The Incubation Network will build on its Southeast Asia presence with co-launched initiatives in Thailand aimed at boosting support for early-stage startups focused on the region’s emerging plastic waste economy. ​​ECCA Family Foundation has committed US$2 million of strategic funding to spearhead the effort.

Thailand is ranked sixth in the top 10 sources of global ocean plastic, contributing approximately 322,000 of the 8-10 million tonnes entering the seas each year.

“There is no silver bullet to Southeast Asia’s plastic waste challenges but we can fast track our opportunities to discover solutions by giving local entrepreneurs a boost of go-to-market resources. What led us to expand into Thailand is the growing public and private sector support for sustainability, the combination of which has positioned startups based here to be a catalyst and driver for the region’s circular economy initiatives,” said Simon Baldwin, Global Head of Circularity for SecondMuse, and Director of The Incubation Network.

The Incubation Network - an impact-driven initiative that sources, supports and scales holistic innovative solutions to combat plastic pollution - has helped to scale over 75 startups to date, of which at least 29% has female leadership. This is done via incubator-like programs with a local lens on specific plastic issues such as why flexible packaging has low recycling value in Southeast Asia and how to introduce circular economy foundations to startups.

In Thailand, an estimated 87% of the value of recyclable materials -- close to US$4 billion annually -- goes untapped. Inefficiencies in plastic management have resulted in much of the country’s waste being incinerated, dumped in unsanitary landfills or leaked into the environment, especially via waterways. This not only results in animals and people ingesting microplastics, but damages water and air quality, and accelerates climate change.

Christian Algot Enevoldsen, Founder and Chairman of ECCA Family Foundation said, ​​“ECCA Family Foundation is proud to support The Incubation Network because we strongly believe in its innovative approach towards reducing plastic leakage, improving livelihoods of people working with waste, and supporting transitions towards circular economies. Thailand is already making bold efforts to address its plastic waste challenges, and organizations like The Incubation Network can provide the country’s innovation ecosystem and entrepreneurs with technical support, connections and funding that will help them accelerate their development of commercially viable solutions.” ECCA Family Foundation was established in 2020 to support and inspire transformative change with a strong focus on preserving our global ecosystems, especially the oceans and forests and on protecting biodiversity for future generations.

The Incubation Network’s initial Thailand expansion will roll out alongside three major partnerships with Seedstars, the Alliance to End Plastic Waste and STEAM Platform to launch incubators, accelerators and knowledge-sharing platforms for entrepreneurs. Each of these will strategically tackle bottlenecks founders in Thailand face throughout a startup’s lifecycle with a focus on the regional plastic waste value chain.

The Incubation Network will bring to the table its strategic relationships across both public and private sector, including the world’s largest FMCG companies, government bodies across North America and Asia Pacific, venture capital firms, global development networks, industry experts and more.

The Incubation Network will also be onboarded as a member of the Thai Government’s landmark Public Private Partnership for Plastic and Waste Management, a multi-stakeholder initiative tasked with reducing marine plastic debris by at least 50% by 2027. The regional agreement aims to create a circular economy for 100% of all waste plastics in Thailand by 2027 through key focus areas including infrastructure, education, innovation, policy, legislation, and data.

“Together with our partners, the Federation of Thai Industries and Thailand PPP Plastics, the Alliance is rolling out projects in Bangkok and Rayong with unique models for collecting and segregating plastic waste. The Thailand Plastics Circularity Accelerator program complements this effort by supporting ventures in developing and deploying solutions to create value from the plastic waste captured in the communities we are serving,” said Nicholas Kolesch, Vice President, Projects, Alliance to End Plastic Waste.

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For press enquiries and requests, contact: Rachael De Foe ([email protected]), Laura Cooke ([email protected])

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The Incubation Network’s first co-launched initiative, the ​​Thailand Plastics Circularity Accelerator, is calling for applications from now till 15 Oct. More details here.

The Waste Management & Recycling Academy will be open for applications from 30 Sep to 22 Oct. More details here.

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About The Incubation Network: The Incubation Network is an impact-driven initiative that sources, supports and scales holistic innovative solutions to combat plastic pollution through strengthening entrepreneurial ecosystems with a diverse network of key partners.

Part of a highly collaborative community of startups and entrepreneurs, investors, partners and programs, The Incubation Network works together with industry players to tackle key barriers to address plastic leakage and advance a circular economy. This includes sourcing and supporting, to scaling early stage or pre-investment solutions and connecting compatible ecosystem players to reinforce the value chain in waste management and recycling.

Established in 2019, The Incubation Network is a partnership between non-profit organization, The Circulate Initiative and impact innovation company, SecondMuse. The Incubation Network is open to interested collaborators, corporations, and mentors, looking to address plastic leakage and advance a circular economy in South & Southeast Asia. For more information, visit: www.incubationnetwork.com.