Innovation and startups at Ecomondo: prizes, conferences, and job opportunities Materia Rinnovabile

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Scheduled to take place in Rimini between 7 and 10 November 2023, Ecomondo is the reference international event for technologies, services, and industrial solutions in the green and circular economy sectors. The 2023 edition will be the biggest in the history of the event hosted by the Italian Exhibition Group, a guiding light in the Mediterranean region for circular economy technologies.

Beyond the six themed macro-areas of the 2023 edition (Waste as Resource, Sites & Soil Restoration, Circular & Regenerative Bio-economy, Bio-Energy & Agroecology, Water Cycle & Blue Economy, Environmental Monitoring & Control), Ecomondo once again sets itself forth as an incubator and facilitator of innovative projects.

Start-Up and Scale-Up Area

During the press conference for the presentation of the event, Alessandra Astolfi, the Global Exhibition Director of the IEG Green Technology Division, explained that “in this edition of Ecomondo, I for Innovation is vital, and we have decided to introduce two new awards for the most innovative companies in the green economy.”

On the one hand, the Start-Up and Scale-Up Innovation area has been re-established and expanded near the new East entrance to the exhibition, while on the other, businesses and investors will have a new and more extensive discussion platform to boost a new generation of innovative companies. To this end, a physical and virtual exhibition area reserved exclusively for startups will be set up, creating a space dedicated to new Italian and international companies that offer technologies, services, and solutions in the green and circular economy sectors for the ecological transition and new models of circular and regenerative economy.

An open call was set up to find the twenty startups that will take part in Ecomondo, which recently closed. The requirements for the candidacy included having already completed a round of seed funding or, alternatively, being active on the B2B market and having a client portfolio at their disposal. The initiative was organised by the Italian Exhibition Group, promoted in collaboration with ICE (Italy’s Institute for Foreign Trade), ART-ER (a consortium in Emilia Romagna), Fondazione MAI, representing Confindustria (the General Confederation of Italian Industry), and, as Main Partner, ANGI (Italy’s National Association of Young Innovators).

Twenty startups chosen

“This year we received 123 responses to our call for startups, with applications from The Netherlands, France, Ireland, Turkey, Romania, and, naturally, Italy,” says Fabio Filipponi, International Project Manager at IEG. “The twenty companies that were chosen operate in the fields of agrifood and blue growth, waste treatment technologies and machinery, ecodesign and new materials, blue economy and bioeconomy, integrated waste management services and waste recovery, repair and restoration services, hydrogeological risk reduction, and contaminated site remediation.”

The goals of the Start-Up area, which will be set up in HALL B7/D7, are varied: from offering new entrepreneurial stakeholders access to a prestigious national and international stage and creating networking opportunities between companies attending the event, to giving a platform to the best Italian innovators and promoting – in terms of development, culture, and skills – the major issues of the green transition.

Given the considerable number of applications received, in addition to the twenty chosen startups that will be given a free space at Ecomondo, ten others will have the opportunity to appear on the event’s digital platform.

Innovation District: on-site projects and initiatives

The status of innovation as one of the founding pillars of this year’s Ecomondo event is also evidenced by the creation of the Innovation District, a special initiative that will showcase the most cutting-edge solutions from the industrial world for the green tech and environmental sustainability sectors, as well as all the stakeholders investing constantly in research and development, contributing to progress and the economic transition toward green and sustainable practices.

The Innovation District, located under the prestigious cupola in the South Hall, will take up the central part of the event, hosting the world of industry, competence centres, research institutes and institutions committed to the green transition. Here, the world of manufacturing and industry will be accompanied by a rich programme of themed conferences and events. Various speakers will alternate on the Innovation Arena stage throughout the four days of the exhibition; a chance to get up to date on the latest trends, sharing ideas and projects with the protagonists in this sector.

This will also be the space appointed to host the Green Jobs project, where attendees can explore the training and career opportunities in the green transition and circular economy sectors. This guidance service is offered to students and young people starting out in the world of work.

E23 Innovation Award

Making their debut at Ecomondo 2023 are the award for the startup with the greatest innovation potential, chosen by a panel of scientists, and the award for green innovators, memorialising IEG President Lorenzo Cagnoni, which will be assigned to the most innovative of the exhibitors.

Out of the twenty startups that were selected to take part in the event, the three most innovative services or products from a technological and sustainability perspective will be granted the E23 Innovation Award. The evaluation committee tasked with choosing the winners will be made up of representatives from the event organisers, the world of research, organisations, and industry.

Finally, a space for the jobs and skills of tomorrow: Ecomondo will include the E23 Green Jobs and Skills area, a meeting point between supply and demand based on the effective needs of exhibitor businesses. Companies will be able to meet candidates who will be identified within the Green Tech Insights digital platform, which includes the entire Ecomondo community and its partners.

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