Captivate to activate: Closing the gap between learning and action

Why climate education holds the key to a rapid transition

April 06, 2023

✌️ G’DAY

Welcome to Startups Will Save Us, a newsletter for founders building solutions to the climate crisis and the investors who back them, powered by Raaise.

Each week, we share insights from a climate startup, including the inside scoop on the one thing they found most helpful on their fundraising journey. Know anyone who’d find this useful? You know what to do. 👇

🚀 AIMHI EARTH:

The climate crisis can be difficult to grasp, intellectually and emotionally. On top of the myriad work/life challenges that keep our blinkers firmly fastened, there are also persistent social and economic inequalities that thwart the possibility of transformative change. Ultimately, we need to change the way we relate to ourselves, to other people, and to the natural world—no small feat. 🤯

Fortunately, a nature-based education startup is up for the challenge, with their treasure-trove of inspiring and educational courses that are changing hearts and minds across the world. In the words of founder Matthew Shribman:

The climate crisis is so multifaceted and distributed that it won’t be solved without widespread learning, and all the things that come with it, such as innovation, stewardship, compassion, and good judgement. There’s never been a more urgent need to upskill almost everyone on Earth, and to do it rapidly.

AimHi Earth bills itself as a “workforce transformation platform”, giving both employers and employees the confidence to ask the right questions and the foundational knowledge to draw the right conclusions, so they can do their bit for a more just and sustainable world. 🌏

Shockingly, only 4% of much-hyped corporate sustainability transformations succeed, probably because they’re so bloody boring. 😑

Climate change is deadly, but so are dull presentations. The world doesn’t have time to get bored. We are making the online experience more immersive, more memorable and more transformative, even for large and diverse groups. 

When it comes to capital raising, AimHi is flying high, with only a little bit of room left in their seed round. Their advice to other founders who are raising or thinking about it?

Impact investing is a rapidly evolving space, and there are many different approaches, so dig into what the investor’s model early on to make sure it fits the journey you have in mind. Have clear conversations with potential investors upfront to minimise the potential for a mismatch and time-wasting.

🚨 WHAT’S CAUGHT OUR ATTENTION:

We recognise there is no climate justice without First Nations justice, which is why we’ll be getting behind the campaign to establish a First Nations Voice to Parliament.

The Voice arose from the Uluru Statement from the Heart, itself an invitation from First Nations Peoples to all Australians to walk together in a movement towards a better future. Practically speaking, the Voice is a mechanism by which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities can have a say on the policy and legal decisions that impact their lives.

While all Australians get to vote for this important constitutional change in a referendum later this year, we invite all our fellow founders—wherever you may be—to join the movement. Listen to First Nations people on what climate justice means to them, learn about the Uluru Statement from the Heart, and support Indigenous-led climate justice organisations like Seed Mob.

Together, we can take a critical first step towards reconciliation and justice. 🙏🏽

🤩 ICYMI:

Our friends at Allbirds have just introduced M0.0NSHOT, the world’s first net zero carbon shoe. This super-natural product achieves a 0.0 kg CO₂e carbon footprint—versus the industry average of 14 kg CO₂e—without relying on a single carbon offset. Now that’s impressive! 👟

🌱 JOIN US!

If you're a founder building a startup for the climate era and you want to try out our fundraising tools before anyone else, sign up for our beta now. 👇

Investors, want early 👀 on quality dealflow and some snazzy tools to help streamline your dealmaking? Hit the button. 👇Open in app or online