Join Y4N and CBBS to hear from young business leaders that have nature and climate at the core of their business models. Happened on April 29 at 8 am UTC / 11 am EET.
Have you ever wondered what social entrepreneurship looks like? Have you ever thought about going through the path of a social entrepreneur? Join this webinar to hear from inspiring stories of entrepreneurs from the Baltic Sea region!
Youth movements are usually seen as being “enemies” of the private sector. While it is true that the private sector has contributed greatly to our current environmental and climate crises, it is also a source of solutions and resources.
In partnership with the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS), Youth4Nature aims to show youth and the general public that it is possible to run businesses that operate in harmony with nature and to address climate change solutions. Youth are already leading in green entrepreneurship and we want to both highlight their work, and learn from their journeys.
This event focuses on Baltic Sea countries and on action in the context of the Baltic Sea, with the objective of strengthening nature-based business models in the region. The project also seeks to address youth and student employability in times of COVID-19 and economic crisis by offering and illustrating career pathways rooted in sustainability.
Event recording
#TreasureHunt
If you have been paying attention to the Treasure Hunt, you will know that some treasures (a.k.a. stories of youth) are navigating around the #SpringofHopeY4N campaign.
We share a story from Aleksandr Zhmai, who wondered if we could make money out of trees, in a similar mission as talked by Merit during our event.
Meet our panelists:
Tuomas Ilander is one of the founders and CEO of Blokgarden. With a background in business and a green thumb, he is taking forward urban farming concepts. Aiming for greener cities and sustainable food production.
GROW SOMETHING, WASTE NOTHING, RECYCLE EVERYTHING
Merit Valdsalu is the CEO and co-founder of Single.Earth, a fintech/deep tech startup making nature the new gold. From an online platform democratizing carbon and biodiversity offset markets, to a vision of a world where healthy ecosystems equal financial wealth, she is determined to change our relationship with nature for good.
Merit believes that we need to integrate nature conservation and restoration into the existing, commonly known, and used financial market principles. Cutting-edge technology - combining satellite data, big data analysis, machine learning, and blockchain technologies - is the key to monetizing nature for its ecological value, not just as raw material.
She is an avid environmentalist and animal rights activist, passionate about equality, women’s rights, and diversity. She is striving to make a positive impact on the natural world and the people and communities depending on it.
Single.Earth has been recognized as a shortlisted Innovator on Uplink by the World Economic Forum and covered in Forbes, Reuters, a WEF video, and other international media.
Elēna Dmitrijeva & Laura Žukovska-Supe: Normally swimwear is made from synthetic fabrics - nylon, polyester, elastane - as they can manage UV radiation, salty water, chlorine in the pools, many washes. But synthetic fabrics are made from oil. So in essence they are the same as regular plastic. There is a prognosis that by 2050 there will be more plastic waste in the world's waters than there will be fish. So more and more designers all around the world switch to recycled fabrics for their garments. SWIMBE® uses unique fabrics for swimwear creation. They are made in an Italian company Carvico out of old fishing nets, carpets, PET bottles, among others. These fabrics feel and look like regular ones so we can create great garments without using more of the planet's resources.
We are very happy to live and work in picturesque Valmiera, next to the river Gauja - in a city that is green just like our enterprise.
We have created a zero-waste manufacturing process - we are making small accessories, like headbands and scrunchies from clipping or donate cuts to the local NGO where people with special needs make new products out of them.