Swedish Institute 2025 Impact Pioneers Program: Enabling Climate Tech Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurs are vital to the growth and prosperity of communities. But what role can entrepreneurs play in tackling climate change? How can we imagine and build ecosystems that inspire and support entrepreneurs to rise to this challenge? Impact Pioneers ’25 is a leadership programme to convene leaders and enablers working in organizations and networks seeking to promote the nurture and growth of local entrepreneurship and innovation. The programme takes a starting point in the idea that entrepreneurship is a key driver of economic and social development and a force that can help accelerate the global green transition. The thematic focus of 2025 is ‘Enabling Climate Tech Entrepreneurship’, with ‘Climate Tech’ referring to technologies developed and used with the explicit purpose to help people, governments, and others both address the sources and impacts of climate change.

Eligibility Criteria for Swedish Institute 2025 Impact Pioneers: Enabling Climate Tech Entrepreneurship

The application is open to entrepreneurship ecosystem leaders and practitioners who work in organizations and networks and want to develop their support for entrepreneurs with businesses related to sustainability and green transition. More specifically, we imagine applicants working as:

1. Startup hub/accelerator/incubation founders and managers
2. Tech and innovation hub founders and managers
3. University accelerator/incubator managers
4. Public sector employees involved in work that supports Climate Tech entrepreneurship

In 2025, the application is open to 26 programme countries (applicants must be citizens and residents of one of them):

AFRICA: Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia

ASIA: Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam

EUROPE: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Georgia**, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Sweden, Ukraine*, Türkiye

An applicant’s home organization/business must also meet the following requirements:

1. Be locally owned and based in one of the programme countries.
2. Be somehow hosting/coaching (or be in the process of starting up hosting/coaching of) entrepreneurs with business ideas that are related to sustainability and green transition.
3. Run the organization/business with a focus on contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals.

MENA: Morocco, Egypt, Saudi Arabia ***

* Ukrainian applicants who reside outside of Ukraine are also eligible to apply.

**Governmental employees in Georgia are not eligible to apply.

***Participants from Saudi Arabia carry their own costs for flights and accommodation, given that Saudi Arabia is not part of Swedish development cooperation funding agreements.

Applicants must meet the following requirements:

1. Be a citizen and resident of one of the 26 programme countries
2. Work in an organization or business systematically working to nurture and grow entrepreneurs.
3. Have the mandate to develop new international partnerships for your organization/business.
4. Have a good working knowledge of both written and spoken English.
5. Be willing to actively participate, provide support, and share their experience and knowledge with other participants.
6. Have identified opportunities and challenges that could be worked on during the programme to help their organisation improve its contribution to the local Climate Tech entrepreneurship ecosystem

An applicant’s home organization/business must also meet the following requirements:

1. Be locally owned and based in one of the programme countries.
2. Be somehow hosting/coaching (or be in the process of starting up hosting/coaching of) entrepreneurs with business ideas that are related to sustainability and green transition.
3. Run the organization/business with a focus on contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals.

Benefits of Swedish Institute 2025 Impact Pioneers: Enabling Climate Tech Entrepreneurship

1. Learning programme
2. Flights to and from Sweden for the Sweden week onsite visit
3. Accommodation, meals, transportation and insurance while in Sweden

How to Apply

The application consists of questions to assess formal requirements along with personal motivation. You will also be asked to submit a 60-120 second video and upload your most recent resume/CV.

Please carefully review the application overview (PDF) in order to be best prepared to submit your application. The overview gathers all questions and requirements in one place.

For more details, visit Swedish Institute Entrepreneurship webpage

Application Link(s)

• Apply for Swedish Institute 2025 Impact Pioneers: Enabling Climate Tech Entrepreneurship