
Imperial and the Royal Institution have showcased some of London’s most exciting sustainable businesses as part of a landmark partnership.
Last year, the Grantham Institute – The Royal Institute of Climate Change and the Environment (Ri), Imperial College London, launched the Climate Innovation Center to promote ‘clean’ innovation across business, industry and policy to promote zero carbon and climate change. We help you achieve resilience. future.
One of the center’s major initiatives is The Greenhouse, a 12-month innovation program for climate-forward start-ups. It provides coordinated support to accelerate the commercialization of viable and scalable technologies and services that help tackle the climate crisis.
At the event held on Thursday, December 8, The Greenhouse’s newest cohorts included investors, business leaders and climate experts, including London Deputy Mayor Shirley Rodriguez and HSBC UK Chief Executive Officer Ian Stewart. Presented their ideas to an audience of innovation advocates. Founding partner of the Center.
unflinching

The event comes as Imperial and Li announce the center’s new name. unflinching.
We are determined to accelerate the world towards a sustainable zero-pollution future. This means finding actionable innovations that can make a difference on an unprecedented scale. Professor Mary Ryan Vice President (Research and Business)
Based in Ri’s central London headquarters, unflinching It aims to think innovatively about how to tackle climate change, not only in the areas of technology and business, but also in other contexts such as policy, regulation and social engagement.
At the event, the Deputy Mayor announced a series of new measures London is taking to tackle the climate crisis. This includes his £4.35m new funding to upgrade and improve Ri’s environmental impact. Undaunted House.
Many older buildings, including Ri’s 300-year-old headquarters, lack good insulation and lack waste energy produced primarily from climate-damaging fossil fuels. The engineering challenges and costs to remedy this situation are even more acute as the Grade 1 designation limits the changes that can be made to the building structure.
The funding was awarded under the Mayor of London’s pledge to achieve net zero carbon status for London by 2030. Replacing or upgrading the existing gas heating with an all-electric heat pump system and all windows to secondary glass has created a prime example of a historic building with low climate impact.
Building better, greener, more prosperous cities
Shirley Rodriguez, Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy, said: activity.
“Improving the energy efficiency of buildings is just one way to make London net zero by 2030. London is a beautiful city with some stunning buildings, but the Many are very energy inefficient, which I hope shows London is leading the way when it comes to renovating older buildings.
“New house in unflinching It will be the center of London’s most innovative businesses and start-ups tackling environmental issues. It will be a place for people to come together and develop initiatives to build a better, greener and more prosperous city for all Londoners. ”
Professor Mary Ryan, Vice Chancellor (Research and Business) at Imperial, said: This means finding actionable innovations that can make a difference on an unprecedented scale. Undaunted shows the world what can be achieved when scientists, investors, businesses, entrepreneurs, policy makers, and the general public work together to tackle climate change.
At Undaunted, we are finding solutions to the existential climate crisis, and we want to do so in a way that fully engages the public. ” Alyssa Gilbert Director, Undaunted
“We are proud to work with the Royal Institution and the Lord Mayor of London to tackle this urgent task and welcome this funding. Undaunted Home to the Royal Institute, sustainable and future-proof. ”
unflinchingAlyssa Gilbert, the new Director of , said how important the partnership between Imperial and Li was:and unflinching We are finding solutions to the existential climate crisis. We want to do it in a way that fully engages with the public and encourages them to find their role in this story as well. ”
clean tech revolution

This year’s Greenhouse innovation cohorts range from intelligent data tools that protect crops from disease, fashion industry dyes made from food waste, to plant-based cleaning agents and carbon-negative building materials.
Notpla are the epitome of the Undaunted spirit… I can’t tell you how pleased and proud I am of their achievements. Professor Richard Templar Director of Innovation, Grantham Institute
The Greenhouse has supported some of the UK’s most promising clean tech businesses. Among them is Notpla, founded by imperial alumni Pierre Paslier and Rodrigo Garcia. plastic.
Notpla’s products include takeaway box coatings, films, paper made from seaweed pulp, and hard plastic alternatives also made from seaweed. Notpla’s products made headlines at the 2019 London Marathon. The event distributed over 36,000 Lucozade-filled edible capsules to runners to reduce plastic waste. Most recently, the team created his million-plus food boxes for takeout company Just Eat. The coating on this package is seaweed-based, oil and waterproof, and biodegrades in a few weeks.
Founded in 2014, the Notpla team met during the study of Innovation Design Engineering offered jointly by the Imperial and Royal College of Art. During their time at Imperial, they received support from Imperial’s established entrepreneurial ecosystem. Venture Catalyst Challenge and Experts-in-Residence Program (now run by Imperial Enterprise Lab)Center for Climate Change Innovation Accelerator, Imperial White City Incubator.
Notpla wouldn’t exist without the current Undaunted support. They were the first to believe in us and the idea, providing the guidance and connections we needed to begin this journey. Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez Co-Founder of Nopra
Notpla’s Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez said: They were the first to believe in us and the idea, providing the guidance and connections we needed to begin this journey.
“At the time, Pierre and I were completing our Masters in Innovation, Design and Engineering at the Imperial and Royal College of Art. You provided support to accelerate the project, provided the incubator with our first office space, and provided the funds to pay our first small paycheck.
“Thanks to them, we have created a company that currently employs 74 people and directly replaces millions of single-use plastic products in various regions.”
Professor Richard Templar, Director of Innovation at Imperial’s Grantham Institute and founder of The Greenhouse, said: Their record of success is world-leading, and Notpla exemplifies the spirit of the Undaunted that has driven this success. When Rodrigo and Pierre came to us, they were still students, but we knew they had what it takes to raise Notpla. We were probably right! I cannot express how happy and proud I am of their achievements. ”