Mobilizing Key Stakeholders to Accelerate Climate-Tech Innovation and Investment

Executive Summary According to a 2021 International Energy Agency (IEA) report, to reach net zero emissions by 2050, annualclean energy investments worldwide must more than triple to about $4 trillion by 2030. Cleantech, or climatetechnology investments, went through a boom and bust in the Cleantech 1.0 period (2006-2011) [1]. Since2016 we have started to live in the Cleantech 2.0 era. New commitments from governments, countries, cities,businesses, and investors, along with increasing consumer engagement, have driven venture investments inclimate technology. Investments increased from $418 million per annum in 2013 to $16.3 billion in 2019, thenreached an all-time high of $17 billion in 2020. Based on interviews with 50 stakeholders in the clean technology ecosystem, including financiers,government agencies, national labs, family offices, accelerator programs, nonprofits, trade organizations, andcorporate entities, this study has identified new drivers for private as well as government investment inCleantech 2.0. The interviews support the following conclusions.