Start-ups in Sustainability

Is it possible to travel at the speed of an airplane while having the same convenience and ecological footprint as going by train? A technology that might make this idea become reality is the hyperloop, a transportation system in which levitating pods are propelled in tubes to reach a speed of more than 1'000 kilometres an hour. The EPFL-spinoff Swisspod Technologies focuses on such systems and has developed a hyperloop vehicle. CEO and co-founder Denis Tudor and his team won several awards in the hyperloop competitions hosted by SpaceX and are building a 1.6-kilometre track in Colorado to test their product in full scale.  In this episode, Denis explains why the hyperloop technology is more sustainable than comparable modes of transportation and when it will be possible to travel with hyperloop vehicles.

In 2022, the European Union changed the legislation on the sustainability reporting of companies. The new requirements expand the scope of businesses that are obliged to report on their environmental, social, and economic impact. Although this legislation has been in effect since early 2024, many small companies still face challenges in understanding and meeting the reporting standards. To assist these businesses, the start-up CSR Tools offers solutions that help them get started on sustainability reporting. In this episode, founder and serial entrepreneur Alexander Spahn shares the story of CSR Tools and his previous ventures. He also discusses the critical success factors of start-ups.

The children's toy market in Switzerland is quite sizable with parents spending approximately 800 million Swiss Francs each year. Most of these toys are made of plastic leading to significant emissions during  production and posing challenges for recycling. Fatma Belbahi and her team at the start-up Circle Toys are addressing this issue by establishing  a circular platform for children's toys. The company collects toys from families, then sorts, cleans, and eventually offers them a new lease on life through its online store. This approeach results in a triple win: donating families declutter while earning store credit, new buyers save up to 70 per cent compared to the original toy price, and the planet benefits from reduced emissions and waste. Fatma discusses the founding story of her company, the role that start-up competitions played in testing her business idea, and her plans to scale Circle Toys nationwide.

Acoustic panels and dividers help improve the atmosphere in rooms by absorbing sound and reducing noise. Normally these products are made of virgin materials and can be difficult to recycle at the end of their lifecycle. Sven Erni wanted to solve this problem and therefore co-founded Impact Acoustic . This start-up uses waste as a resource and designs circular acoustic products. Impact Acoustic's latest product is entirely made of cotton fibres deemed too short to make yarn and thus were disposed of in the past. In this episode, Sven talks about why Impact Acoustic was founded, how they use recycled PET bottles as a raw material, and what the impact would be on the company if the world stopped using plastic.

How can you prepare a good cup of coffee when you are outdoors – say on a mountain hike or ski tour – without bringing much equipment or creating lots of waste? With a coffee paste from the tube, say Alexander Haberlin and Philippe Greinacher, the two founders of No Normal Coffee. This start-up aims to offer a premium coffee for every outdoor occasion – in the mountains, woods, or anywhere else. The objective of No Normal Coffee is to redefine outdoor coffee and make it more sustainable. Alex and Philippe talk about the founding story of No Normal Coffee, how they developed their product as newcomers to the coffee industry, and the ways in which No Normal Coffee promotes sustainability.

Seaweed represents one of the most abundant biomass resources on earth. It also grows ten times faster than land plants, captures CO2, and produces oxygen for humans and other species. Despite being a renewable resource, the potential of seaweed is not used often in the production of goods. Jessica Farda, co-founder and CEO at Noriware, wants to change this. Her start-up has developed a new seaweed-based packaging solution. Noriware uses one hundred per cent natural materials that are free from toxic substances, fully biodegradable and compostable at home. With this product, Jessica's start-up aims to significantly reduce the carbon footprint and water use compared to conventional plastic packaging. In this episode, Jessica talks about how Noriware was founded, why she decided to use seaweed for packaging, and a failed experiment that helped with product development.

Products for sexual health are not necessarily the first category that we think about when it comes to making the world more sustainable. For example, condoms were a taboo topic for a long time: many people bought them secretly and avoided talking about them. Martina Hammer wants to take away the shame around sexual health products and make them more accessible for people with the preference for a sustainable lifestyle. That is why Martina's start-up called feelgood Condoms offers the first certified vegan and sustainable brand for sexual health products in Switzerland. Martina explains why the condoms of the known, large brands are not vegan, what makes feelgood Condoms more sustainable, and how the introduction of self-checkouts in supermarkets have benefited sexual health products.

Many companies try to make their existing product offerings more sustainable and ecologically compatible. But only a few firms subject their product development fully and from the very beginning to the principles of complete circularity and responsible sourcing. An example for such an approach in the watchmaking industry is ID Watch. The co-founders Nicolas Freudiger and Cédric Mulhauser have developed luxury watches that are made of recycled high-quality stainless steel, reused existing movements, and straps based on vegetal compost. In this rerun episode from April 2022, Nicolas and Cédric tell their founding story and explain how they want to change one of the most traditional industries in Switzerland.

Today many travellers ask themselves which mode of transport they should use for their next trip. Airplanes are fast but have a large carbon footprint. Trains are more sustainable but feature only few overnight connections with which people can bridge the longer travel time by sleeping. And buses also do well in eco-friendliness but are less comfortable for overnight travel because passengers cannot lie down. A start-up that aims at changing this and offering a new solution for overnight buses is Twiliner. They are developing a bus with comfortable, reclining seats that are safe in lying position. Twiliner's target group are so-called mindful optimists – people who want to travel with respect to the environment and who believe that their choices have an impact on the world. In this episode, Luca Bortolani, co-founder and CEO at Twiliner, explains what his motivation to start the company was, how he and his co-founders managed to partner with two well-known institutions early on, and what their buses will look like.

How can scents enhance our well-being and mental health in the workplace? And what role does 'ma' – the Japanese concept of negative space – play in this context? These two questions are at the core of MĀ Moments, a start-up that offers curated essential oil blends for consumers, customised scents for companies as well as well-being retreats and corporate gifts for employees. The philosophy of MĀ Moments emphasises connecting with nature, the healing power of art and beauty in simplicity. Co-founder Esther Payerols talks about the inspiration behind MĀ Moments, their deliberate focus on well-being and how sustainability is incorporated into their products.