#115 | California limits single-use packaging + a zero waste solution

Understory newsletter on climate and sustainability tech

Jul 11

We’ve reached the summer lull where many folks in our community are enjoying summer and time off. The sustainability and climate tech sector is staying active (what summer slowdown?!), so we’ve recapped all the major news that you need to know.

If you are new to The Understory community - join us on Slack! We invite you to say hello, post any news, jobs, events, and share any other info relevant to sustainability and climate tech. We recently revamped our channels to make it easier to navigate - make sure you have them all.

📚 Worth Reading

What are sachets and why are they so harmful to the environment? Read our latest profile on Siklus, a zero-waste solution that delivers refills of major household goods directly to your door, eliminating packaging waste.

🚀 Funding and Congrats!

Climentum Capital launched a €150 million fund focused on reducing emissions in Europe.
AENU launched a new €100 million evergreen climate tech fund.
Xpansiv, a marketplace for ESG commodities like carbon offsets, raised $400 million in equity from Blackstone Energy Partners.
EVCS, an EV charging network operator, raised a $68.8 million funding round.
Simplifyber, a sustainable fashion company that creates products using cellulose, raised a $3.5 million seed round.
Pina Earth closed a $2.5 million seed round. The company is an online platform where forestry projects can become certified to sell carbon credits.

💡 Startup Spotlight

Kaiterra - builttech company that monitors air quality for low carbon healthy buildings.

🌱 Startup Resources

Apply for Filecoin’s Green Grants Program to support Regenerative Finance projects that will transform financial structures with carbon-neutral, sustainable initiatives.
Apply by August 5: The Accelerate(HER) fund sponsored by Tiger Global Impact Ventures offers grants up to $50K.
Apply by August 12th: Pitch at the Venture Atlanta conference. They added Climate Tech and ESG categories this year.

👀 Quick Hits

A new California law requires that all single-use packaging be recyclable or compostable by 2032. It also shifts the cost of recycling to the packaging manufacturers and away from taxpayers.
Google Cloud launched new Climate Insights tools to help sustainability and reduce carbon emissions.
Extreme heat in Europe has caused the Po River in Italy to be at its lowest levels in almost 80 years. A glacier also collapsed in the Italian Dolomites causing multiple casualties.
Sydney Australia is experiencing regular flooding caused by climate change.

🎧 Podcast

Franz Hochstrasser: funding the green transition

Michael Walton: creating sustainable communities

Brian Graff: beautifying solar

The Understory Podcast is also available on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and Google Podcasts.

⚙️ Jobs

Find and share your open positions on the Understory Slack channel.

🆕 Marketing Coordinator at Retaaza
🆕 Operations Coordinator at Retaaza
🆕 Circular Economy Manager at Nike
🆕 Online Sustainability Manager at Estee Lauder Companies
🆕 Recycling & Waste Diversion Analyst at Cox Enterprises
🆕 Head of Sustainability and Corporate Innovation Strategy at Delta
🆕 Director of Operations at covetool
Manager, Sponsored Content and Media Revenue at Brightly
Senior Manager, Livestock Sector, EDF+Business at the Environmental Defense Fund
Zero Waste Partnerships City Service Corps Member at the Sanitation Foundation
Sustainability Director, Net Zero Reduction Strategy at Meta
Summer Digital Marketing Internship at Rochelle Porter Design
Senior Mechanical Engineer at Charm Industrial
Senior Analyst Sustainability and ESG at JetBlue
EV Sales Advisor at Spring Free EV
Director of Utility Sales at Bloc Power
Deputy Vice President of Programs at ClimateWorks Foundation
Project Manager in Sustainability at infogr8
Multiple Roles at Virtual Peaker
Scientist Roles at Project Drawdown
Engineering roles at Sunairio
Senior Mechanical Engineer at Charge Robotics
Product Manager, Low-Carbon Aviation at Google Climate Research
Environmental Program Officer- Thriving Communities at Patagonia
Intern at Newlab

🗓 Events

July 11: The Circulars - Meet the Innovators: Pitch Session
July 14: Bitcoin Net Zero?
Aug 4: Celebrating Corporate Climate Responsibility

Do you have any events to share? Post them in our Understory Slack community.

📧 Stay in Touch!

You don’t have to wait for our weekly newsletter for all the latest content. Join us on Slack or follow along on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter to see real-time updates.

The Understory Newsletter