Insights and news
The Solar Impulse Foundation announced a new partnership with Schneider Electric, one of the world’s leading companies in Energy Management, Industrial Automation, and Services, through the...
The noose is tightening around the air transport industry and only airline companies can untie the knot. They would greatly benefit in the end by becoming actors rather than victims of change....
AgRHO S-Boost favors and optimizes water and nutrients absorption by the seed. In the world 33% of all the soils are...
WaveRoller is a device that converts the ocean wave energy into electricity. You have probably spent time watching and listening to the constant movement of waves breaking on the shore....
Interview avec Tony Estanguet, Président du comité d’organisation des JO de Paris 2024 Des événements tels que les Jeux Olympiques, la Coupe du Monde ou la Ligue des Champions attirent...
Interview with Tony Estanguet, President of the Organising Committee of the Paris 2024 Olympic GamesThis article is a translation of interview in french. Read the original...
This solution uses a new process and technology to make sleepers more efficient, reduce waste and create clean energy While innovation, design and technology has transformed most...
This year's World Environment Day is dedicated to one of the world's most pressing issue: air pollution. One morning in March 2015, Parisians woke up to a mysterious scene: the Eiffel Tower...
“Sport has the power to change the world” declared Nelson Mandela in his famous speech at the first Laureus World Sports Awards in Monaco in 2000. Sport has indeed played a major...
From May 27th to 29th, the world’s top clean energy decision-makers will gather in Vancouver for the 10th Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM10) and 4th Mission Innovation (MI-4).During 3...
A waterless toilet installation for isolated and water stressed areas. “This is a container of human waste” said Bill Gates while brandishing a beaker of poo, as...
Could we deal with our carbon emissions challenge by capturing them from industrial facilities or directly from the atmosphere? Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) has gained...
This electric motorcycle mixes mechanics tradition and technological innovation. For the transport sector - which accounted for 14% of global greenhouse gas...
Business solutions to protect our environment and promote inclusive prosperity exist. They simply need to be embraced and supported.This article was originally published by UNCTAD. See...
If you are at VivaTech, don't miss the opportunity to discover our labelled solutions, meet members of our staff and listen to Bertrand Piccard on stage. This week, the entire...
On May 14th 2019, in the Palace of Nations in Geneva, UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) and the Solar Impulse Foundation will debate the role of start-ups in...
The Solar Impulse Foundation and the European Investment Bank (EIB) have signed a landmark agreement for the provision of financial advisory services to innovative environmental solutions...
The European project was built upon the premise of safeguarding peace by creating the European Coal and Steel Community. Coming as it did in the aftermath of WWII, Robert Schuman’s plan was...
Underwater turbines could provide renewable energy to off-grid communities who rely on fossil fuels. In most of the roughly 11’000 inhabited islands around the world, power supply is a big...
The Belgian region of Wallonia partners with the Solar Impulse Foundation to speed up the 1000 solutions challenge, bring Walloon cleantech solutions to the world and help the region...
Earth’s cornucopia of life has evolved over 550 million years. Along the way, five mass extinction events have caused serious setbacks to life on our planet. The fifth, which was caused by a...
Discovering individual animals, following their movements, identifying and locating animal and plant species, assessing their habitat, and preventing poaching are just a few examples...
This article is published in collaboration with World Economic ForumThe total number of animals has halved since the 1970s in what some scientists have termed the start of Earth’s...
Ambee helps citizens monitor pollution and take actions to avoid the most toxic areasWhat’s the issue?Invented in India to face an ever-increasing air pollution challenge, Ambee is...
This eco-driving coach can help reduce fuel consumption up to 10% What’s the issue?While many topics are still open for discussion, few doubts remain over the fact that cars pollute. First,...
Looking for new opportunities, giving companies the chance to scale, taking financial risks, supporting companies... Cleantech investors have a crucial role to play in the...
The Solar Impulse Efficient Solution Label is now part of the EuroQuity network, enabling its solutions to access an exclusive business partner and investor matching...
E-commerce is now part of our everyday lives. We buy pretty much anything in a matter of seconds with a simple click, and we expect purchases to arrive at our doorstep...
Drones, marketplaces, IoT and sensors, blockchain technologies, artificial intelligence… After having radically transformed our everyday lives, all these...
Today is the 108th International Women’s Day. This year’s theme is “Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change”, and strongly focuses on the importance of women involvement in climate...
Dear COP24 Negotiators,During these next couple of weeks, in Katowice, Poland, you will have to decide on measures urgently needed to ensure the future quality of life on earth for humanity....
The story behind Lactips is first and foremost about the encounter of two different worlds and two complementary people. Frédéric Prochazka, a researcher...
1000 Solutions — December 03, 2018
Eco Wave Power, turning the constant power of waves into electricity
Written by Tristan Lebleu
Think of a renewable source of energy that could be harnessed constantly to produce electricity. The sun? Goes down every night. Wind? Stops blowing now and then. Unlike other renewables, wave power is one of the most reliable energy sources on Earth, and could play a major role in the...
News — November 29, 2018
What is COP24 and why does it matter?
Written by Tristan Lebleu
What is the UNFCCC?The UNFCCC, or United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, is a mechanism established at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. Its end goal is to “stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that will prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system”. In...
News — November 23, 2018
"L’avion qui vole avec le Soleil" par Michèle Piccard
Written by Julie Conti
C’est à l’UNESCO que Michèle et Bertrand Piccard ont présenté le dernier né de leur histoire commune, le livre jeunesse "L’avion qui vole avec le soleil".Le livre retrace l’histoire derrière l’Histoire, allant des grands pionniers du XXème siècle qui ont inspiré Bertrand Piccard...
1000 Solutions — November 22, 2018
SkyBreathe, the fuel coach for pilots
Written by Tristan Lebleu
Without a doubt, aviation has been a key factor of human development and progress. It has allowed humans to travel all around the world and connect with one another. In 2017, over 4.1 billion passengers were carried by the world's airlines. However, for a sustainable future, air transport needs to tackle...
News — November 15, 2018
Cleantech job opportunities from our Members!
Written by Tristan Lebleu
Feel like you could be doing more for the planet? How about joining a cleantech company building a solution to tackle climate change? We asked the 1400 Members of the World Alliance for Efficient Solutions to tell us about open positions in their companies.And guess what? There are some pretty amazing...
1000 Solutions — November 13, 2018
Flexibuster, turning waste into energy
Written by Tristan Lebleu
Remember that ending scene from Back to the Future? Doc pulls into a driveway and fills his car tank with trash. Wouldn’t it be nice to generate power from waste? SEaB, a UK-based startup, has developed a solution that does precisely that: turning waste into energy through...
Guest Post — November 12, 2018
Guest Post : "Nature can help us tackle wastewater"
Written by Laetitia Mailhes
Microbiology is nature’s operating system. Through 21st-century technologies such as low-cost DNA sequencing, humans are beginning to understand the secret world of microbes and their potential to help solve our most pressing problem, including mediating humans’ conflicted relationship with our...
Interviews — November 09, 2018
"The fight against climate change is a moral issue", interview with...
Written by Tristan Lebleu - 3 min read
The effects of climate change on society, the economy and the environment are often mentioned in the future. However, climate change is already having a direct impact on many people, who are forced to flee the degradation of their environment. They are "climate refugees". For nearly 15 years, François Gemenne,...
News — October 31, 2018
What my father taught me...
Written by Bertrand Piccard
Most children grow up hearing their parents tell them fairy tales. In my case, it was rather stories about exploration. I was captivated and listened to my father’s accounts of the conquest of the poles, Mount Everest, space and the oceans’ depths. I discovered the stratospheric ascents of my grandfather...
1000 Solutions — October 29, 2018
Woodoo: wood is the new concrete
Written by Julie Conti
“If the 19th century was the age of iron, and the 20th the age of concrete... Then the 21st century will be the age of wood in construction” says Timothée Boitouzet CEO of Woodoo. Architect by profession, this French entrepreneur has replaced his pencils and blue prints by a lab coat to conceive an augmented...
1000 Solutions — October 19, 2018
Bound4Blue, rigid sails to make air the new fuel
Written by Tristan Lebleu
The Balueiro Segundo is a typical fishing vessel. Built in 2001, this bright red 40m long-liner, belongs to Orpagu (Organización de Palangreros Guardeses), a Spanish organization of longliners. Balueiro Segundo is about to get a radical change: at the end of the year, it will become...
1000 Solutions — October 15, 2018
PowerCorner, the power of sustainable mini-grids for rural villages
Written by Tristan Lebleu
Ketumbeine, a remote village in the northern Arusha region of Tanzania, is 36 kilometers away from the national grid. For years, the 800 inhabitants of Ketumbeine had no access to reliable, clean and safe energy, just like 38 million Tanzanians and still over 1.1 billion people across...
News — October 09, 2018
Bertrand Piccard replies to social media comments - Episode 2
Written by Chiara Cosenza
The series will be published regularly on Bertrand Piccard’s Social Media Channels (Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin) as well as on the Solar Impulse YouTube channel. We will not be able to reply to all the comments and questions but we will select a few of them on a regular basis.In the second episode of this...
1000 Solutions — October 08, 2018
Who are the 50 first labelled Solar Impulse Efficient Solutions?
Written by Tristan Lebleu
There is still some hope on limiting global warming to 1.5°C, stated a report from the IPCC issued today. It will take a change of “no documented historic precedent” of our economic model, but it can be done. If we don’t, the report outlines the devastating effects on our planet. Indeed, adding just half a...
1000 Solutions — October 05, 2018
Meet a solution: Sion, the solar-powered car
Written by Tristan Lebleu
The Sion’s main innovation lies in its 330 solar cells, which are integrated on the exterior of the car and capture the sun’s energy throughout the day to provide a boost of up to 30km per day. The solar cells generate a maximum power of 1,204 watts with 24 percent efficiency. As the...