on the news
April 29, 2024
In November 2023, as part of the collaboration between EIT Climate KIC and IDB Lab, 26 Entrepreneurial Support Organizations (ESOs) from 11 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) will participate in a climate change capacity building initiative. selected to participate in the program. innovation. The main objective is to equip them with the knowledge, skills and tools needed to accelerate climate technology solutions.
In March 2024, 26 organizations completed the first phase of the program. This included participation in professional capacity building and knowledge transfer modules led by EIT Climate KIC experts. The training focused on key areas such as climate entrepreneurship, systems change, financial sustainability of ESOs, gender mainstreaming, and impact assessment. Additionally, this phase allowed participants to come together and learn from each other through facilitated sessions focused on sharing and best practices. This fostered community spirit and encouraged cooperation within the region.
Challenges and prospects for LAC climate change financing
Four months of regular meetings and active collaboration highlighted both obstacles and prospects within the LAC ecosystem, especially considering the developing climate space. European climate startups will raise more than $20 billion in 2023, with the share of climate change venture capital (VC) reaching a record high of 43% (1). However, climate change financing in the LAC remains limited and lacking, although it is expected to grow significantly in the coming years. Most VC funding still targets essential regional needs such as infrastructure, telecommunications, and renewable energy, with the last need seeing significant investment increases (2).
This was echoed by ESO, who said that “perhaps the biggest challenge they face is implementing the ClimAccelerator program given the lack of adequate funding.” The network is still developing, accessing funding from the private sector is difficult and accessing funding from the public sector is even more difficult. If you are a venture capitalist, investor, advisor, or leader in the climate space, we encourage you to sign up to the ecosystem contact list and contribute to strengthening the ecosystem.
Based on critical needs for funding, many ESOs focus on sectors where LAC countries have unique strengths and urgent needs. This includes prioritizing programs in agriculture, biodiversity, bioeconomy and circular economy that directly address the region’s geographic vulnerability to climate change. Interestingly, seven ESOs have already expressed a strong interest in developing initiatives specifically aimed at protecting the Amazon rainforest and leveraging local expertise to deliver global impact. It shows a targeted approach.
In April 2024, participating organizations presented their ClimAccelerator plans in front of a panel of experts from EIT Climate KIC and IDB Lab. This assessment will determine which of up to six organizations will advance to Phase 2, which will aim to accelerate his 100 climate technology startups across the region. The announcement of the selected ESOs will take place in May, with an online event highlighting future plans with funders, investors, startups, mentors and other stakeholders. Stay tuned for updates on your ClimaAccelerator LinkedIn account.
For 2024 and 2025, we plan to offer startups a progressive three-stage challenge tailored to expand their impact in this space. Initially, all 100 startups will strengthen their business development strategies and lay the foundations for sustainable growth. From there, the 50 most promising ventures will focus on achieving customer traction, a critical step to demonstrating market viability. The journey for the top 25 ends here. The top 25 will then focus on investor preparation and prepare to secure significant funding and support. This structured approach ensures that each selected startup is fully prepared for success at every stage of development.
If you are a startup and would like to sign up for program updates, you can share your contact details through this form. If you have further questions about our work at LAC, please feel free to contact us at climateccelerator@climate-kic.org.
- Hamilton, A. (2024, January 4). European climate technology in 2023. Dealroom.co. https://dealroom.co/blog/european-climate-tech-in-2023.
- Latin American Venture Capital Association. (2023). 2023 LAVCA Industry Data and Analysis. Retrieved from https://www.lavca.org/research/2023-lavca-industry-data-analysis/.
