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Promoting Sustainable Entrepreneurship in Vietnam
Networking Event for Climate Start-Ups 2023

More than 50 start-ups, policy makers, investors and start-up supporters joined the networking event jointly hosted by Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) and the Center for Creativity and Sustainability Study and Consultancy (CCS) in Hanoi. The event offered a precious opportunity for members of 2 different networks of climate start-ups supported by HSF, namely ClimateLaunchpad in Vietnam and Ecothon in other ASEAN countries to exchange ideas and network with each other.

Participants in the networking event

Participants in the networking event

HSF

Within the framework of HSF’s ASEAN-wide regional project on sustainable consumption and production, HSF has been closely working with diverse partners to run several programmes, among them the ClimateLaunchpad in Vietnam and Ecothon in other ASEAN countries. Both initiatives are competitions for sustainable business models and innovations, which features intensive training, coaching and mentoring sessions. In the last 5 years, HSF and partners have successfully attracted more than 200 start-ups to each network. This year, a networking event was organised in to bring CLP Vietnam and Ecothon alumni from Lao PDR, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines together in an offline event to exchange knowledge and experiences as well as to enable them to actively engage in a network of sustainable practitioners, sustainable business experts, policy makers, and potential investors – not only in Vietnam but also in the ASEAN region, which eventually contributes to the implementation of Vietnam’s National Action Plan of Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) as well as facilitates the transition to a circular economy in Vietnam.

Networking game at the event

Networking game at the event

HSF

At the event, representatives of 20 teams from CLP 2019 until CLP 2023 introduced their initial projects when participating in CLP, their development as well as challenges facing them since then. Besides, representatives of 4 Ecothon 2023 start-ups from Malaysia, Indonesia, Lao PDR and the Philippines introduced their sustainable business models and shared experiences of running sustainable businesses in respective countries. These insights were further reinforced through a networking game that involved exchanging contacts and information among all participants, including investors and business experts, to establish sustainable value chains with the attending start-ups. Moreover, two group discussions were organised in which the climate start-ups shared their thoughts about the benefits that they got from joining CLP and Ecothon, and brought several recommendations for improving the two programmes.