With 97 Harvard-led ventures incubated to date, the Climate Circle is cultivating the next generation of climate entrepreneurs. They're tackling global challenges from decarbonizing real estate to scaling solar energy technology.
Browse all Climate Circle ventures
Zor
Delivering affordable energy for irrigation and mobility to rural India through a battery-sharing platform.
Rarefied
Developing a propulsion mechanism that can fly in near-space, a region that is inaccessible to aircraft and satellites, to deliver climate insights and offset satellite emissions.
The fastest acceleration of my business happened when I joined the Harvard Climate Entrepreneurs Circle. The Climate Circle gave me connections and mentors, taught me fundraising skills, gave me exposure to investors and partners by being on panels, and guided me through the speech I gave at COP28.
Program Details
-
Climate Circle ventures receive the following support:
- 1:1 entrepreneur-to-entrepreneur climate connections
- Access to pro-bono legal matching tailored to climate ventures
- Advising from Harvard i-lab venture advisors
- Tailored plans from Harvard’s talent recruiting experts, and PR consultants
- Access to bookable office hours with accounting, sales, marketing, legal and other specialists, as well as investors and seasoned entrepreneurs
- 1:1 negotiation coaching
- Access to venture-building workshops and content
- Concierge introductions to climate-focused Harvard connections and climate investors with Harvard connections
-
Students, alumni, faculty, and staff from all 13 Harvard schools are welcome to apply to the Climate Circle.
The Climate Circle is open to both for-profit and nonprofit ventures with committed founders, clear traction, and growing momentum. Many ventures at the time of application have either current customers, established intellectual property, or written agreements with key stakeholders.
Because the program is entirely virtual, Climate Circle ventures span the globe: from Indonesia to Uganda, South Africa to the Midwestern U.S., Austria to Boston.
Ventures that do not have active users, established intellectual property, or written agreements with partners or funders are usually too early for the Climate Circle, but are encouraged to apply when they reach these milestones.
-
Attendance at the virtual orientation session is mandatory. Other offerings are 1:1 and tailored to the founder and occur at the founder’s convenience. Founders may participate in as many or as few offerings as are helpful to their venture’s trajectory and needs. Some group sessions are offered, however the focus is on sharing resources with founders that are personally tailored and highest impact for time invested.
-
The application is now open for the 2025-26 cohort. Log in to the Harvard Innovation Labs Application Portal via SurveyMonkey Apply to start your application. The priority deadline is May 9 and the final deadline is May 21, 2025.
Stories on Sustainability
The Climate Circle program was fantastic! We started with a prototype and a business idea and now we have a startup whose platform is used by large international companies and is ready to scale. In only one year!
