Ukraine has once again asserted its presence on the global cleantech stage. This year’s Cleantech Days 2025 forum, held for the first time outside Vienna — in Istanbul — served as a meeting point for innovators, entrepreneurs, investors, and scientists from 20 countries. Organised by UNIDO, TÜBİTAK, and IOM, this large-scale event dedicated to knowledge exchange and innovative cleantech solutions provided a powerful space for international dialogue and cooperation.

It is symbolic that this city, serving as a bridge between Europe and Asia, became the platform for the event held under the theme: “Connecting Regions and People to Accelerate Innovation for a Just Transition.”

For Greencubator, participating in the forum was an opportunity to show the world that even in wartime, Ukrainian entrepreneurs are creating solutions that address global climate challenges. Ukraine was represented by the company S.Lab and startups from the GCIP Ukraine 2.0 advanced accelerator: MELT WATER, Mycelia Tech, and Geodesic.Life.

They presented their sustainable solutions, received valuable feedback and support, and established new contacts for future collaboration. For each of the founders, this trip was an important step toward expanding international networks and exchanging experiences with entrepreneurs from other countries.

Roundtables, workshops, and training sessions added special value to this year’s program, bringing together Project Management Units (PMUs) of the Global Cleantech Innovation Programme (GCIP) from all participating countries.

Thanks to these events, the Ukrainian PMU representatives — Olexandra Danchenko and Elvira Amirova — were able to present the journey of the Ukrainian cleantech ecosystem and the successes of GCIP Ukraine 2.0. They also gained insights from colleagues in countries where the program has been operating for over seven years. The project offices worked collaboratively on the development and improvement of GCIP while adopting best practices from other ecosystems. These meetings created a space for genuine peer-to-peer learning and mutual support.

The discussion sessions were equally impactful. During the open circle session “Financing the Future: Mobilising Capital for Inclusive Climate Innovation,” Andrii Osadchyi, founder of MELT WATER, shared his experience from over a decade of working on water purification innovations.

He outlined the key challenges for hardware startups: access to venture capital, talent acquisition, and the necessity of securing initial sales even at the MVP stage. Andrii emphasized that having a measurable impact is critical for startups, as the proven benefit of the technology is what makes it market-attractive and paves the way for scaling.

During his speech at the discussion panel “Just Transition in Action: Low-Carbon Technologies as a Catalyst for Inclusive Industrial Development,” Greencubator co-founder Roman Zinchenko drew a parallel between the green transition and economic liberation, referencing Mahatma Gandhi’s “Salt March” as a symbol of the independence movement.

He emphasised that cleantech can become a tool for restoring economic power to communities and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by creating solutions that are not only green but also more efficient and competitive than the traditional “brown” economy.

Roman noted that achieving this requires more than just innovative startups; it demands manufacturing and management excellence, the readiness of investors to become “green angels” and support “patient” capital, as well as the development of local investment ecosystems and mutual support.

He highlighted the importance of building a culture where successful entrepreneurs pass on their knowledge and experience to the next generation, creating a wave of new greentech projects. Thus, the green transition was presented as a movement and a systemic change that provides economic independence and opens new opportunities for society.

Among the key questions Roman raised for discussion were:

• How to build scalable projects that engage people in the green economy movement;
• How to refine manufacturing and management practices to achieve true efficiency;
• How to nurture a new generation of investors — “green angels” and “green venture capitalists” —willing to provide “patient” capital;
• How to foster local investment ecosystems and mutual support within capital-constrained markets;
• How to ensure the transfer of knowledge and experience from successful entrepreneurs to the next generation of founders.

We are sincerely grateful to the organisers for the opportunity to represent Ukraine on the global cleantech stage, and to the GCIP PMU teams from around the world for their inspiring partnership, exchange of experience, and collaborative effort in shaping a global innovation ecosystem!

We thank all our partners who share our values and work with us to build a sustainable, inclusive, and just world for future generations.