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Dear Friends,
It is with tremendous enthusiasm that I invite you to join me in welcoming back Ryan Dings as President of ClimateHaven. Ryan has been a foundational force in our community, serving as founding CEO, a member of the Board of Directors, and the voice behind this very newsletter. In this pivotal moment for the climate sector, we are grateful to have his leadership, vision and deep commitment to our mission return. This is a truly an all hands-on-deck moment for the climate community and I am thrilled to partner with Ryan as we continue to accelerate progress in early-stage climate technology and strengthen the ecosystem we are building here at ClimateHaven.
Later this spring, I will be taking medical leave to address a cervical spine condition. I have asked Ryan to lead the organization during my leave, and I look forward to returning to ClimateHaven stronger than ever. I am deeply grateful to Ryan and to all of you for ensuring the momentum continues. Thank you, as always, for your commitment and dedication to advancing climate solutions.
Warmly,
Justine Lee
Friends of ClimateHaven,
It’s good to be back. If you’ve been a longtime reader of the ClimateHaven newsletter, then you know writing it is a joy of mine. Another joy of mine – working with talented entrepreneurs aiming to create a healthier planet. Clearly, I’m in the right place.
Right now, the talent of entrepreneurs in the climatetech sector is abundant. Unfortunately, so are the headwinds.
Political and economic headwinds are creating challenges that simply did not exist a few months ago. It would be easy in this moment to write climatetech’s obituary, but to paraphrase Mark Twain: the reports of our sector’s death are greatly exaggerated.
So– do we proceed with business as usual? Hell no. Business as usual for the climate tech sector is not going to cut it, and that’s okay. As those winds swirl, we need to embark upon a resolute and clear-eyed evolution.
Resolute in our commitment to keep pushing forward.
Clear-eyed in our recognition that solutions must be solving market-based problems (re: your product can’t just reduce carbon– it must make money).
Were we trying to make money before? Of course. But relying on green premiums, regulatory preference, or altruism to push technologies down cost curves won’t cut it. We must solve meaningful problems with superior products and scale the good old fashion way: one customer at a time.
Read more in this week’s Startup Playbook Post: Welcome to Cleantech 2.0.
Thirsting for WaterTech
I’ll admit, I’ve got an ocean’s full of water puns. Apologies in advance if a few slip in.
Water touches everything – agriculture, energy, health, manufacturing. And yet, over 2 billion people still lack access to safe drinking water. On top of that, industry accounts for nearly 1 in 5 gallons of global water withdrawals.
We need innovation. Fast.
That’s why we partnered with the Yale Center for Business and the Environment to Release the 2025 WaterTech: Market Landscape & Investment Opportunities Report –a deep dive into the tech, investments, and trends shaping the future of water.
Over the next few months, we’ll be pulling insights from the report into a new article series– spotlighting the biggest challenges and boldest solutions in water tech.
First up: “The Urgent Case for Water Innovation" now live on our blog. Water plays such a critical role in our lives. And while you’re waiting for our next post, check out our very own Aishwarya Kuruttukulam diving into the deep end on the RWA Liquid Lunch Podcast!
Yale Innovation Summit
The Yale Innovation Summit returns on May 28-29. With 2,500+ attendees, a dedicated Climate track and a myriad of opportunities to connect with talented folks around the Yale entrepreneurial ecosystem, this is a can’t miss event. The ClimateHaven team will have our eyes on the climate tech pitch competition on Day 1 when a cohort of talented startups vie for cash prizes and a coveted ClimateHaven Golden Ticket.
If you are attending the Summit or planning on being in town that week, then reach out to Regina Sung on the ClimateHaven team. We’d love to connect!
Looking Back - Startup Yale
Speaking of Yale events, a big congratulations to all the folks who made Startup Yale a smashing success. Plus, we made it through this year’s event without an actual earthquake, unlike 2024’s edition of Startup Yale (true story!).
We extend our congratulations to ClimateHaven members MudderAI and Verustruct for sweeping the prizes for the Planetary Solutions Pitch Competition. MudderAI took home the top prize while Verustruct took second place and the people’s choice award.
We’re really proud of the pitches Nadia and Nick gave to a packed house! Congratulations!
Member Momentum
Beyond MudderAI and Verustruct, our members are making waves this month:
Oxylus Energy was named one of the top climate technologies to watch in 2025 by the talented folks at Heatmap News. The Oxylus team is hiring for multiple engineering roles.
CREW Carbon is hiring for multiple roles as they build upon the momentum of their $32M offtake agreement with Frontier.
Verustruct recently secured a letter of support from Mayor Elicker, City of New Haven, along with a Letter of Intent from DAFA Construction for their 3D printing construction technology. Know someone in the construction industry who should connect? Reach out to Nick.
MatchaEV has brought on two customers—Jones Street Residential and Waterford REM—thanks to the efforts of our very own CH resident, Larry Laconi.
Revert Technologies is scaling and looking for the right partners to drive impact. Know a university, K-12 school, or a chamber of commerce who’d benefit from energy savings? Reach out to their team - let’s help them make energy efficiency effortless. Contact Ryan Li.
Not much feels certain these days, but here’s one certainty: we’re in a moment.
Building a better, healthier, more sustainable planet – and advancing the solutions that will get us there – shouldn’t be controversial. But in today’s climate, it is. That’s what makes ClimateHaven’s work all the more vital.
And it’s why your support is, too.
If you’re an entrepreneur, reach out to Regina Sung learn more about how ClimateHaven can help you.
If you’re an investor or potential corporate partner, reach out to Aishwarya Kuruttukulam to learn more about how to engage with our startup community.
And if you’re considering becoming a donor, connect with me to learn how your support helps sustain our mission.
I love building – companies, communities, teams – even projects in my garage that occasionally make my neighbors scratch their heads.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned: building is better when you do it together.
This is the kind of year that might leave us questioning, worrying, or wondering. But we don’t have to do it alone.
If you’re passionate about climate tech, connect with us. Share your story and we’ll continue to share ours with you! Let’s find ways to support our entrepreneurs and–last water pun, I promise– navigate these choppy waters together.
Building ClimateHaven is definitely better when we do it together.
Until next time,
Ryan
P.S., follow ClimateHaven on LinkedIn and Instagram to keep up on our progress between newsletters.
