About SDG Startups

A catalogue of Sustainable Development Goal Startups for your inspiration, nudging you to bold actions whether you are an entrepreneur, decisionmaker or investor.

Why

The challenges of humanity have always been massive. War, starvation and plagues were always there. For some of us war and starvation are now far away. For many, many more still an everyday reality. And in these times, we are all facing the fear of a widespread pandemic.

As mankind have solved a lot of problems, we have unfortunately created others. Some of them now threating our planet. And many of them at an unpresented speed.

The UN Sustainable Development Goals are the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace, and justice. The 17 Goals are all interconnected, and in order to leave no one behind, it is important that we achieve them all by 2030.The potential for startups in contributing to fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals is massive.

There are many fantastic initiatives that focus only on the social impact of startups or nonprofit initiatives. However, the focus of this initiative, is on profitable and sustainable businesses, specially the kind that will change business models, production and value chains also for the incumbents.

I have met entrepreneur’s skepticism about the possibility of succeeding in both making a profit and having a real sustainability impact, and I have met far more political leaders and other decision makers that claim it’s just “fake news”

These examples will showcase, that it is possible to change course, save the planet and make profit. All at the same time.

Who

Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist, has always worked on improving the local and global community in various positions. Freedom of speech and equal rights was always the foundation. When she was 20 years old, she was elected to the local parliament working with sustainability issues and at the same time the first-year business student started her own business. Thereafter entrepreneurial and sustainable issues were on my change agenda.

20 years ago, she was working with an amazing team on a project with the World Bank and the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunization to get vaccines faster to developing countries. During this time, she encountered the problems that industry and NGOs had in understanding each other. Thereafter, she was seconding the Swedish minster of enterprise and energy at meetings with global leaders in endless discussions on climate change, participated in the terrible Copenhagen negotiations and discussed the potential of innovation with industry leaders.

Policy and politicians obviously can’t solve the challenge ahead alone. By most business and by the financial market in general, sustainability is regarded as a cost and something for the HR and PR department to work on.

Elisabeth wants to contribute by aggregating and sharing extraordinary business ideas. Some of which might be pivotal to reaching the goals that 193 countries have agreed upon. A lot of people regard her excitement of solving global problems with innovation and entrepreneurship as naïve. As an investor she fundamentally understands the force of passion to accomplish the impossible.

How

A majority of these startups Elisabeth have never met. However, she has met with thousands of startups and therefore have good eye for what could work and not. Her global network is vast and amazing people help out to find and discuss possible startups.

There is also have a team of amazing volunteer students that help in vetting and contacting the startups before publishing them.

All start-ups must

• Be built to make profit, in other words – have a business model that will work over time
• Have a substantive impact on one or many of the SDG
• Be mature enough to make revenues or having a solid partnership with established businesses or organizations
• Make you think – WOW – this could forever change how we think or act about X

To be totally transparent. 99% of the startups will be out of her scope for investing, in other workds this is not about showing of a great deal flow. Nevertheless, Elisabeth hopes that other investors, family offices and VC will find this collection to get ideas on what their next big thing is!

What’s a startup?

There are many definitions and I like:

A startup is a young company founded by one or more entrepreneurs to develop a unique product or service and bring it to market.

Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist

The SDG Startups web site is managed by

Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist

I am an angel and VC investor with a background in business, politics and NGOs.

Full profile can be found on LinkedIn.