The best Negavatt green idea is from Myceen, a developer of products using mushrooms
The EUR 10,000 grand prize for the Environmental Investment Centre (EIC) green idea competition Negavatt was awarded to Myceen, a developer of mushroom materials and related products. The EUR 5000 prize for the runner-up was taken home by RingKarp, a reusable food box service provider for catering establishments. Third place and EUR 3000 belongs to the circular economy agency Unknot, which helps clothing manufacturers to develop and sell recyclable products manufactured from their waste.
According to Adrus Trier, EIC Chairman and jury member, the innovativeness and influence of the ideas, but also the motivation of the team to implement the idea, became the deciding factors in the selection of the top three.
‘The winning team, Myceen, was set apart by a topic not seen every day, while their in-depth knowledge and long-term attempt to bring alternative material to the market also stood out. Runner-up RingKarp offers a tangible solution, one that can be quickly and practically implemented, and is definitely important today. The third place team stood out with its knowledge of the circular economy and the desire to take significant steps in this field’
Adrus Trier, EIC Chairman and jury member
Myceen, winner of Negavatt season VIII, develops compostable products with the help of fungal threads and organic residual materials. More specifically, the fungal threads bind to various organic residues, making them a strong, light, non-flammable, compostable, carbon-negative material with excellent acoustic properties. The innovative material has the potential to replace problematic products, for example, in the construction, furniture and transport sector. Myceen currently offers visually attractive acoustic panels, lighting fixtures and stools, and in the near future, among other things, there are plans to develop packaging materials.
Runner-up RingKarp offers a reusable food box service for catering establishments. A catering establishment that has joined the network places takeaway food in long-lasting boxes manufactured in Europe. When making the initial purchase, the consumer must leave a deposit for the box, which can be recovered from a catering establishment that is part of the network, when the box is returned. You can also order food at home via the restaurant’s courier and return used boxes to the courier. The catering establishment washes the boxes like any other dishes and directs them to reuse. RingKarp is free to the customer and significantly cheaper to the food seller than the purchasing of disposable packaging. Approximately 15 catering establishments in Estonia have already joined the RingKarp network.
Placing third was Unknot, a product design and sales agency specialising in the circular economy, which helps the sewing industry to develop and sell recyclable products from its waste. Unknot has already developed several business gifts and packaging materials made from environmentally friendly waste. Their dream, in the role of manufacturer as well as intermediary, is to find even more circular economic solutions for the sewing industry, which would allow for the significant conservation of resources, while also creating the basis for a change in community thinking.
The Prototron and Tehnopol Science and Business Park prize was awarded to Õõtsvold; the Tallinn Creative Incubator chose Unknot; the Admiral Markets team chose Konnekt; Luminor Estonia presented a special prize to RingKarp; the favourite of the Nordic Council of Ministers was Lelukarp; and the favourite of EIC’s employees was RingKarp.
About competition
The Negavatt jury was comprised of the following individuals: EIC CEO Andrus Treier; Deputy Secretary General of the Ministry of the Environment Kristi Klaas; Adviser on Sustainable Development at the Estonian Branch of the Nordic Council of Ministers Madis Tilga; Greentech Sector Leader Ragmar Saksing from the Tehnopol Science and Business Park; and Helen Puistaja, founder of the online shop Slow. The teams and the jury met face-to-face for the first time this season at Kuut, the event centre of Negavatt alumnus Anna Lutter. The Negavatt super final can be viewed here. Out of the 113 ideas submitted to the competition, nine reached the final round.
Negavatt is a green ideas competition for 18–30 year olds, launched by the EIC and the Ministry of the Environment to inspire young people to make the world a better place. Over the course of its eight seasons, a total of 479 ideas have been submitted to the competition, with EIC having provided EUR 250,000 in support. Supporters of Negavatt season VIII included Eesti Pandipakend, Paulig Coffee Estonia AS, and Luminor Eesti. Competition partners are Rimi Eesti, Ülemiste City, Tehnopol, Centre for Defence Investment, Admiral Markets, Tallinn Creative Incubator and the competition Prototron.
