Investors and clean tech firms invited to sign up to BusinessGreen's latest event and jointly explore the opportunities offered by the UK's fast expanding green economy
BusinessGreen is today launching the inaugural BusinessGreen Technology and Investment Forum, offering leading investors, green entrepreneurs, and clean tech start-ups to jointly explore the investment opportunities presented by the UK's fast expanding green technology sector.
Hosted in conjunction with this year's BusinessGreen Technology Awards, the Forum will take place at BusinessGreen's offices in Central London on the morning of Thursday December 1st, just a day before the second annual BusinessGreen Technology Awards.
The Forum will feature keynote addresses from leading clean tech and green investment experts, including event sponsor Innovate UK, and a series of short presentations from around 20 of the UK's most exciting, investment-stage clean tech firms.
Modeled on clean tech and investment events that have proven so successful in Silicon Valley, the Forum will also provide some of the presenting companies with the opportunity to network with some of the UK's leading clean tech investors through a structured networking session.
Spaces for the Forum are limited, and BusinessGreen is today calling on clean tech companies and investors to register their interest in attending the invite-only event.
We are looking for clean tech companies or developers that are either actively seeking investment or approaching an investment-ready stage in their development. Each of the attending clean tech firms will get the opportunity to deliver a four minute presentation on their technology and business to an audience of their peers and investors.
We are also keen to hear from investment firms, funds, crowd funding platforms, venture capitalists or other interested parties who are actively seeking clean tech investment opportunities.
"We often hear promising clean tech firms find that securing the right investors is one of the biggest challenges they face," said BusinessGreen Editor-in-Chief James Murray. "While on the other side of the divide, investors all too frequently find it harder than it should be to identify clean tech investment opportunities. The goal of the BusinessGreen Technology and Investment Forum is to help bridge that divide and bring investors and entrepreneurs together to jointly explore the opportunities and challenges that they face."
The Forum will also be supported by Clean + Cool, the trade mission that for the past five years has helped successfully promote UK clean tech firms overseas. "We're excited because this new event not only fills a gap in the calendar for clean tech SMEs wanting to showcase to investors, but also because the approach promises to bring UK investors and entrepreneurs together in a way that will help the flow of connections and ideas as well as money," said Guy Pattison, cofounder of Clean + Cool. "It is an approach that can only be good for strengthening the community the long term."
Dr Mike Pitts, head of urban living and built environment at Innovate UK, said the new forum would build on a successful model that has already helped secure investment for UK clean tech firms overseas. "One of the most successful aspects of past Clean and Cool Missions has been to use a format of short sharp story telling pitches to investors," he said. "This event brings that opportunity to a wider group of the best UK SMEs in clean tech and the potential to connect with UK based investors of all types focused on clean tech innovation."
Clean tech firms and investors have until Friday September 30th to register their interest in attending the Forum by filling out a short expression of interest form providing information on their organisation and detailing their current stage of investment readiness. Successful applicants will then be notified in mid-October with clean tech firms invited to begin work on their pitch presentations.
Businesses interested in attending the inaugural BusinessGreen Technology and Investment Forum are also invited to submit entries for the BusinessGreen Technology Awards, which provides another opportunity for leading clean tech firms and investors to showcase their talents.
