Global Business Innovation Programme in USA - Clean Growth
Innovate UK is currently accepting applications for up to 15 companies in the Clean Growth sector to join the Global Business Innovation Programme in the USA.
Opportunity Details
When
Registration Opens
22/08/2023
Registration Closes
29/09/2023
Award
Innovate UK will fund and organise flights, accommodation, in-market travel, and conference fees for successful applicants. Innovate UK will also pay for any reasonable adjustments throughout the initiative. One representative from each company will be funded. On acceptance to the Programme a commitment fee of £500 will be obtained from each delegate, which will be refunded on completion of the full activities and agreed action plan.
Organisation
Innovate UK
Note: This opportunity is fully funded support and not monetary funding.
Innovate UK’s Global Business Innovation Programme helps businesses explore collaborative innovation and growth opportunities that exist in overseas markets.
We are currently accepting applications for up to 15 companies in the Clean Growth sector to join our programme supported by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Innosphere Ventures. The Programme is focused on helping your business to maximise the opportunities in the USA and will include a visit to the NREL Industry Growth Forum (IGF), a leading clean growth networking conference in Denver that connects innovative businesses to investors and industry experts.
Participants will be provided with pre-visit support from Innovate UK EDGE and also given the opportunity to apply for the Investor Pitch Competition at IGF.
We would welcome applications from innovative companies who could be developing technologies across a broad range of clean growth sectors including:
- AgriTech (Aquaculture, Crops, Food & Food Systems)
- Carbon Capture and Utilisation
- Energy Efficiency (Advanced Manufacturing, Smart Buildings)
- Energy Storage
- Energy Systems Integration (Energy Security & Resilience, Grid Modernisation, Integrated Energy Solutions)
- Low Carbon Materials (steel, aluminium, and concrete)
- Renewables (Geothermal, Solar, Water, Wind)
- Sustainable Transport (Aviation, Bioenergy, Hydrogen & Fuel Cells, Electric Vehicles & Charging, Freight)
- Waste (Packaging, Plastics, Recycling, Waste to Energy)
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A GBIP has three stages:
Prepare for the market
Preparing for the market includes the cohort being briefed by sector and market experts on, for example, cultural aspects of conducting business in that country. Delegates receive help to find business partners and arrange meetings and are advised on best practice including the management and protection of their intellectual property.
Visiting the market
Visiting the market provides opportunities to attend pre-arranged meetings and activities in order to better understand and maximise the opportunities that the visit presents.
Exploiting the opportunity
Exploiting the opportunity is arguably the most important aspect of the programme. To maximise the opportunity, participating companies are given bespoke one-to-one support from an Innovate UK EDGE innovation and growth specialist to help develop and implement an action plan.
The Global Business Innovation Programme operates on a competitive basis and businesses selected are required to participate in all three stages (some or all of which may be online).
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To apply, you must:
- Be a UK-based company.
- Be a business with fewer than 500 employees.
- Have a focus on Clean Growth.
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The US Government has pledged to cut US greenhouse emissions in half by 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2050. Most recently, the US passed the historic Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in August 2022, which commits over $400 billion to climate and energy-related provisions over the next ten years.
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Colorado is one of the most centrally located areas of the United States and is a national leader in adopting clean energy technologies. The state has one of the highest per capita concentrations of federal science, research, and engineering facilities in the US, including NREL. It was also the first state in the US to pass a voter-approved renewable energy standard, which requires that all investor-owned utilities acquire 30% of their electricity from renewable sources. This major shift towards sustainable energy by both the legislature and the voting public demonstrates Colorado’s commitment to clean, renewable energy.
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Innovate UK will fund and organise flights, accommodation, in-market travel, and conference fees for successful applicants. Innovate UK will also pay for any reasonable adjustments throughout the initiative.
One representative from each company will be funded. On acceptance to the Programme a commitment fee of £500 will be obtained from each delegate, which will be refunded on completion of the full activities and agreed action plan.
Non-completion after formal acceptance may result in forfeiting some or all the commitment fee.
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Register for the applicant briefing event on 12th September from 4-5pm.
- Applications close: 29th September 2023, 5pm
- IGF Pitch Competition Briefing: 25th October 2023
- Pre Visit Briefings: 20th February & 9th April 2024
- Innovation Visit: 29th April – 3rd May 2024
Please note: Successful applicants will be expected to fully comply with any conditions of travel to USA as well as any local regulations. The safety of our delegation is our top priority.
For more information, assistance with your application
or to discuss accessibility needs, please contact: Ian Fletcher at ian.fletcher@innovateukedge.ukri.org or call +44 (0)7572 385533