A New Haven-based startup focused on making environmentally friendly products was recently awarded $10,000 to further its mission.
Ocean Exchange, a global nonprofit with a mission to accelerate solutions for healthier oceans, presented its 2022 Collegiate Award earlier this fall to BlueGreen Materials.
The company is working on creating a bio-concrete using carbon-negative materials. According to BlueGreen’s website, “Concrete is a centuries-old technology. It’s time for an upgrade. Better materials. Better for the planet.”
The funding will go toward helping the company speed up the development process, according to its Founder and CEO Marcelo Lejeune.
“I am truly honored to have been awarded Ocean Exchange’s Collegiate Award, especially considering how impressive every single one of the other competitors was,” said Lejeune. “These funds will be critical in accelerating the technology development of our process.”
Lejeune studied chemical engineering at Yale University and worked at Marble where he explored technology opportunities in carbon management prior to creating BlueGreen Materials.
“I have been blown away by the level and diversity of innovations that Ocean Exchange brings together,” Lejeune added. “It’s like I’m seeing into the future. I have learned so much so quickly about a broad range of ocean solutions.”
BlueGreen’s mission to build environmentally friendly materials is in line with Ocean Exchange’s award sponsor, the Guy Harvey Foundation. The foundation, according to its website, conducts scientific research and hosts educational programs to conserve the marine environment, while funding affiliated researchers working to better understand the ocean’s ecosystem and educators helping to foster the next era of marine conservationists.
BlueGreen Materials was chosen from 10 finalists representing universities in the U.S., Canada and Spain. Finalists participated in a rigorous Q&A session with a VIP panel in front of 150 delegates from business, academia, government and nonprofits. The event concluded with a lightning round where delegates voted for the winner.
Ocean Exchange officials lauded this year’s winner and finalists for their work dedicated to eco-friendly conservation.
“Ocean Exchange congratulates BlueGreen Materials as well as the other finalists in this prestigious competition,” said Millicent Pitts, CEO and executive director of Ocean Exchange.
“Their work, which encompassed such critical topics as CO2 sequestration, coastline protection, fisheries, boating electrification and more, was truly exceptional. It speaks well to the future of our oceans and the Blue Economy, and we are proud of the path they have chosen. We are also grateful to the Guy Harvey Foundation for their generous support of this award.”
