About the Program
Greentech Europe 2023 is an accelerator for women-led startups in Europe working on sustainability products. The program will provide the selected startups with timely training, expert advice, network support, and potential funding to allow them to thrive – and in turn help close the gender financing and resource gap in the region.
Program structure
2 cohorts of 15 startups selected to receive in-depth support via Village Capital’s award-winning training curriculum, including the opportunity to get grant funding through peer-selection - a unique process that has been proven to result in investment decisions that lead to a more diverse portfolio (as highlighted in our report, Flipping the Power Dynamics)
2 further cohorts of 15 startups selected to participate in light-touch investment-readiness training through our online, self-paced business development curriculum.
Timeline
Greentech Europe 2023 will run throughout the year. There will be two accelerator cohorts, during this period: A spring 2023 cohort, and an autumn 2023 cohort.
February - April 2023
Spring Cohort Selection
May - June 2023
Spring Cohort Accelerator Program
July 17, 2023
Autumn Cohort Applications Open
September 11, 2023
Autumn Cohort Applications Close
September 28, 2023
Autumn Cohort Announced
October - December 2023
Autumn Cohort Accelerator Program
Entrepreneurs that graduate from our accelerators
Raise over 3x more capital
Earn over 2.7x more revenue
Create over 40% more jobs
Eligibility
We’re looking for (for-profit) startups that are building market-based solutions that tackle a sustainability challenge in Europe. Eligibility requirements include:
Location: Must have operations in (or the ability to expand business to) the European market
Stage: Must have a minimum viable product and meaningful customer validation, and less than $3M in equity raised
Team: Must have at least one full-time founder based in Europe, and co-founders to have 50%+ women representation or more than 25% of senior leadership team to be women
Impact: Must be developing a product which contributes towards 1 or more of the UN’s 17 SDGs
Benefits
Training
Our curriculum is tailored to help your company identify early milestones and prepare for your next round of capital
Mentorship
Build 1:1 connections with investors, strategic partners and potential customers
Financial Analysis
Work with an investment analyst who will coach you 1:1 on building a financial model, identifying unit economics, and using financial metrics
Media Exposure
Get featured on Village Capital’s program website and other collateral
Access to Abaca
Scale your business faster by identifying the right capital for you and planning your next milestones for growth
Discounts
Program participants will be offered in-kind support from our benefits partners, including web hosting credits, pro-bono legal support, and more.
Alumni Testimonial
“I’m so grateful to be part of these emerging Greentech leaders that are building a more sustainable future. The program has taught me to look at my business and other businesses with the lens of an investor and realize why certain metrics are important and identify milestones.
Even though we’re an early-stage startup, we know what steps we need to take to validate our business and raise our next pre-seed round.”
Valentina Klaas, COO, Surova, Greentech Europe 2022
Women in Greentech
Funding into women-led climate ventures is still shockingly low — in line with global averages at around 2% of all capital allocated.
We need this to change. Not only are women working in the climate tech world tenacious — they’ve already battled their way through male-dominated education systems, but recent research shows that women-led ventures deliver higher revenue and ultimately make better investments for financial backers.
And Europe very much needs the innovative products that women founders are developing. Temperatures over Europe have seen the highest rise of any continent in the world, at more than twice the global average.
The International Energy Agency estimate that by mid-century almost half of required emissions reductions will call for technologies that are not yet on the market shows us that time is of the essence to build the support and investment communities that women greentech changemakers need to develop and scale their products, fast.
Meet the Spring 2023 Cohort
Meet the Autumn 2023 Cohort
Advisory Board
Learn more about mentoring with Village Capital.
The Latest
11 Women-led Sustainability Startups Receive $125,000 Investment from the Greentech Europe 2023 Program
London, UK (December 12, 2023) – Visa Foundation and Village Capital announced their latest equity-free investment of US $125K into 11 women-led sustainability as part of the Greentech Europe 2023 program.
15 Women-led Startups Selected to Join Village Capital’s Greentech Europe 2023 Program
London, UK (May 4th, 2023) The selected startups will receive training and funding support to further develop and scale their sustainability ventures.
Visa Foundation and Village Capital Invest USD $125,000 in 13 Women-Led Sustainability Startups
London, UK (July 15, 2023) The spring 2023 cohort will be granted USD $125,000 in non-dilutive financial support, contributing to a cumulative investment of USD $425,000 that has been injected in 37 women-led sustainability startups, across 17 European countries, within the past two years.