As Bill Gates steps up his work tackling climate change, climate solutions charity Ashden has welcomed his support at a crucial time – and called for climate investment everywhere to also address global injustice.
Ashden CEO Harriet Lamb said: “Bill Gates’ pledge to invest at least $2billion in zero carbon technology over the next five years is timely. There’s so much great innovation out there, but organisations – particularly smaller ones, or those based outside Europe and North America – tell us they often struggle to get financial backing. Meanwhile, coronavirus has put many climate enterprises at risk of collapse – so this investment is badly needed.”.
“Of course, it’s vital we all back climate innovation that tackles inequality as well as lowering emissions. Ahead of the crucial COP26 climate talks, these are the solutions that will get governments, businesses, charities and the public working together on the biggest challenge facing humanity.”
For 20 years, Ashden has uncovered outstanding climate innovation through the Ashden Awards, with 236 low carbon innovators receiving the Award so far. Entries for the 2021 awards are open now. Three recent winners are:
Highview Power – a cutting edge energy storage solution usable worldwide
British company Highview Power produce liquid air CRYObatteries which offer large scale energy storage, supporting a grid based on renewables. The batteries’ low cost and simple design means this cutting-edge technology is viable in lower income countries as well as the wealthiest.
Solshare – household solar sharing provides energy in remote communities
Technology company Solshare helps villagers in rural Bangladesh trade excess energy from their rooftop solar home systems. This raises incomes and means families who cannot afford their own system can still access clean energy.
Guru Systems – technology that makes shared heating systems super-efficient
Guru Systems’ software and hardware quickly boosts heat network performance – spotting when a single flicked switch or faulty connection is massively raising energy use across a whole building or site. A British company, this has created big savings for tenants in social housing.
