COMBATTING THE PROBLEMS OF CLIMATE AND AGRICULTURE SECTOR
What is Manush Labs Sustainability Accelerator?
Manush Labs presents its first impact program - Sustainability Accelerator 2020. Innovative startups and SMEs will get a chance to scale their innovations to help address India's critical socio-economic challenges faced by the climate and agriculture sectors.
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The program provides a platform for innovative early-stage social startups, SMEs, and creative innovators with guidance, knowledge access, tools, partnerships, and due diligence information needed to build their venture ideas. After the program, selected teams will get to work with our supporting organizations (incubation centers and investors) to launch or scale their ideas.
SECTOR
OUTLINE
Climate and Agri sector is one of the prime sectors contributing to the Indian economy. The agriculture sector alone contributes about 15% of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP). India has been an agrarian society for time immemorial, with almost half of its population directly or indirectly involved with agriculture. With the growing agriculture sector, India’s food ecosystem is another area that is on the rise. The food sector in India offers huge growth opportunities in areas like food processing, storage, retail, marketing, and others. Innovative advancements in food and agriculture sector would empower the lives of millions of people engaged directly or indirectly with the sector.
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We look forward to working with innovators to overcome challenges across India's food and agriculture value chain in ways that promote affordability, accessibility to markets and inputs, resource efficiency, preservation of natural systems & favorable user experience for stakeholders.
PROBLEM STATEMENTS
CALL FOR INNOVATIONS
TRACK #1
How we produce
Sustainable food production is critical to India’s rising population given that agriculture is mainly carried out in small farms. Small farm size, lack of technological advancements in farming techniques, conventional farming practices, etc have led to decrease in agriculture productivity. Conventional farming techniques exhibit challenges in economies of scale, wastage, nutrient leakage, and a high tax bill on fertilizers that damage produce, farmers' and consumers' health.
Suggested solution areas: ​
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Urban farming: Improving current methods and exploring possible alternatives
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Improving ergonomics in agriculture through Agritech innovations
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Bolstering local and organic food production and distribution
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Sustainable manufacturing of raw materials (fertilizers, pesticides, etc.)
OFFERINGS
PROBLEM DIAGNOSIS
Problem diagnosis sessions with field experts
PITCHING
Opportunity to pitch to program partners, global and local investors, critical business leaders, and local role models
TECHNOLOGY
Technology and domain
expertise from local and global mentors
PEER TO PEER
ASSESSMENT
Feedback sessions with peers, investors, and successful startups and SMEs in the food and agri sector of India
FUNDING OPPORTUNITY
Startups: Opportunity to receive seed funding of upto Rs. 1 crore from our investment partners.
SMEs: becoming eligible to win a share of Rs 100 crore funding from Wadhwani Foundation.
MARKET AND NETWORK
ACCESS
Startups: Access to Social Alpha's incubation programs.
SMEs: Access to Wadhwani Foundation's Advantage Program.
HUMAN-CENTERED APPROACH
Inculcating Manush-Centered thinking and developing interpersonal skills
CONSULTING
Opportunity to refine business-plan through intensive user-research activities
WHO CAN APPLY
We are looking for Start-ups and SMEs (Social Enterprises) that have developed or are developing technology-based innovations that have the potential to create an impact in the Food and Agriculture Sector and demonstrate business model sustainability.
The SME sector has gained recognition from the United Nations. According to the United Nations, SMEs act as first responders to the needs of society, provide a safety net for inclusiveness, and are a primary driver of poverty alleviation and development
THE MANUSH WAY
WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT
