CleanTechies Podcast Silas Mähner (Climate Headhunter) & Somil Aggarwal (Climate PM & VC)

What if Investors Only Made Money if they *actually* helped save the planet?

Welp... folks, we have the show for you because that's exactly what Planet A is doing.

Somil and Silas speak with Jessica Burley, a Berlin-based investor at the fund.

On top of learning how they are *actually* walking the talk, we found out how they use Carbon Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) in their investing due diligence process.

Tune in to get the whole thing today! 🌱🌎

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Topics:
**01:29 Introduction and Background
**02:22 The Role of Life Cycle Assessments in Investing
**8:44 Article 9 and the European Regulatory Landscape
**10:27 Interest in Climate Tech Investing Outside of Europe
**12:54 The Increasing Pace of Climate Tech Innovation
**13:33 Jess's Journey to Climate Tech Investing
**17:35 Transitioning from a Small Fund to a Larger Fund21:43 The Role of Brand and **Value in Climate Tech Investing
**24:44 Sector Expertise and Operational Support in Investing
**26:23 Geothermal Drilling for Renewable Heating
**28:46 Investment Opportunities in Climate Tech
**30:45 The Hardware Playbook: Investing in Hardware Startups
**42:53 The German Climate Tech Ecosystem
**49:18 Building Genuine Relationships in the Climate Tech Ecosystem
**51:34 Takeaways
--- Evaluating Life Cycle Assessment in Investment Decisions
--- The Importance of the Hardware Playbook in the Investment Ecosystem
--- De-risking Talent in Startups

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Links:
**Jessica Burley | Planet A
**Follow CleanTechies on LinkedIn
**@Silas & @Somil_Agg on X 
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The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) is a generational government program deploying $27B into clean energy projects across the US. But what is the bill really?
Franz Hochstrasser is an expert in financing projects in low-income areas and has a wealth of experience working on climate for the government - both of which are KEY for GGRF. 
Franz started his career “giving his 20s” to the government, and with that doing some amazing work as the Special Advisor to the Special Envoy for Climate Change, Deputy Associate Director at the Council of Environmental Quality, and at the USDA.
Since then, Franz founded Raise Green where he democratizes the ability to invest in climate solution projects. Through this, he is an expert in sustainable finance for inclusive growth and financing projects for low-income residents. 
He joined S2 Strategies to navigate GGRF and other landmark legislative movements. And it was an absolute blast to have him on.
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Somil chats with Vivas Kumar, CEO of Mitra Chem,  the first lithium-ion battery materials manufacturer focused on shortening the lab-to-production timeline by over 90%, addressing the largest barrier to innovation: R&D and scale-up speed.
Vivas was a phenomenal orator and if you take a second to learn about Mitra Chem, it’s easy to see why. By combining their knowledge of iron-based cathodes with an AI and data enhanced production capacity, they are able to manufacture quicker and more reliably than many of their competitors. 
As always, thanks so much for listening and enjoy the episode!
---
🌎 Want the full PodLetter? Go to our substack to see the written content that supplements the audio interview.  
---

🌴 https://linktr.ee/cleantechies
📺 👀 Prefer to watch: subscribe on YouTube
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Topics:
**04:18 Starting as an Entrepreneur
**06:41 Near-Shoring
**10:18 Transitioning to Iron-Based Materials
**11:00 Trends and Challenges with Nickel, Cobalt, and Lithium
**14:49 Working at Benchmark's Mineral Intelligence Group
**24:50 Financing and Business Models in Climate Solutions
**27:32 Adapting Technology for Local Context
**31:31 Shifting from Innovation to Supply Chain
**35:13 Integration of AI and Automation in Production
**41:41 Longevity and Outlasting Competition
**44:08 Reducing Organizational Costs
**43:21 Finding the Right People
**45:23 The Importance of Curiosity and Motivation
**47:54 Takeaways
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Links:
**Vivas Kumar | Mitra Chem
**Follow CleanTechies on LinkedIn
**@Silas & @Somil_Agg on X 
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In this episode, Somil chats with Josh Knauer, CEO of ReSeed, bringing carbon credits directly from farmers to the market.
They focus on the oldest form of carbon capture – vegetation. They support farmers in taking their protective and restorative farming practices, validating them, and then creating the mechanisms to sell those credits to interested parties. 
We talked about:
His strategy to differentiate these credits compared to the rest of the market, What works for them, How he’s building an entire protocol around these methods, What he’s learned from engaging with smallholder farmers,Why ag may make the best nature-based solution to carbon capture, As always, thanks so much for listening and enjoy the episode!
---
🌎 Want the full PodLetter? Go to our substack to see the written content that supplements the audio interview.  
---

🌴 https://linktr.ee/cleantechies
📺 👀 Prefer to watch: subscribe on YouTube
🗣️ Take the Listeners Survey
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Topics:
**03:12 ReSeed
**06:35 Engaging with Farmers through Local NGOs
**08:03 Process of Onboarding Farmers and Issuing Credits
**11:23 Stabilizing Farmers on the Land
**30:07 Partnering with Farmers as Business Partners
**33:40 Photosynthesis as Carbon Capture
**35:42 The Trading Desk and Receipt Marketplace
**40:53 Maintaining the Highest Integrity Carbon Credits
**48:25 Announcing Partnership at COP28
**51:43 Investing in Nature-Based Solutions
**56:35 Takeaways

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Links:
**Josh Knauer | ReSeed
**Follow CleanTechies on LinkedIn
**@Silas & @Somil_Agg on X 
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Each year, about 1 billion pounds of chemicals are sprayed on crops in the US alone - globally, that number is around 5.6 billion.

Our guest today is AgTechLogic, and they are solving this problem.

They do this by helping Farmers retrofit their existing machinery with precision sprayers that use computer vision to identify weeds and spray only on the weeds in a concentrated way that kills the weeds and won't overlap with the crops.

Today, nearly all farmers use broadcast spraying, or spraying everything. By implementing this tech, farmers can save a lot of money and produce healthier produce.

Let's get into it. 🌱🌎

---
🌎 Want the full PodLetter? Go to our substack to see the written content that supplements the audio interview.  
---

🌴 https://linktr.ee/cleantechies
📺 👀 Prefer to watch: subscribe on YouTube
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Topics:
**1:13 Introduction and Overview
**1:43 Reducing Chemical Overuse in Agriculture
**7:36 Validation and Early Discoveries
**11:11 Market Research and Initial Trials
**15:37 Concerns about Herbicide Usage
**20:34Case Studies and Cost Savings
**24:04 Objections and Early Adoption
**24:57 Reducing Water Usage and Regrowth
**26:09 Building Trust and Landing the First Pilot
**28:54 Entrepreneurship Later in Career
**32:07 Collecting New Data
**35:40 IP and Moat
**37:38 Funding Journey
**41:03 Responsible Growth
**42:55 Future Plans and Getting the Message Out
**45:48 Reaching Out and Educating Farmers
**47:54 Takeaways

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Links:
**Tom Gauthier | AgTechLogic
**Follow CleanTechies on LinkedIn
**@Silas & @Somil_Agg on X 
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Are you curious about what happens to solar panels when they are no longer usable? Maybe your crazy uncle's statements from last Thanksgiving about how solar doesn't work are still echoing.

Well, look no further. Today, we are speaking with Adam Saghei, Founder of WeRecycleSolar, and we are discussing the end of life for solar panels.

How circular can we make the supply chain? What can OEMs learn about their products' end-of-life? What is the REAL lifespan of a solar panel? How is this reality affecting investor returns? How are solar panels being refurbished and resold? And how are investors getting early upgrades to make a higher return despite the additional capex?

Let's get into it. 🌱🌎

---
🌎 Want the full PodLetter? Go to our substack to see the written content that supplements the audio interview.  
---

🌴 https://linktr.ee/cleantechies
📺 👀 Prefer to watch: subscribe on YouTube
🗣️ Take the Listeners Survey
📫 Get Written Summaries of Each Episode in Your Inbox
🌐 Join the CleanTechies Slack Channel

-----
Topics:
**01:34 Intro and Background
**03:15 The Problem of End-of-Life Solar Panels
**08:52 Financial Implications of Shorter Lifespan
**13:33 Recycling and Refurbishing Panels
**16:21 Reusing Materials in the Supply Chain
**21:06 Origins of We Recycle Solar
**23:29 Introduction to Returns Management Programs
**24:28 Starting the Refurbishing and Recycling Process
**25:32 Pivoting to a New Business Model
**26:44 Entrepreneurial Mindset and Taking Risks
**28:14 Scaling the Business and Future Growth
**30:51 Technology and Innovation in Recycling Processes
**31:38 Intellectual Property and Strategic Components
**32:34 Business Model and Potential Partnerships
**35:54 Current Scale and Future Goals
**38:24 Roadblocks and Challenges
**39:15 Funding and Bootstrapping the Business
**40:54 Acquiring Talent and Building Culture
**43:38 Supporting the Future of the Industry
**49:29 Takeaways

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Links:
**Adam Saghei | WeRecycleSolar
**Follow CleanTechies on LinkedIn
**@Silas & @Somil_Agg on X 
Support the Show.