CATAL1.5°T Pre-Acceleration Program

Climate technology alone will not save the world, but without technological solutions we have no chance. The CATAL1.5°T Initiative promotes emerging companies that have climate-friendly, innovative and sustainable products, services and business models that have high potential for growth and scalability.

The Institute of Technology and Higher Studies of Monterrey (Tecnológico de Monterrey) through the Eugenio Garza Lagüera Entrepreneurship Institute (IEEGL), in collaboration with the German Technical Cooperation (GIZ) in Mexico is calling climate ventures established in Latin America, which have the potential to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

General Objective

• Through the Climate Entrepreneurship Pre-Acceleration Program we seek validate the business model, improve technical aspects, strengthen the climate impact of the ventures and provide resources with the aim of empowering those ventures with high business potential and climate impact. These ventures may be natural or legal persons.

Areas of Interests

The Climate Entrepreneurship Pre-Acceleration Program has the following areas of interests:

• Energy access and energy generation ventures
• Low-emission transportation ventures
• Startups of buildings, cities, industries and appliances
• Forestry and land use ventures

Benefits

• Program: For up to 4 months, selected startups will have access to business workshops and training, objective monitoring, access to mentoring, experts on climate issues, training on gender and diversity issues, ESG, digitalization and technological strategy, legal and fiscal and leadership that support the growth and consolidation of their ventures.
• These benefits may be provided in the following way:
  • Up to 48 hours of workshops, training and business thematic content, technology, climate change, among others.
  • Up to 28 hours of advice on business issues.
  • Up to 8 hours of advice on climate change and sustainability issues.
  • Up to 4 hours of advice on gender and inclusion issues.
  • Up to 8 hours of advice on environmental and social safeguards issues and ESG.
• Accompaniment with mentors throughout the pre-acceleration process.
• Final presentation “Pitch contest-demo day”: before relevant actors of the climate and technological entrepreneurship ecosystem.
• Networking: The selected ventures will have the opportunity to connect with a network of actors in the climate entrepreneurship ecosystem throughout the different activities that make up the program.
• Grant: selected ventures will be candidates to receive an amount of up to €15,000 (fifteen thousand euros) to be used exclusively for the development and promotion of the venture.

Criteria

• Profile of the Participants
  • Applicants can be individuals or start-up companies with growth potential and that have a product or service in the prototype or pre-marketing phase.
  • Startups must designate a representative person as leader of the application. The person leading the application must be at least 18 years old and have an active role within the venture (be a partner, co-founder and/or collaborator).
  • In the event that the venture is selected, the person leading the application must annual. c) Development stage: Have a prototype (TRL 2 to TRL 4 technology) have time available to participate in the activities designated as part of the pre-acceleration program.
• Profile of the Ventures/Startups
  • Incorporation and location: The natural person or company must be legally constituted/incorporated as a legal entity with business activity and/or commercial company, in accordance with the legislation of the country where it operates. To be eligible to participate in the program, the enterprise must have residence in one of the following countries: Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Peru and/or Dominican Republic.
  • The venture must comply with the definition criteria established by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs):
    • Have less than 50 collaborators.
    • Have less than the equivalent of $3 million USD in total assets.
    • Have generated less than the equivalent of $3 million USD in sales annual.
  • The participation of women as founding partners, in management positions or in decision making positions within the venture will be positively valued.

For more information, visit German Technical Cooperation (GIZ).