The conference was opened and welcomed by the Speaker of the Seimas, Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen. In her opening remarks, the Speaker emphasized the importance of the Baltic States’ journey towards sustainability and technological advancement – in recent years, investments in Lithuania’s clean technology sector have grown impressively by 70%, demonstrating strong investor confidence and the growing potential of the green economy. Positive changes were also confirmed by the 2023 Lithuanian cleantech report presented by Laima Balčiūnė, Director Lithuania of Cleantech for Baltics, detailing the performance indicators and data of the most successful companies in this field.
The event brought together more than 200 sustainability enthusiasts and expert speakers from all Baltic countries and an even larger circle of guests. Speakers represented including Cleantech for Baltics coalition members Sunly, ROCKIT Vilnius, Open Circle Capital, Lithuanian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association.
During the conference, the most important clean technology topics were discussed: the dynamics and synergy of sustainability, the directions of clean changes, the importance of mobility for technological changes, and trends in talent demand. Speakers also discussed the empowerment of sustainable e-platforms, green finance, the use of engineering enzymes against polyester pollution, biotech innovations for a greener tomorrow, and the impact of universities and academic environments on clean technologies. The influence of private financing on sustainability innovations was also discussed.
The conference culminated with presentations (Demo Day) by the finalists of the Cleantech Catalyst incubator program, where seven teams competed for a prize of 10,000 euros. The teams presented innovative sustainable business ideas that had been developed in the Sunrise Tech Park incubator over the past three months:
- Biohifas presented a model for growing a natural mushroom meat substitute, which could eventually replace various forms of meat in terms of both taste and nutrition.
- Deep Scientific developed a handheld device for measuring water pollution that could be useful in everyday life, farms, or the military.
- Ekomūras proposed an ecological hemp-based masonry that could bring more sustainability and longevity to the construction sector.
- Water Shield’s team presented a water-based air filter that not only filters the most polluted particles from the air but also destroys them.
- Nuar created a solution to facilitate the management of small farm sales and logistics, significantly reducing CO2 emissions.
- Restorie introduced a possibility for refurbishing old electronic devices, allowing savings and reducing electronic waste worldwide.
- Honics presented technology for creating a strong UV source, aiming to support a more efficient and cheaper green hydrogen production system.
The program’s winner was a startup from Latvia – HONICS. By developing high-intensity UV-V and UV-C sources designed to be used with photocatalysts, HONICS ensures more efficient, faster, and cheaper green hydrogen production. With the created non-standard sources, catalysts, and specially adapted equipment, everyone can produce hydrogen more conveniently and cheaply.
