What is the GI Goes Business Award?

The Green Infrastructure Goes Business Award supports innovative ideas, products and services for a green economy and promotes sustainable development in the area of the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP). The third edition of the international competition starts in June 2024 and calls particularly for solutions with benefits for “wise water management”.

EUSALP is the European strategy for sustainable and innovative development of the Alpine Region. EUSALP links cities, plains, valleys, and mountains to find solutions to challenges we can solve only together - in 48 regions of 7 countries: Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovenia and Switzerland.

The GI Goes Business Award was initiated by the EUSALP Action Group “Green Infrastructure”. Both in the first edition in 2022 and in the second edition in 2023, about 40 start-ups, established companies and organizations participated in the competition.

What are we looking for?

The GI Goes Business Award is looking for innovative ideas and sustainable products, services and business models with positive impacts on Green Infrastructure in the Alpine macroregion. The 2024 edition calls particularly for solutions with benefits for wise water management, climate change mitigation and adaptation.

The competition is basically open to everyone. Are you a start-up, a scale-up or a long-established company? Are your products and services still under development or already on the market? Or do you only have a cool business idea, which is not yet concretely developed? It doesn’t matter: You can participate in any case!

Businesses can use Green Infrastructure to find solutions to manage water resources wisely, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or to adapt to climate change effects like rising temperatures, droughts, and natural hazards. For example, by

  • renaturalizing river floodplains,

  • enhancing water quality,

  • sponge city and region solutions,

  • rewetting peatlands and paludi culture,

  • improving resilience of managed forests,

  • natural cooling systems with trees and plants,

  • improving ecosystems and ecological connectivity,

  • fostering biodiversity in agriculture,

  • nature-based tourism,

  • nature-based products.

Winners 2024

We want to thank you all for your submissions and for your work towards a Green Economy in the Alpine macro-region! There are many great ideas and a broad variety of submitted issues and business approaches in order to create a positive impact on GI and the climate.

The international jury has selected eight winning teams. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!

Winners

What is the prize?

The winners receive tailor-made business coaching for the further development of their ideas, products, services or business models. The coaching phase runs from September to November 2024, including:

  • 2 workshops for all winners (online, à 2 hours)

  • 2 individual coaching sessions for each winner (online, à 1 hour)

  • “GIGB Camp”, embedded in the EUSALP Annual Forum, 14-15 November 2024 in Brdo pri Kranju, Slovenia (on-site): 2 days for the winners, full of coaching, exchange, and fun - and with the Awarding Ceremony, where the winners have the opportunity to present their products, services and ideas to an international audience

  • International networking and matchmaking with companies, experts, potential sponsors etc.

Our experienced innovation coaches provide the winners with the support they need. Depending on their specific situation, the support can be very different, for example creating a sustainable business model, testing a minimum viable product, launching or advertising new products and services. Our coaches apply methods from Design Thinking, Lean Startup, and Agile Development.

Schedule

Launch Events

12 June 2024


Submission of applications open

12 June 2024

Submission deadline

1 September 2024

 

Publication of winners

20 September 2024

Coaching phase

September - November 2024

  • 2 workshops (online)

  • 2 individual coaching sessions (online)

  • 2 days GIGB Camp (14-15 November, Brdo pri Kranju, Slovenia)

  • Networking and matchmaking

Awarding Ceremony

14-15 November 2024, Brdo pri Kranju, Slovenia

What is Green Infrastructure?

To put it simply: Green Infrastructure is a network of natural spaces with high ecologic quality, delivering services to society and economy.

Here is the more detailed EU definition:

Green infrastructure is a strategically planned network of natural and semi-natural areas with other environmental features designed and managed to deliver a wide range of ecosystem services such as water purification, air quality, space for recreation and climate mitigation and adaptation. This network of green (land) and blue (water) spaces can improve environmental conditions and therefore citizens' health and quality of life. It also supports a green economy, creates job opportunities and enhances biodiversity.

 

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