I started my career in climate tech seven years ago. I was based in Boston and California, working to support early-stage hard tech and climate tech startups. When I moved back to the UK, I was struck by the difference in the speed of business between both countries. Despite London having great talent and IP emerging from top universities, we were moving so much slower than Boston and California.
There were many reasons for this of course, but the two that stood out to me were:
- We were missing a strong convening power able to consistently bring together the ecosystem and facilitate connections across climate tech.
- British culture holds us back from forging the connections that could push our work forwards. If you’ve worked with Americans, you will probably have experienced their often gregarious and go-getter outgoing nature. In the UK, we’re often held back by the cultural phenomenon of ‘politeness’. Instead of joining a conversation, we tend to avoid it so as to not bother people, and we tend to downplay our work and achievements.
These realisations fueled my approach to founding Climate Connection. We bring the whole ecosystem together, and we do it through high-quality, welcoming, and interactive events that help people to leave their comfort zone and lean into making new and valuable connections.
Tell us about the business – what it is, what it aims to achieve, who you work with, how you reach customers and so on?
We catalyse climate innovation through meaningful connections. We create high-quality, interactive events designed to accelerate the pace of climate innovation through meaningful connections. By creating a warm and welcoming environment, featuring inspirational talks, and providing conversation starters to help you connect with new people, we aim to reshape the networking culture within climate tech.
Climate Connection brings together individuals who are passionate about climate and cleantech to spark ideas, discussions, and new connections. We connect the whole ecosystem, ranging from climate tech founders and VCs to government and NGOs.
How has the business evolved since its launch?
I launched Climate Connection as a part-time hobby when I still worked full-time in my previous role. There were only 30 people at our first event in 2021, but the response was overwhelmingly enthusiastic. Demand for the events grew rapidly and we outgrew our venues every month, rapidly hitting 100+ attendees. Now, Climate Tech Time, our flagship event, has grown to become the UK’s largest monthly event for climate professionals, drawing crowds of 150+ attendees.
Today, we run 40+ events in London all focused on climate tech. We work with Innovate UK to help unlock more VC investment into climate tech, and collaborate with a range of other partners including EDF, British Land, Prosemino, VC firms, and a variety of other sponsors to support the growth of the ecosystem. We’ve also recently launched a design & consultancy arm to our organisation, enabling us to support clients who want to run interactive and impactful custom or white-label events.
Tell us about the working culture at Climate Connection?
We have a diverse and multicultural team - there’s only 4 of us in the company but we collectively speak 5 languages and have roots in 8 countries. Many of us have non-traditional backgrounds, and that just makes us even stronger. Take for instance our Chief of Staff - a PhD in Nuclear Physics who also used to be the general manager of a nightclub - you would be hard pressed to find anyone better at organising events and snapping people into shape!
We’re also a very flexible workplace, with a standard 2-3 days of remote work per week and the ability for the team to work from abroad several months a year in the down-season.
Some of our biggest values centre on trust, honesty and accountability. We’re very honest and direct in our feedback, because we know how much quality matters in this industry and we strive to improve as a team but also as individuals. There’s a high level of trust that everyone will handle their part of the work and we encourage a lot of independence and task ownership.
Finally, we welcome people’s full self. I have been an advocate for mental health awareness for many years. I struggled with suicidal ideation for 3 years, two of which were the first few years of running Climate Connection. Mental health is just as real as physical health, and when something isn’t going well in our lives, we know we can share that with each other and ask for support just as we would if we were taking time out to recover from an illness. When I landed our first big customer, the very first policy I implemented was to make a £1,000 fund available to every Climate Connection employee for use towards therapy or coaching.
How are you funded?
We’re a bootstrapped operation. We focus on people and making connections, which means we don’t offer the scalability that most VCs would look for. Rather than pushing for scale, we focus on creating a high-quality experience at our in-person events. We connect VCs, founders, government and industry to help the ecosystem grow more rapidly as a whole, which in turn will help us to grow organically.
How does Climate Connection answer an unmet need?
We were fed up of stuffy conferences, boring speeches, and dinners where you’re stuck sitting next to one person. So we set out to change things, and run the type of events that we wish we were invited to. We create experiences that are friendly and warm, but also have impeccable organisation and facilitate key industry conversations.
What’s in store for the future?
We’re launching a custom events and experience design agency. We want to make it so all Brits enjoy networking, so we’re going to help other companies and industries create high-quality, interactive events that help to make real change.
What one piece of advice would you give other founders or future founders?
Find your support network. I could never have built my company without my incredibly supportive life-long friends. I know who to go to for sales advice, who to go to for the pump-up speech, and who I’m going to call after a tough day. Knowing your people is so key when you’re taking on the huge task that is building a company by yourself.
And finally, a more personal question! What’s your daily routine and the rules you’re living by at the moment?
From personal experience, 80% of my productivity and wellbeing are determined by how I start my day. There are 3 key steps I stick to in my routine:
- I leave my phone outside of my room - waking up and scrolling through emails, whatsapp or the news is one of the worst ways to start your day.
- I take cold showers - I often dread getting under the water, and then I make myself breathe and relax into it. Once I accept the cold, it gets a lot easier. This personal practice helps me build discipline and remember that most hard things aren’t as difficult as they seem.
- I meditate for 30 mins a day - Meditation helps to bring me back into the present moment, and step back from emotions or narratives that don’t serve me. I always feel more grounded, and make better decisions when I meditate.
This year I’m really leaning into balance and discipline as guiding threads. I’ve finally learned that it’s impossible to run your own business unless you learn how to manage your energy and take time for yourself.
Juliette Devillard is the Founder & CEO of Climate Connection.
