Friends of ClimateHaven –
Last week of school for my kids this week, which means the most common question asked this week at the bus stop, in the coffee shops and on the soccer field is: What are your summer plans?
Great question! Thank you for asking. More on my personal plans later (hint: it involves catching up with my old friend Sam Adams). In the meantime, we’ve got a lot happening at ClimateHaven, so we had no choice but to come up with our summer planning checklist:
- Recruit world-class water tech startups for our Xylem Innovation Challenge
- Keep building with talented founders innovating across the physical economy
- Build new flex space – and bring talented folks into it!
- Welcome an amazing group of summer fellows
- Launch our next strategic initiative – focused on the built environment.
That’s a lot to accomplish, but we’re here for it, and we hope you are, too. In addition to plenty of time in New Haven, you’ll find us in Boston, NYC and SF! Reach out if our paths will cross and read on to learn more about our summer checklist.
INNOVATION CHALLENGE WITH XYLEM
ClimateHaven’s Water Innovation Hub is definitely not taking a summer vacation!
Applications are live for the 2026 Xylem Innovation Challenge, and we want to hear from the strongest startups working in critical minerals and energy recovery from industrial water streams. Selected startups with complete will complete intensive sprints with the Xylem and ClimateHaven teams this fall, with at least two startups selected for pilot opportunities with Xylem and its partners.
We will be hosting two informational webinars for prospective applicants. If you know a founder who should be in the room, send this their way.
Webinar 1: June 23 — Register here
Webinar 2: July 9 — Register here
Applications for this Innovation Challenge close July 19. Read the full RFP and apply here.
FOUNDER FOCUSED
The Yale campus may be a bit quieter in the summer months, but builders never stop building.
Next week, we’ll spend time on campus with our friends at Tsai CITY for a workshop with the Tsai CITY Summer Fellows. The topic: go-to-market strategy. That’s as good as it gets when you’re working with a talented group of students navigating the precarious and exhilarating leap from student founder to full-time founder.
We’re equally enthusiastic to support our founders who are getting to market. The NS2 team has hit the ground running on their paid pilot with the Regional Water Authority. Early technical progress is underway, and our team recently visited RWA's West River Treatment Plant firsthand to better understand the infrastructure their technology will need to work within. Catch up on all the details in our latest blog post. Read the Blog Post
Throughout the summer, we are meeting with founders in BOS, NYC and SF. We are hosting a few dinners along the way with founders, investors and ecosystem partners. Interested in joining? Reach out to learn more.
OUT WITH THE OLD CARPET – IN WITH THE NEW POLISHED FLOORS!
One of the challenges of building a startup – finding a space that fits your rapidly changing needs! That’s why we launched a build-out of the remainder of our downtown New Haven HQ, so we can add close to 7,000 square feet of flex space for growing companies.
See you later drop ceiling panels and 1980’s carpet! When our build-out is finished, we’ll have a modern, expansive space with incredible light and the flexibility to divide into 1,000, 2,000 or 3,000 SF units – all adjoining our current ClimateHaven HQ at 770 Chapel Street. Thank you to the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development for providing the grant to make this project happen!
In the meantime, we’ve got amazing spaces available today for individuals and founding teams embarking on their startup journey. Dedicated desks, closed-door offices, and ample amenities create an inspiring space.
You can learn more about our offerings here. If you’d like to see these spaces firsthand, then reach out to our very own Casey Pickett for a tour – or better yet, join us for our Open Office Tuesdays!
HELLO FELLOWS
One of the best parts about ClimateHaven is the opportunity to welcome an incredible group of summer fellows. This summer, we welcome three amazing graduate students – Rebecca Russavage, Maham Babar, and Lumisa Bista.
Rebecca, Maham and Lumisa will be supporting our strategic initiatives, working directly with our founders on key projects, and helping us hunt for the technologies and trends that deserve our time, attention and capital.
The paid summer fellowships are supported thanks to the generosity of folks like you! Donate to our Future Climate Leaders Campaign today!
ELECTRICITY, MEET THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT
A year ago, we launched our first strategic initiative – the Water Innovation Hub. Our aim was simple: dive deep (nailed that water pun) into a sector of critical importance to our physical economy, build relationships across the TRL spectrum – from academic labs to leading corporate partners – and attract the most compelling founders building in the sector. Year one of the Water Innovation Hub was a smashing success.
Our next strategic initiative will explore the critical issues that exist at the intersection of an aging power grid and a growing built environment. The electrification of the built environment creates immense challenges for the distributors of power (the grid) and the consumers of power (the buildings). Within those challenges lie amazing opportunities for innovation to solve problems, create new markets and reimagine the way we think about humanity’s relationship to electricity and buildings.
There’s so much here. Be on the lookout for more in August.
FINAL THOUGHTS
As packed as our summer is, we must take a quick moment to look back and ahead.
First, a look back at the Yale Innovation Summit. A marvelous 2 days with 3,000+ folks and countless introductions, connections and conversations about how to support the most talented innovators in the Yale community. Congratulations to Fast Metals for winning the ClimateHaven Golden Ticket – and to all the startups who brought home prizes!
Second, a look ahead to fall. We know what we will be doing during NYC Climate Week. Water Tech Futures returns to Manhattan on September 22. Same rooftop location as last year with more water tech leaders. We hope to see you there!
As for me, my summer plans involve Sam Adams. With the 250th anniversary of Declaration of Independence almost here, I realized I have consumed a lot of Sam Adams without knowing a lot about Sam Adams – one of the Declaration’s signers! I need to fix that, so his biography is on top of my summer reading list. I hear it’s a great read with a cold beer! 😉
Cheers to a great summer!
Until next time,
Ryan
P.S., follow ClimateHaven on LinkedIn to keep up on our progress between newsletters.