Five startups—one each from India, Switzerland, Turkey, Mexico and Sweden respectively—are competing for the €25,000 5th ISC3 Innovation Challenge, which is looking for innovations in the fields of sustainable chemistry and textiles.
THE AWARD & THE JURY: An international jury of 23 international experts selected the five finalists from a large number of outstanding applications from all over the world.
- This year, the International Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Centre (ISC3) called on startups to apply with innovative solutions from all fields related to sustainable chemistry, that can contribute to a more sustainable textile industry. Examples include environmentally benign production, alternative materials and feedstock, waste minimization and recycling, and alternative business models.
- The jury comprised independent reviewers, including representatives of the ISC3 partner organisations and external experts, especially from the textiles sector.
- After a two-rounds selection process that started out in March 2024 and evaluated a total of around 50 startup innovations, five startups made it to the final round of the ISC3 Innovation Challenge 2024.
- All finalists will get access to the customised support of the ISC3 Global Startup Service in the form of an online pitch training.
- They will be featured via the ISC3 communication channels as “best practice examples for Sustainable Chemistry innovations” in the ISC3 series Start-up of the Month.
- Furthermore, based on their presentation at the end of the pitch training, the finalists will get the chance to pitch on 30/31 October 2024 during the ISC3 Investor Forum 2024 and win €15,000.
- This year's ISC3 Investor Forum will take place live in Frankfurt, as part of Impact Festival.
- At the end of the 6th ISC3 Investor Forum, the Innovation Challenge award ceremony will take place, where, in addition to the main winner, two other solutions will be awarded €5,000 each for a special impact.
THE FINALISTS: The startups that have made it:
INDIA: SCHUTZEN CARE PRIVATE LIMITED: Schutzen develops bio-based and biodegradable textile and leather chemicals that support biodiversity.
- These chemicals are based on the valorisation of bio-waste from the seeds of a local tree fruit and use their patented reaction technology.
- Schutzen’s innovation reduces carbon emissions, provides an alternative to hazardous substances, thereby reducing risks to human health, reducing water pollution and promoting biodiversity.
SWITZERLAND: DIMPORA AG: Dimpora is a revolutionary PFAS-free textile membrane that makes fabrics completely waterproof and breathable without harming the environment, thanks to a scientifically based and patented CoreLayer technology.
TURKEY: DNACOTTON: DNACotton has developed a block-chain based traceability system in the textile sector by engaging DNABarkod technology.
- This technology involves the genetic tagging of products at various stages of the production cycle, providing each product with a unique genetic identifier.
MEXICO: POLYBION: Polybion uses locally produced agro-industrial fruit waste as raw material to craft forward-thinking biomaterials such as Celium — premium cultivated cellulose.
- Celium can be dyed, embossed and tanned using existing infrastructure, resulting in a lower negative environmental impact than traditional fabrics.
SWEDEN: RENASENS AB: Renasens contribute to accelerating the transition to a circular economy by developing a waterless & clean technology to recycle agricultural and blended textile wastes to new resources without fibres’ depolymerisation or degradation.
