A glimpse into Philly’s thriving greentech scene, a bright spot on a national tour

Philadelphia’s climate tech scene is gaining momentum, said the sector’s most active local players, who gathered in September to connect and cheer a new wave of innovators and investors committed to tackling the planet’s biggest challenge.

“There’s significant interest in sustainable investing,” said scientist Ellie Fromboluti at the Philly stop on the national Climate Tech Cocktails tour.

Fromboluti is head of behavioral science and insights at GreenPortfolio, a company that connects clients with financial advisors who incorporate climate alignment into their investment strategies. “Growing awareness of climate change,” she said, “has led to improved understanding of the problem.”

Hosted by local startup Carbon Reform at their headquarters on North Broad, the event highlighted the importance of aligning technological breakthroughs with funding to accelerate progress in climate tech.

Regulation and government incentives also play a role in this emerging industry. The Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022 to help transition the United States to a clean energy economy, created economic incentives for businesses to become clean via tax credits, and opened the doors for more direct funding of clean energy solutions. 

In this atmosphere, startups ready to take advantage have been successfully raising — and the event, dubbed “Phounders, Phunders and Phans,” showcased several of them working in the Philadelphia region. Attendees included: 

• Erica Nemser of Ardent, which builds modules that use membrane chemistry to decarbonize industrial operations. 
• Ryan Goethals of Metal Light, which creates metal-air batteries to generate clean, portable power.
• Ian Lowe of Arduro, which uses a patented recycling process to turn end-of-life tires and industrial waste rubber into organic raw materials.
• Matt Zothner, CEO of Currents, a platform that helps consumers to make informed clean energy decisions and sell solar credits.
• Michelle Torelli of CarbonForge Technologies, a mobile unit provider to convert agricultural waste into biochar to rejuvenate soil.
• Julia Wan of Baleena, which develops devices to filter microplastic fibers from laundry and prevent pollution into water sources.

Event host Carbon Reform, which recently won the Philly Regional Startup World Cup, is one of the most prominent in the area.

Cofounder Nick Martin gave guests a glimpse at the firm’s carbon capture devices, which aim to reduce CO2 levels in commercial buildings. 

One such product, the Carbon Capsule, can be fitted to any commercial HVAC system to remove CO2 from the air and feed the purified air back in. This reduces the amount of outside air an HVAC system needs to draw, which results in less energy use and significant savings on energy cost.

As the evening came to a close, there was a sense of optimism in the room. 

“I’ve been fighting [for] climate action for twenty years,” said Ann Raiho, head of data science at Funga, which works to restore fungal biodiversity in forests to increase carbon capture. 

“We’ve come a really long way,” Raiho said. “I’m optimistic that we will transition away from fossil fuels in my lifetime and embrace the solutions we need to remove CO2 from the atmosphere.”