In News:

The World Economic Forum’s (WEF) UpLink Annual Impact Report 2025 underscores the significant contributions of early-stage start-ups in tackling climate and sustainability challenges globally.

About UpLink:

• Launched: 2020 at Davos by WEF in collaboration with Deloitte and Salesforce.
• Objective: Open innovation platform to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by connecting entrepreneurs with experts, investors, and stakeholders.

Key Environmental and Social Impacts (2023–2024):

Category                                                                   Impact

Carbon Emissions                                                142,400 tonnes of CO? prevented (equal to emissions

                                                                         of ~30,000 cars)

Ecosystem Protection                                       140 million hectares of land and water safeguarded

Water Management                                           2.5 billion litres of hazardous wastewater treated

Waste Management                                           28 million tonnes of waste tracked

Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH)    2.7 million people gained improved access

Job Creation                                                             30,000+ new jobs generated

Livelihood Support                                               ~500,000 smallholder farmers and fishers experienced

                                                                           income growth

Waste Collector Empowerment                  18,000 collectors integrated into formal markets

Notable Indian Contributions:

• Indra Water: Processed 1.2 billion litres of wastewater in 2024 (243% rise from 2022).
• S4S Technologies: Reduced 60,000 tonnes of food waste — enough to feed 2.7 million people for a month.

Global Innovations Highlighted:

• EnviCore (Canada): Uses mining waste in construction to cut emissions.
• Umgrauemeio (Brazil): AI-based wildfire monitoring across 6.7 million hectares of forests.
• SHAYP: Saved 7 billion litres of water in 2024 using leakage detection; aims for 100 billion litres by 2027.
• GreenPlat (Brazil): Tracked 12.3 million tonnes more waste in 2024 than the previous year.

Investment and Innovation Trends:

• Total Funds Raised by UpLink Ventures in 2024: $633 million (up by $196 million from 2023).
• Customer Base Growth: Nearly 50% of ventures reported over 40% increase in customers.
• Circular Economy Focus: 13 ventures supported under the Traceability for Circularity Challenge to promote ethical and waste-reducing value chains.

Future Focus Areas (Planned by UpLink):

• Sustainable mining
• Carbon capture technologies
• AI-driven environmental monitoring