The 16 finalists of the Red emprendeverde Awards have been selected

The second edition of the Red emprendeverde Awards already has the 16 finalist candidatures that opt for the awards of this contest promoted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment (MAGRAMA), through the Biodiversity Foundation, in order to recognize and support those green entrepreneurs who stand out for their contribution to the sustainable economy. helping them to create and consolidate their company and recognizing their ideas and initiatives.
 
The candidatures selected by the technical committee, made up of experts in entrepreneurship and the environment and collaborators from the Emprendeverde Network and the Biodiversity Foundation, stand out for their feasibility, potentiality, environmental results, social impact, innovative nature, capacity and leadership.
 
These initiatives are linked to sustainable rehabilitation and building, transport and mobility, renewable energies, organic production, forest management, eco-design, beekeeping, waste and the circular economy, among other sectors.
 
The 16 selected candidates will be able to present their initiatives to a jury made up of prestigious personalities in the business, investment, financing and entrepreneurship fields; people related to sustainable development and conservation of the natural environment and representatives of the Biodiversity Foundation.
 
The members of the jury will determine on July 8 the candidacies that will be recognized with economic prizes and special mentions. In this edition, the prize money is €24,000, divided into five prizes. In each of the two categories, the first prize has an endowment of €6,000, while the winners of the second prize will receive €3,000. In addition, a runner-up prize of €6,000 will be awarded to the initiative that stands out for its protection of biodiversity.
 
In this second edition, a special effort is made to support innovation, initiatives with environmental and social impact, international projection, as well as women entrepreneurs and young entrepreneurs. For this reason, 10 candidatures of those submitted to the contest will be recognized with the following five special mentions: Young Green Entrepreneur, Green Entrepreneur, Eco-innovation, International Projection – Keiretsu Forum and Red Emprendeverde Community. The winning nominations and special mentions will be announced during a gala to be held in Madrid during the last quarter of 2014.
 
In addition to offering support to the selected entrepreneurs through training, advice and financial prizes, the call for the contest contributes to developing a network of contacts between entrepreneurs and investors and gives dissemination and visibility to their initiatives.
 
These awards are part of the Emprendeverde Network, promoted by the Biodiversity Foundation, and is co-financed by the European Social Fund through the Operational Programme for Adaptability and Employment 2007-2013. In this second edition, 265 candidacies have been submitted, which represents an increase of 40% compared to the previous edition.
 
TWO CATEGORIES OF WINNERS
Thus, in the category “Emprende en verde”, aimed at entrepreneurs who seek to create an innovative company linked to the environment, Ecodome, an innovative initiative for the construction of homes with clay soil improved with ecological materials, have been finalists. Also competing in this category is Aqueloo, a company dedicated to the design and construction of natural pools. For its part, Citysens has presented itself at the event with a project for the development of a smart, vertical garden with automated irrigation in cities.
 
In this first category, Collector Aerotérmica Solar, which has devised a solar thermal energy capture system for domestic and industrial use, is also a finalist.
 
In the forestry sector, two candidatures participate as finalists in this category. On the one hand, Mycology applied to EI dedicates its activity to the production of mushrooms and, on the other, La Pina, offers formulas for collective management of the forest, unifying small forest plots.
 
In the field of Environmental Engineering, HolycomB applies a new methodology in the development of intensive beekeeping. Finally, the candidacy of Pecocos, dedicated to the production and marketing of organic cosmetics, has also been selected in the “Emprende en verde” category.
 
In addition to these finalists, there are another 8 candidacies competing in the category “Grow and consolidate in green”, aimed at micro-enterprises and SMEs already established and with a maximum of five years of experience with potential for growth and job creation in the green economy sector.
 
In this category, two companies dedicated to the transport and sustainable mobility sector have been selected. On the one hand, Bluemove Carsharing has launched a service that allows residents of a neighbourhood to share their own car with the rest of the neighbours. For its part, Bluelife Battery is dedicated to the regeneration and restoration of electric and hybrid car batteries to continue to be used.
 
In the field of R+D+i in organic production, Laboratorios Edyma, a technology-based company dedicated to the production of plants and seeds through “in vitro” multiplication, is eligible for the awards. The biotechnology company Naturae, which specialises in the extraction of active ingredients from fungi and plants, also participates in this category. In the field of environmental consultancy, the company Métrica6 dedicated to R+D+i is a finalist, which has developed a new water-saving device in the home.
 
In the industrial sector, Ecoteck participates in the final stretch of the event with a project based on a robotic cleaning and disinfection system without the use of disinfectants or chemical products and reducing water consumption by up to 98%. Likewise, Gluten Free Fibers dedicated to the production and marketing of dietary fibre for the food industry from agri-food by-products has been classified. In this category, Cartonlab, dedicated to the design of furniture and spaces in 100% recyclable cardboard
 
All these candidates participated in the “Emprendeverde” training programs taught at the ESADE and IESE business schools during the months of May and June to the 35 selected in the initial phase of the contest.