Cleantech for CEE Hosts Regional Workshop at Sustainable Finance Summit
During Prague Climate Week, Cleantech for CEE organized its first regional workshop at the CEE Sustainable Finance Summit, bringing together diverse stakeholders to address critical challenges in cleantech development.
Co-founders Magda Jablonska and Suzana Carp facilitated a roundtable that united capital providers, entrepreneurs, research institutions, municipalities, innovation hubs, and academic leaders. The discussion centered on strengthening the crucial connections between scientific discovery, investment capital, and industrial application in Central and Eastern Europe's cleantech sector.
Key findings revealed that while the region excels in producing cutting-edge research, only 12% of university patents achieve commercialization. Participants identified essential infrastructure needs including enhanced technology transfer offices, robust accelerator programs, and Fraunhofer-style applied research centers that can serve as innovation hubs linking researchers, entrepreneurs, and industry partners.
The workshop highlighted critical financial gaps, with participants advocating for expanded catalytic funding mechanisms—particularly blended finance tools like InvestEU that combine EU grants with private capital—to help early-stage cleantech ventures overcome the "valley of death." Strategic integration of startups within foreign investment networks and existing industrial value chains emerged as a priority, leveraging CEE's manufacturing strengths while developing demonstration facilities for testing and scaling innovations.
Investors emphasized that regional tech companies, especially those with scientific backgrounds, need stronger business competencies to successfully translate breakthrough research into viable market products. This integrated ecosystem approach promises to create a virtuous cycle where successful commercialization attracts investment, fueling further innovation and establishing CEE's cleantech leadership.RetryClaude can make mistakes. Please double-check responses.