All posts tagged: Climate Change

The E-Commerce Holiday Hustle: Tackling Waste and Emission Woes for a Merrier and Greener Gift Season

Published by Gert Christen

As we ramp up for the e-commerce holiday shopping frenzy, it’s not just about snagging the best deals anymore. The environmental footprint of our online shopping sprees has come into sharp focus. With millions of packages crisscrossing the globe, the convenience of online shopping brings with it a sleigh-load of packaging waste and an expanding carbon footprint. (Image: Actor Colin Firth enjoying Christmas presents and a gloriously ugly sweater in the movie “Bridget Jones’s Diary”) As we ramp up for the e-commerce holiday shopping frenzy, it’s not just about snagging the best deals anymore. The environmental footprint of our online shopping sprees has come into sharp focus. With millions of packages crisscrossing the globe, the convenience of online shopping brings with it a sleigh-load of packaging waste and an expanding carbon footprint. Unwrapping the Waste Problem Let’s talk numbers. During the holiday season, packaging waste skyrockets. A statistic that might shock you is that 30% (or 82 million tons) of all garbage in the U.S. comes from packaging alone. It’s estimated that in the United …

Gert’s Digigram Newsletter of June 2023!

Published by Gert Christen

Happy summer! This season brings not only many exciting tech highlights (including $3500 VR goggles, more below) but also many great opportunities to travel, explore, and enjoy some much-needed sunshine after a rainy winter season. In this edition of Digigram: 1: Best of Digigram – Digigram is turning four years old with this edition, a great reason to celebrate. Let me know which topics you like best. Cast your vote for the stories that have connected with you the most! Which topics of the last few issues resonated with you, and what do you want to see more of? #2: Climate Change as a Business Opportunity – With the pressing issue of climate change, I am convinced that innovation is a critical key to winning the race to stall or reverse damaging effects on the climate. Environmentally sustainable solutions and climate tech are booming, and entrepreneurs have a tremendous opportunity to solve global issues with ideas and businesses that scale. Over the last six months, I have given a talk on this topic at many conferences …

Climate Change As A Business Opportunity

Published by Gert Christen

The most enormous business opportunity since the invention of the PC! In the face of the unprecedented challenges posed by climate change, a new frontier of business opportunities emerges, where sustainability and profitability intertwine to shape a better future for our planet and economy. Computers were the source of the 20th century’s wave of growth and prosperity. Climate change is the equivalent opportunity for the 21st century. Innovation and entrepreneurship are the keys to unlocking it. Tackling issues as significant as climate change can seem daunting. Still, our most fantastic opportunity lies in leveraging the knowledge and tools we already use every day, tools that are in our pockets right now! In our connected world – which we have spoken about extensively in past Digigram newsletters – our always-on lifestyles can and should intersect with sustainability in big and small ways. Climate change is not about lamenting and tree-hugging. It is about creating innovations and taking them to market thru entrepreneurship. Using today’s tools, we can effectively address climate change challenges. In November 2021, President …

Digigram Newsletter of January 2023!

Published by Gert Christen

Welcome back to DIGIGRAM! Thanks to those who read our last issue and inquired about USA Launching Pad and the recent Connected Life class at UC Berkeley. Excited to share that the next USA Launching Pad starts in March, and Connected Life will make a comeback in the fall semester (it was voted the second-most popular startup class at UC Berkeley, woohoo!). 2023 is off to a stormy start – literally! San Francisco just recorded the wettest 22-day period since 1862. It was so wet that it saturated sand dunes, which gave way to drop a world-war II bunker onto the beach below. Looks like a scene from the “1941” movie! Luckily, the sun has finally returned to dry out a soaked California. Photo: “Relocated” bunker at Fort Funston (Source) In this edition of Digigram: #1: MIT & Climate Energy Prize – This long-running competition for student-led climate startups is solving some of the biggest issues facing our environment. Hear from this year’s organizing team about how promising young people from the world’s best universities fight climate change today. #2: …

2023 MIT Climate Energy Prize

Published by Gert Christen

I am thrilled to be working to bring the MIT Climate & Energy Prize competition to Europe this year as a part of my work as senior advisor to McKinsey. This is the largest and longest-running competition among university students to launch companies tackling climate change. Teams compete for $100,000+ in prize money and have access to mentoring and other resources. Founded in 2007, the MIT Climate & Energy Prize has received over 750 applications, offered world-class mentoring to over 260 teams, and granted more than $3.3M in non-dilutive cash prizes. Over 220 MIT Climate & Energy Prize companies have successfully launched and raised $1.7+ billion in follow-on funding. Over 100 startups, including two dozen from Europe’s best universities, applied for this year’s competition. The best climate startups from each continent will be chosen in Paris on March 9 and in Boston on March 16 to compete for the grand prize at MIT in Boston on April 13. If you’re interested in learning more about the competition, you can watch our recent webinar. We welcome volunteers to spend …