Happy Friday readers,

Today marks the last official day of COP26 in Glasgow. Before we dive into debating the impact of the summit, we thought it would be useful to remember the thinking which informs most political decisions: 

“In politics, there is no use in looking beyond the next fortnight.” Joseph Chamberlain is recorded as having said these words in 1886. Almost a century later, Harold Wilson echoed this statement when he said “a week is a long time in politics.” 

This is important because so much of the climate crisis discussion so far has been framed in short-term goals as opposed to long-term holistic thinking. One reason for this is that the voice of powerful interest groups carries more weight than those who are extremely affected by climate change. This is most clearly demonstrated by the fact that the Fossil fuel industry had more delegates at COP26 than any single country. 

This sounds like a sorry state of affairs. But this newsletter has never been one to feel helpless in the face of the world’s problems, nor is it one to ignore them in favour of Techno-optimism. However, by acknowledging where we are at the moment, we can better visualise the role tech for good can play in creating a positive future for people and planet. 

Below, we’re going to look at the biggest Climate Tech news to emerge out of COP26. We’ll look at where the market is at the moment, the role Big Tech plays in the conversation, and check out some of the innovative technologies being used to help address the climate crisis. 

Hope you enjoy,

Liv
Tech for Good 

#Cop Out - Tech for Good in COP26 🌱

📣 Tech for good platform Commonplace is working towards a greener future by showing how community engagement can tackle climate change. They attended COP26 and share some daily updates here.

💨  What role can technology play in driving us towards a net zero future? BGV’s Dama Sathianathan answers this question here.

👮 Forge the Future explores the climate pledges and declarations to come out of COP26, in their Good COP, Bad COP analysis.

🥇 The President of Microsoft compared the investment into developing clean energy to the space race: “This is a little bit like John F. Kennedy saying in 1961 that America would go to the moon by 1970. No one had yet designed a lunar lander.” 

✉️  The Conscious Advertising Network has written an open letter to the COP26 Presidency & UNFCCC, and the CEOs of Facebook, Instagram, Google, Twitter, TikTok, Pinterest and Reddit.  

🌱 Climate Tech VC is usually filled with helpful insights. Their latest post highlights some of the biggest COP26 news for climate tech. Equally, Util’s Week in Impact delivers succinct summaries of all things sustainable finance and tech with a lens on COP26 this week. 

🐳 Whale Seeker is a startup that leverages AI to simplify whale monitoring. As a B Corp, the company “has chosen to pursue its mission of developing AI that benefits communities and the environment, within a sustainable and ethically sound company." 

💡 What other innovative technologies are startups in climate tech using? Sifted takes a look at the European landscape. 

🏍 One of the greatest concerns around fair gig work is around sick pay and accident coverage. Collective Benefits - a London based startup is working to bridge this gap. 

💨 Gigacorns and the built environment - this piece by Christian Hernandez Gallardo from 2150.vc, explains some of the jargon, as well as how regulation and infrastructure tech can help create and track sustainable cities.

🍀 This is a warming piece about what can happen when the internet is used to provide meaningful connectivity, spurring on energy and excitement for this rural Irish town.

📱 Seoul has announced that it will be the first major city government to enter the metaverse by planning to make a variety of public services and events in the virtual world.

🧑‍⚖️ A new accountability for algorithms act could be on the cards, after a new report on the future of work has revealed that monitoring and target-setting technologies have been associated with negative impacts on workers mental and physical well-being. 

♀ When Feminist Advocacy Group, UltraViolet, ranked some of the biggest social media platforms on how they handled misinformation, hate speech, harassment, and misogyny, these were the results: Instagram got an F, TikTok a D+ and Reddit, the highest scoring of all, a C. 

 💻 “Overloaded school internet connections brought web-based learning to a halt.” While the policy and promise of One Laptop per Child sounds positive, the unintended consequences demonstrate that educational inequalities cannot be fixed by grand gestures alone. 

🧑‍💻  From isolation to overworking, working remotely can be difficult for organisations and individuals to manage. That is why ‘Oyster’ has hired a Head of Remote - could this be a role that goes beyond the Tech StartUp ecosystem and into other industries? 

The Tech for Good Newsboard 📍

• Pale Blue Dot have made their research into solving the climate crisis open source, echoing their belief that this should be an accessible and global effort. Check out the research here.

• Curious about how you can tackle Climate Change for COP26? FutureLearn has shared two courses designed to help you specialise your skills, such as How to develop soft skills for sustainability. 

• Rolling invitation for anyone interested in joining our Slack community. Connect with more than 330+ peers passionate about tech for good.

#Opportunities and Funding

If you have a funding challenge, grant opening, speaking gig or another opportunity that you want to share - let us know!

• The Ideas and Pioneers Fund from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation closes soon! Apply for grants of up to £15,000 supporting people with a vision of a better society to explore their ideas for change. Apply by 15th November.

• The Social Science Research Council is looking for applicants for its first Just Tech Fellowship. Grant snapshot: A two-year, full-time, remote fellowship supporting a diverse community of researchers and practitioners investigating the intersection of technology and social justice. Find out more here and apply by 2nd January 2022.

• PUBLIC has teamed up with Amazon Web Services to launch its first UK healthcare accelerator programme to help mentor digital health start-ups solving the healthcare industry’s biggest challenges. The accelerator will be a four-week technical, business and mentorship programme - all run virtually. Apply by 5th December here.

• The deadline for the Call For Proposals at MozFest has been extended to November 15 at 11 AM CET.

• Applications for the Year Here Social Innovation Fellowship 2022 are open. The programme is completely free and focused on launching social businesses with potential for huge impact. Apply by 5th December.

• Applications for ‘DEEPSEA - The startup ecosystem accelerator,’ are now open. The interactive online programme will run for 6-weeks and provide you with access to funding and networking opportunities. Apply by 3rd December.

What’s going on? 📅

• This panel brings together a variety of experts who think about the underlying narratives and myths that unite the very different types of far-right media, how do they function, and what are their foundational ideas? Join on 23rd November here.

• Patch’s inaugural Festival of Ideas is exploring the future of culture, work, place, and innovation. Join for free on 16th-19th November here.

• Edgeryders are using a new toolkit to think creatively about planning for times of crises, with experts from different sectors and disciplines. More details about the event can be found here: Witness: Imagine Life, Work & Tech in a Low Carbon Future.

• The next Catalyst Meetup is all about Designing for Climate Action. Join them on 24th November here.

Working in tech for good 💼

We’ve trimmed the job section to new arrivals and featured ads only. For the full list head to our website.

• GoodGym is looking for a Marketing and Communications Manager to work with their Growth and Partnerships team. You will be responsible for national awareness and PR, local campaigns and targeting, and more. Apply by 29th November.

• Chatterbox is looking for a Head of B2B Marketing to join their team and take responsibility for conveying their message to businesses. Find out more and apply by 1st December here.

• Spoke is hiring a Head of Growth to help them maximise positive social impact. Find out more and apply here.

• Cityblock Health is a tech-driven provider for communities with complex needs. Their mission is to improve the health of underserved communities through community-based care teams and Virtual Care offerings. They’re growing their team and have lots of vacancies, including a Product Design Lead, a Senior Software Engineer and a Data Engineer. See the full list of open positions here.

• The UFI VocTech Trust is looking for a Project and Partnerships Manager to help manage their grant activity and key relationships. Apply by 19th November. 

• Sourcery is looking for a Sales and Marketing Assistant to join their sustainable wholesale marketplace. Apply by 5th December. 

• Digital Commons Coop is looking for a Product Manager to join as the first new role in their startup cooperative. The role has scope to grow and expand as the business grows. They are also looking for a freelance Comms Lead to support the platform in finding its voice.  Apply for either role by 21st November.

• BuddyHub C.I.C is looking for a Community Manager and Connector to join their social enterprise. Apply for either role by 15th December.

• The Open Data Institute is looking for an Application Developer to work with their Open Tech Lead. Apply by 30th November.

If you have an opening or know of a job opportunity to do with tech for good, please head to our website and we can look into adding it to the jobs board.

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