Israeli climate tech is about to make a showing at the biggest climate conference in the world.
In early November, the United Nations will hold its annual Climate Change Conference (COP27), which will take place in Sharm e-Sheikh, Egypt, and be attended by world leaders, industry experts and several delegations from attending countries. During the PLANETech World 2022 climate tech conference in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, an Israeli delegation of companies was officially announced, consisting of 10 stand-out start-ups in the Israeli climate-technology market.
The chosen start-ups will highlight Israel’s impact on the sector. The selected companies showcase a wide range of solutions to climate change-related issues, such as hydrogen fuel solutions, cow-free dairy production, agrotech, weather, at-risk species preservation, plastic alternatives, composting and supply-chain optimization.
Who is on the delegation?
The start-ups chosen to attend COP27 in the Israeli climate tech delegation are H2Pro, GenCell, Remilk, Aleph Farms, Groundwork BioAg, Tomorrow.io, Beewise, UBQ Materials, HomeBiogas and Wiliot. At the conference, the delegation will display their products at the Israeli booth during the open event.
“The 10 winners, each a trailblazer in their own right, are the strongest evidence of Israel’s potential leadership in the climate tech industry,” said Dror Bin, CEO of the Israel Innovation Authority. He noted that although Israel certainly has the potential to lead the charge in climate technology development, certain hurdles stand in the country’s way to the head of the pack.
“There are currently not enough investment entities in Israel specializing in climate tech – specifically, venture capitalists who can support and facilitate the business success of climate tech companies. Environmental policy in Israel is also not advanced enough, which makes it challenging to create a comparative advantage in Israel,” said Bin.
Despite these challenges, Bin remains confident that the start-up nation can succeed.
“In recent years, climate tech has become one of the hottest fields in the Israeli tech industry, attracting entrepreneurs, investors and corporations who wish to contribute to the struggle against the climate crisis,” he said. “I believe the combination of Israel’s public, private and academic sectors will transform the Israeli tech industry into a leading global innovator in climate tech.”
The delegation announcement took place at PLANETech World 2022, the first global climate tech conference to be held in Israel. The event took place at the Rabin Center in Tel Aviv, drawing in 1,500 participants, investors, community figures and experts – including Environmental Protection Minister Tamar Zandberg – all of whom were exposed to one hundred start-ups in the climate tech sector.
PLANETech director Uriel Klar said, “The delegation that we are sending is at the forefront of Israeli innovation and breakthroughs when tackling the climate crisis. We believe that we will be able to present effective, real solutions before the companies attending the UN conference and, in doing so, bring a halt to the dangers threatening humanity.”
UN Interest in Israel's climate technology
In December 2021, an 11-country delegation of ambassadors to the UN visited Israel in order to review Israeli innovation technology focusing on climate and sustainability solutions. The delegation visited Start-Up Nation Central’s headquarters in Tel Aviv to learn about the strengths of the Israeli innovation ecosystem and how it is addressing the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations.
“One of my main goals at the United Nations has been to illustrate how Israeli innovation is helping people all over the world,” said delegation tour leader and Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan. “After spending a week in Israel, the ambassadors were able to see the innovative spirit that is infused throughout the people. I am confident that they will be strong advocates of partnering with Israeli companies in the future, both at the UN and in their home countries.”