Impact startup ecosystem
We track 38 organisations in this sector across 6+ countries.
Showing 21–38 of 38 Impact
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LuxFLAG Sustainable Investment Week 2026
Eighth edition of LuxFLAG's content-driven, non-commercial forum on sustainable and responsible investment. Held at Centre Culturel Scheiss, gathering 250+ finance professionals, asset managers and ESG specialists shaping sustainable finance policy and practice.
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Maze Impact
Founded 2018 with backing from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Runs the Maze X 3-month accelerator for social impact startups, providing tailored mentoring, impact investor access, and a EUR 50K stipend. Notable alumni include Speak. Scope: International.
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Norrsken Impact Accelerator
Founded 2016 by the Norrsken Foundation. Eight-week impact accelerator selecting 20 startups annually; offers USD 125K for 5% equity and mentorship from global tech leaders. Focus on climate, health, and education. Scope: International.
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Open Eyes Economy Summit 2026
A major international congress on responsible and sustainable economy and value-driven business. Relevant for climate, greentech, and impact founders looking to connect with ESG-minded corporates, public institutions, and mission-aligned investors.
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Paweł Zylm
Former CEO of BRE Ubezpieczenia (mBank Insurance), Paweł is one of Poland’s most recognized impact-oriented angels and was named Business Angel of the Year 2020. He invests in companies solving social or environmental problems and contributes hands-on strategic support from his corporate leadership background. Notable investments include Noctiluca (successful IPO exit), Simpl.rent, Fresh Inset, Sales Intelligence, TakeDrop, and IMKER.
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Prof. Bolesław Rok
An academic (professor at Kozminski University) and CSR expert, Bolesław has become an angel investor focusing on impact-driven startups. He earned a special award in 2022 for contributions to impact investing. Associated startups: Impact and sustainability startups (recognized for championing ethical investment practices).
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Rafał Brzoska
Founder of InPost and one of Poland’s highest-profile entrepreneurs, Rafał is active as an impact-oriented investor through personal and foundation initiatives. His flagship company reached a landmark Amsterdam IPO, and his broader investment activity spans logistics-adjacent consumer sectors, food, and medical innovation. Notable references include activity around Bakalland and support for oncology and advanced medical equipment initiatives.
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Seedstars Summit 2026
Global emerging-market startup summit hosted in Lausanne, connecting founders from 80+ countries with investors, mentors, and corporate partners. Culminates in a pitch competition for the Seedstars Global Winner award.
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Ship2B
Founded 2013. Impact accelerator and investment fund for social enterprises in health, cleantech, and energy. Runs acceleration programs and an impact fund; has accelerated 50+ startups. Support: mentoring, CSR partners, impact investment up to EUR 400K. Scope: National.
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SNF Nostos 2026
Free week-long festival at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, with the SNF Nostos Conference (June 22-26) bringing international speakers on health, education, climate and the future of society alongside concerts and interactive programming.
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socia Social Innovation Accelerator 2026
Social innovation accelerator promoted in the Munich ecosystem for mission-driven startups and social impact business models. Application deadline: April 15, 2026. Program start: mid-2026. Program notes include zero-equity participation, no-fee access, and travel reimbursement support for selected teams.
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Startup Lisboa
Startup Lisboa is a key incubator in Portugal’s capital, established in 2012 as a public-private initiative to boost entrepreneurship in the city. Situated in downtown Lisbon’s Baixa district in renovated historic buildings, Startup Lisboa provides mentorship, workspace, and networking for early-stage startups across sectors. It was launched with backing from the Lisbon City Council, bank Montepio, and IAPMEI (the Portuguese SME agency), reflecting strong civic support. Over an incubation period of up to 3 years, startups receive guidance on refining their business model, access to strategic partners, and help connecting with investors. Office space is a big draw: Startup Lisboa offers subsidized offices and co-working spots to dozens of startups, easing a major burden in early stages. The incubator runs several vertical programs, including dedicated tracks for tourism, social innovation, and fintech in partnership with corporates. Lisbon’s booming tourism industry spurred Startup Lisboa to create initiatives for travel-tech and “Smart Tourism” – alumni in this space include Unbabel (AI translation for customer service, now a scaleup with $90M+ raised). Other success stories from Startup Lisboa’s portfolio are EatTasty (food delivery, expanded to Madrid) and Hole19 (a golf app with millions of users). Besides incubation, Startup Lisboa manages events like the Lisbon Challenge (an international acceleration program) and interfaces with Portugal’s Startup Visa program to attract foreign founders. They also collaborate with Web Summit (the major tech conference hosted in Lisbon) to showcase local talent. A distinctive project is the “Made of Lisboa” community brand, which Startup Lisboa spearheads to unite the city’s tech scene. The incubator has supported over 300 startups, which have created an estimated 3,000+ jobs. Startup Lisboa also played a role in rejuvenating Lisbon’s downtown, turning it into a lively startup hub. With Lisbon now on the map as a startup-friendly city (helped by initiatives like €200M VC fund of funds from the government), Startup Lisboa continues to be at the heart of it – fostering new companies in an open, founder-centric environment, and solidifying Lisbon’s reputation as a launchpad for international startups in Southern Europe.
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Swappie
Swappie is a European recommerce platform specialising in certified refurbished iPhones and iPads, selling to consumers across more than 20 countries with a 12-month warranty. Founded in 2016 in Helsinki, it refurbishes devices through a 52-stage technical process at its facilities in Helsinki and Tallinn, and has served over two million customers. The company raised $124 million in Series C funding and has 586 employees as of early 2026. Swappie transitioned to a fully online model in 2025, closing retail stores to focus on its digital marketplace.
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Techarena Almedalen 2026
Techarena's tech-and-policy track inside Almedalsveckan on Gotland, with three stages, 150+ speakers, 60+ panels, a Nordic startup showcase, and 3,000 invited VIPs alongside Sweden's political class.
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Treedom
Treedom is the world's first online agroforestry funding platform, allowing individuals and companies to plant trees in community-based projects across Africa, Latin America, and Asia, with each tree geotagged and photographed. Founded in Florence in 2010 by Federico Garcea and Tommaso Speroni, Treedom has planted over 3.3 million trees across 42 projects in 14 countries. Certified B-Corp since 2014, the company runs a hybrid B2B2C model — selling corporate sustainability packages to companies and individual tree gifting to consumers. Backed by Banca Sella with $14.4 million raised and 84 employees as of 2026.
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Verena Pausder
Verena Pausder is a prominent German entrepreneur, angel investor, and advocate for digital education. She founded Fox & Sheep and the HABA Digitalwerkstatt, which teach coding and digital skills to children. Pausder has invested in numerous early-stage startups across edtech, consumer tech, and impact-driven ventures. She serves as President of the German Startups Association (Startup-Verband) and authored the bestselling book 'Das Neue Land,' which calls for a more innovative and digitally literate Germany. Her angel investments typically focus on founders building products that combine technology with social impact, and she is one of the most influential voices shaping Germany's startup policy landscape.
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XAnge
XAnge is a French-German early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2003, with offices in Paris, Berlin, and Munich. Part of the Siparex Group, XAnge manages over EUR 600M and invests EUR 1-10M at seed and Series A in deep tech, impact, and digital transformation. The firm is particularly active along the Franco-German corridor and has backed companies including Lydia, Akeneo, Talend, and Studitemps. XAnge differentiates with a strong focus on sustainability and B2B software, and its bi-national positioning helps portfolio companies expand between France and the DACH region.
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Zofia Dzik
Impact investor and founder of the Humanites Institute, Zofia is a leading advocate of human-centric technology and responsible innovation. A former C-level executive in large financial organizations (including PZU and Link4), she supports startups and boards at the intersection of business performance and social impact. Her focus areas include fintech, medtech, and social impact, complemented by board service at major public companies and active mentorship.
