William Wiseman and I – Alba, MSc in Renewable Energy alumni and co-founders of the startup Climatize, had the honour to be nominated as Young Global Changers by the Global Solutions Initiative and were selected as 1 of the 10 projects out of 550 applicants to pitch our company at the World Policy Forum held in Berlin, Germany last March.
What is recoupling?
This year’s theme for the summit was “Listen to the world: Promoting social well-being within planetary boundaries”. One of the key words of the event was the term “recoupling” which stands for connecting economic progress with social and environmental wellbeing.
Climatize supports recoupling by enabling people to invest in clean energy projects from as little as their spare change. We change the climate narrative from all about sacrifice to opportunity by allowing everyone to benefit from the energy transition. By carefully selecting the projects we invest in, we ensure a positive impact for both the environment and the community, creating local jobs, lowering power costs, and building wealth by focusing on underserved communities. People, planet, and profit are closer than ever before.
High level connections
The event that took place in Berlin was very intense but rewarding with an opportunity to participate in many sessions throughout the day. Choosing which ones to attend was a challenge, as all the panellists were stellar, and the topics couldn’t have been more interesting!
The event had world renowned speakers such as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Deputy Secretary General United Nations (UN) Amina J. Mohammed, the Economists Mariana Mazzucato and Jeffrey Sachs and the President of the Global Solutions Initiative Dennis J.Snower, amongst other prominent figures.
The importance of collective action
Some of the key takeaways from the congress were the importance of collective action as a response to global problems and the need for an inclusive and systemic sustainable transformation. Clean energy investments need to grow substantially always ensuring the green transition is both effective and fair.
Will and I have used this opportunity to connect and build friendships with our fellow Young Global Changers coming from all over the globe. We learned about gender transformative approaches to the climate crisis, sustainable coffee, learning platforms making access to information inclusive or ways to extend the life of crops using solar! We all share a common goal: making this world a better place.
by Alba Forns, EIT InnoEnergy alumna
Photo credits: Global Solutions Initiative | © Rolf Schulten – Ole Spies | Young Global Changers, Muazu Alhaji | The Spotlight NG, Alba Forns | Climatize, Brianna Kerr | Kua , Musawwir Muhtar | Octopus Indonesia, Dennis J. Snower | President Global Solutions Initiative, Mathias Charles | Ako Fresh, Tania Rosas | Origin Learning Fund, Etienne Salborn | SINA, Abir Ibrahim | UNICEF