Le Sustainability Collider

13:10 – 13:20 | Sustainability in research at EPFL
• Prof. Gisou van der Goot, Vice President for Responsible Transformation, EPFL

13:20 – 13:30 | EPFL and its innovation ecosystem (PDF, 0.7 MB)
• Dr. Ursula Oesterle, Vice President for Innovation, EPFL

13:30 – 13:55 | Short presentations (10’ EPFL, 10’ Industry, 5’ Startup)
• Dr. Simonetta Rima, Global Head Bio-based Solutions, SULZER
• Prof. Francesco Stellacci, Supramolecular Nano-Materials and Interfaces Laboratory: Nature Inspired Circular Recycling (PDF, 3 MB)
• Dr. Philip Scholten, Chief Innovation Officer, Bloom Biorenewables

13:55 – 14:10 | Panel discussion
• Moderator: Dr. Pascale Van Landuyt, Alliance Program Director, Industry Liaison Office

14:10 – 14:45 | Short presentations (10’ EPFL, 2×10’ Industry, 2×5’ Startups)
• Dr. Sergio Barbarino, Senior Director, Fabric & Home Care Open Innovation, P&G
• Pierre Gérard, Technical Director Elium Program, Arkema
• Prof. Véronique Michaud, Head of the Laboratory for Processing of Advanced Composites: Circular composites? (PDF, 1.5 MB)
• Dr. Pascal Gallo, CSO & Co-founder, Composite Recycling
• Rajiv Singhal, Founder & CEO, Grensol

14:45 – 15:00 | Panel discussion
• Moderator: Dr. Martyn Wakeman, Laboratory for Processing of Advanced Composites, EPFL

15:00 – 15:30 | COFFEE BREAK – STARTUPS EXHIBITION & POSTERS PRESENTATION

15:30 – 16:00 | Short presentations (10’ EPFL, 10’ Industry, 2×5’ Startup)
• Dr. Olivier Enger, Technology Scouting & Incubation, BASF
• Prof. François Maréchal, Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering Group, EPFL Valais: Integrating technology innovation in sustainable production processes & systems (PDF, 3.2 MB)
• Dr. Markus Aicheler, CEO & Co-founder, SolidWatts
• Dr. Amin Kaboli, Chief Product Officer, Lagrange.ai

16:00 – 16:15 | Panel discussion
• Moderator: Prof. Manuele Margni, Institute of Sustainable Energy, HES-SO Valais 

16:15 – 16:25 | Introductions by Canton de Vaud (SPEI)

16:25 – 16:35 | Keynote presentation by Tech4Regen: adapting industries to the regenerative economy; why and how?

16:35 – 16:50 | CIRCULAR & INDUSTRIAL SOLUTIONS: presentations by Logitech and Startups

16:50 – 17:05 | ENERGY & CARBON REDUCTION: presentations by Romande Energie and Startups

17:05 – 17:20 | BIODIVERSITY & AGRICULTURE: presentations by Fondation Valery and Startups

17:20 – 17:45 | 2024 prizes, Tech4Regen 2025 focus areas, and call for applications

POSTERS

P1 – Materials from fungal mycelium
Sustainable Materials Laboratory

‍P2 – Packaging materials: Exploring the versatile properties of soy waste okara
‍Sustainable Materials Laboratory & Supramolecular Nano-Materials and Interfaces Laboratory

P3 – Sustainable composites for structural applications
Laboratory for Processing of Advanced Composites

P4 – Reimagining Chemical Manufacturing: High-Value Chemical Products from Biomass
Laboratory of Organometallic and Medicinal Chemistry

P5 – Simplifying the production of polymers from plants
Laboratory of Sustainable and Catalytic Processing

P6 – Stimuli-responsive nanofertilizer for a sustainable agriculture
Polymers Laboratory

P7 – Glyoxylic Acid (GA)-Lignin Barrier Coatings for Paper-Based Food Packaging Applications
Polymers Laboratory

P8 – The role of process integration in the decarbonization of aluminium industry and the urban district heating
Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering

P9 – Renewable energy integration and waste heat valorization in aluminum remelting for co-producing kerosene and methanol
Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering

P10 – A web-based decision support tool for the design and integration of industrial high-temperature heat pumps
Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering

P11 – Sustainable Biofuels Via Biomass Gasification Towards Fossil-Free Aluminium Production
Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering

P12 – Integration of renewable energy and reversible solid oxide cells towards decarbonizing the secondary aluminium production and urban systems
Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering

P13 – Integration of Life Cycle Impact Assessment in Energy System Modelling
Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering

P14 – Continuing education program: process engineering for the decarbonization of the Swiss industry
Industrial Process and Energy Systems Engineering

STARTUPS

CIRCULAR ECONOMY & INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES
S1 – Grensol
Recycling what is usually incinerated and landfilled
S2 – Composite Recycling
Recycle composite material waste into saleable products
S3 -SolidWatts
Advanced microwave and radio frequency heating for industrial processes, replacing fossil fuels‍
S4 – LaGrange.ai
Leverage AI for resilient & sustainable supply chain networks

REGENERATIVE SOURCING & AGRICULTURE
S5 – GaiaTech
Extracts useful bio-compounds from agricultural waste and resell them to the cosmetics and food industries
S6 – Biomede
Maps pollutants in soils and naturally remove them using plants so-called hyperaccumulation to regenerate soils
S7 – Databaum
AI-based disease prediction tool helping farmers to secure yields, harvest quality and save on pesticides

BIODIVERSITY & BIOLOGICAL CARBON CAPTURE
S8 – Synature
Bioacoustics technology and AI to improve biodiversity monitoring and aid conservation projects
S9 – Space4Good
Unlock, accelerate and scale nature protection and regeneration through reliable earth observation insights
S10 – Open Forest Protocol
Blockchain-based platform democratizing carbon credit markets for forest projects globally, ensuring transparency and integrity
S11 – Inverto Earth
Helps businesses to become nature positive by restoring coastlines by leveraging innovative robotics and AI

CARBON-FREE RENEWABLE ENERGY
S12 – Neology
Revolutionizing Hydrogen Supply with decentralized and clean Ammonia Cracking
S13 – Voltiris
Combine high-tech glass greenhouses surfaces with renewable energy production
S14 – SoHHytec
Co-generation systems for the cost-effective onsite generation of renewable fuel (hydrogen +oxygen) and Power (electricity+ heat)
S15 – Planeto
Digitalise the design of district heating and cooling (DHC) networks, using machine learning to accelerate the energy transition
S16 – Emissium
Tracks, benchmarks, monitors and reduces electricity emissions
S17 – Swistor
Eco-friendly, ultra-fast charging devices combining high energy storage with high-power delivery