-tap (Brussels)
Eco-tap, a start-up created by Arthur Peemans and Olivier Potvin, offers a model bulk liquids distribution to fight against single-use plastics. Both the Eco-tap dispenser supply in shops and its use by consumers are based on reusable containers, to move towards a 100% zero waste model.
GiveActions (Brussels)
GiveActions, the app created by Elias Print, Gaspar Merton and Maxine Van der Meerschaum, allows its users to finance associations and NGOs without having to spend any money, by discovering two sponsored videos of green and social companies every day. An innovative approach to advertising both for companies looking for visibility and for consumers who want to have a real impact.
PachaGreens (Ghent)
PachaGreens, a start-up created by Tom De Windt, cultivates and commercialises micro-greens, highly nutritious and tasty germinated seeds. Their very short growth cycle (10 to 14 days) and the use of light, water and heat guarantee a high-yield production with a low environmental impact.
Sonian Wood Coop (Brussels)
Sonian Wood Coop, a start-up created by Benjamin Moncarey and Stephan Kampelmann, aims to relocate the wood economy by orchestrating a local value chain with the cooperation within the woodworking community -forest owners and wood workers – in the Sonian Forest. Faced with the current export model that dominates Belgian forestry, Sonian Wood Coop creates local socio-economic value and a reduced environmental footprint.
The main criteria taken into account by the jury in the selection of these five start-ups were the expected level of impact on the environment, but also the seriousness of the business plan and the team, and the sustainable functioning of the company.
About the SE’nSE Fund
Since 2016, the Foundation for Future Generations has hosted the SE’nSE Fund, created by entrepreneur Pierre Mottet (IBA), which aims to contribute to a sustainable world by stimulating the entrepreneurial spirit. Endowed by its founder, already joined by other patrons – the Aether Fund for Future Generations, the Eurofins Foundation, Wallonia and the Brussels-Capital Region – the Fund has a minimum of €100,000 per year (€150,000 in 2019 and 2020) to support entrepreneurs developing projects with a high environmental impact by offering them financial means in the form of seed capital, experience sharing and networking.
About the Foundation for Future Generations
The Foundation for Future Generations, founded in 1998, is the only Belgian foundation exclusively dedicated to the transition towards a sustainable development mode, one of the biggest challenges of the 21st century.
The Foundation is convinced that it is possible to pass on a liveable world to our children, but only if we systematically act and think 360°-wise, taking into account simultaneously four dimensions: people, planet, prosperity and participation. www.fgf.be
www.eco-tap.eu
www.giveactions.com
www.beanlife.be
www.pachagreens.com/pachagreens
www.sonianwoodcoop.be
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