Did you know that the Indian coastline is home to more than 800 Indigenous species of seaweed? Nearly all of them are edible and contain cosmetic properties that are sought-after in industries like health and beauty. At the same time, studies show that encouraging the growth of seaweed can help absorb atmospheric carbon and reduce ocean acidification. These factors are what led to the creation of The Good Ocean: India’s first seaweed food company. Since 2020, they’ve been harvesting seaweed from the coast of Goa and processing it for restaurants, breweries, beauty companies and individual customers. Their main goal is to bring the benefits generated from this valuable product back to the fishing communities along the coast, by training them in ethical and regenerative harvesting techniques. They also host community harvests to help people engage with the oceans and its endangered ecosystems.

 
Photo: Rebecca D’Costa for The Good Ocean.

One of the known effects of climate change has been more frequent extreme weather events which include an increase in severe rainfall. In the Netherlands, the number of days with heavy rainfall has increased by 68% since 1951. Amsterdam Rainproof is an initiative that connects citizens, city builders, officials, entrepreneurs and housing corporations through various activities that focus on making the city more resilient to extreme downpours. By creating a platform for exchanging ideas and strategies, they encourage the exploration and adoption of rainproofing solutions like water-permeable paving, green roofs and façade gardens. Not only do these solutions serve to prevent damage, they also give a wide range of stakeholders a say in how the city could operate in a rain-heavy future.

Photo: Amsterdam Rainproof.

In many developing countries, 45% of all food is spoiled mainly due to a lack of cold storage. In Kenya, this loss usually happens before most fruits and vegetables even reach the consumer. Solar Freeze is an agritech company that offers a solution by providing portable cold storage facilities for small-scale farmers. As its name suggests, Solar Freeze’s units are designed to run on solar energy and cost as little as $0.1 per day to power. This off-grid solution allows farmers to extend the shelf-life of their perishable produce from an average of two days to more than a month. The whole system is built on the principles of a sharing economy, one that allows rural farmers to rent units from each other, and that provides real-time updates through its mobile app and online platform.

 
Photo: Solar Freeze.