The MEP program is part of the ISC3s Sustainable Chemistry Mentoring Program with the goal to match high impact Sustainable Chemistry start-ups with Mentors and Experts based on personal needs, goals and technical field and area of expertise.
Expertise: Finance, Business Development, Product Development, Marketing, Growth Strategy, Technology Development
Language: English
Azmath has a Bachelor of Engineering in Biotechnology from the University of Calicut in India and MBA in Financial Analysis and Investment from the University of Connecticut (UCONN) in the US. He has over 14 years of work experience in various fields of entrepreneurship, business development, equity valuation as well as in product and project management. He has also experience with Mentoring as he had the opportunity to be part of the Connecticut Centre of Entrepreneurship and in Life Sciences Initiative (ELSI) from 2015 to 2016.
“I feel very inclined to help the budding enterprises. I see mentoring as a process of training to ask the right questions, so that mentees can navigate to their goal in a meaningful manner.”
Expertise: LCA, CE Metrics
Language: English, Dutch
Erik previously worked as a sustainability and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) consultant. He obtained his PhD degree in Economics, Management & Statistics at the University of Messina. His work focuses on quantifying the impact of circular economy practices. More specifically, he’s interested in designing best practices for companies to assess the sustainability of their (to-be-introduced) CE practices – with the objective to be both (1) practically feasible and (2) able to providing accurate insights. Currently, he works with NGO Footprints Africa to apply a newly designed CE assessment framework SCEIA with an initial cohort of 3-5 companies from various sectors.
“I am excited to join the mentor/experts program, and I’m looking forward to assist startups with their strategic- and practical challenges related to sustainability and circular economy assessment.”
Expertise: Finance, Business Development, Sustainable Development, Marketing
Language: Portuguese, English and German
Michele da Silva-Wagner has an MBA in Project Management as well as Master of Risk Assessment & Sustainability Management. She has more than 15 years of professional experience in different areas from finance to project manager. Since 2017 she has been working as an expert in the Horizon Europe Program of the European Union.
What fascinates Michele about mentoring is seeing ideas come true, companies being created, acquiring their first clients and scaling-up . Through her experience she can help startups in all phases of development while keeping the focus on sustainability.
“I believe that a mentorship program is the best way to help start-ups to achieve their goals, and to impact and transform the economy and society.”
Expertise: Finance, Business Development, Sustainable Development, Product Development, Marketing, Growth Strategy, Fundraising, Technology Development, Founder Experience & Acquisitions
Language: English
Sebastian Alamillo started his career by founding a chemistry-based cleantech start-up out of the University of Waterloo. Following the company’s exit, he turned his attention to bridging the gap between the research/incubation stages and commercialization for deep-tech companies. Now, as the leader of KPM-Accelerate, he works to accelerate chemical technology start-ups by integrating technical development, at the lab and pilot scale, with business strategy and financial modelling. His other roles as a VC investor, board member, business architect, and ecosystem enabler allow him to help deep-tech start-ups, at any stage, bring the most impactful solutions to market.
“It’s chemistry that got us into this climate mess, and now, chemistry has the opportunity to get us out.”
Expertise: Business Development, Financial Management, Building Strategic Partnerships for Business Growth
Language: English
Samuel Opoku has worked with and supported over 300 tech and non-tech startups and entrepreneurs/brands in Ghana and other African countries over the past 6 years. He has also started, failed and succeeded at many ventures of his own. Samuel is founder of Start.Up Lounge Africa, which is a management consulting firm that provides business development services to startups, SMEs and Enterprise support organizations. He has deep passion for supporting young African entrepreneurs to achieve their desired business and professional goals, and to impact positively the environment as well.
“I am passionate about Africa and its growing tech ecosystem. I am very open to learning and sharing valuable experiences with others."”
Expertise: Business Development, Product Development, IP Protection, Technology Development, Agile Change
Language: English, German
Gideon Rath focuses on topics such as working within a team and with external partners: agile working, effective collaboration, business development, scale-up or finding the right partners. He worked in different application fields of chemistry and has deep knowledge on the food and life-science sector. As an Innovation Manager, he regularly supports and advices innovation projects.
What motivates Gideon to be a mentor, is the experience of being mentored in the past and he wants to giveback by passing on his knowledge to other mentees. He believes in lifelong learning, so others can learn from him, and he can learn from them.
“I profit a lot from networking, formal and informal. So, others shall profit from my networks too.””
Expertise: Business Development, Sustainable Development, Fundraising
Language: English, Arabic
Fahmy Co-founded the Egyptian group of the international youth movement “youthinkgreen – jugend denkt um.welt”. He has mentored and supported more than 50 startups & SMEs at different stages to grow their business and have successful market penetration, growth, or scaling. He has also support SMEs within their sustainability transformation across value chains.
"Working with innovative minds keep me on track of the state of the art clean tech innovations worldwide. I am always thrilled to support the journey even by a small advice or guidance.””
Expertise: Business Development, Marketing, Communication, Team Management, Pitch Training
Language: English, Spanish
Sebastian Diaz Co-Founder & Head of acceleration at DEEP Ecosystems, where he helps countries, ecosystems, companies, or any public or private organization to become more innovative by putting people at the center, enhance their connections and interactions based on trust, diversity and a common goal/story. Sebastian has more than 10 years experience building the startup ecosystem in LATAM. Former Start-Up Chile CEO, where he worked with +1,000 startups from all over the world. Also, a public policies consultant for economic development. Previously, he was the founder of AfterBang Chile, a ski clothing company and Domadores TV, a broadcasting platform for journalists.
“I believe that when a truly inspired entrepreneur does something, nothing will stop him/her. The mentors programs are the corner stone of every accelerator because triggers that, inspiration, for the mentor and the founder. Here is where we see the talent pushing all to their limits, in a comfort zone, to get ready to grow ”
Please contact our Start-up Relations Manager Silvia Perez Hector with a short description of your desired field of expertise or mentoring topic and we will connect you with a suitable Mentor or Expert.
We are always looking for new Mentors and Experts with first-hand entrepreneurship experience or/and specific skills in sustainability and/ or business-related topics, for example: Sustainable Chemistry, biotechnology, sustainability management, business development, marketing, IP protection and more.
The program allows you to share your experience and your network, to contribute to the development of a start-up, to nurture young talents, to support the local innovation ecosystem and to develop your own interpersonal skills.
If you are interested in getting in touch apply to become a Mentor or an Expert!
Mentors:
Our Mentors are development driven and focus on a holistic approach. Meaning that the focus is the overall development of the Start-up and not a specific outcome, our Mentees want to learn from the experience of the Mentor.
Experts:
Our Experts are performance driven and focus on a specific need or outcome. Meaning that the focus of the relationship is solving a specific problem. Start-ups are interested in a specific expertise.
If you have further questions, please contact our International Relations Manager: Juanita Halblaub
