70 Sustainable Startup Ideas
Environmental Problem Solving through Entrepreneurship
If you are considering starting a business, consider either solving sustainability issues with the business or adding sustainable concepts to the new business. Combining the power of entrepreneurship with the complexity of environmental issues is bound to have great results for us all. In fact, sustainable startups can take on issues in:
- Climate change
- Air pollution
- Energy consumption
- Plastic-related waste/pollution
- Energy efficiency
- Waste related to consumer materials
- Locally sourced foods or farm-to-table
- Renewable/alternative energy
- Water pollution
- Help others to reduce pollution
- Green building design
- Sustainable aquaculture
- Wildlife conservation
Are you still looking for a sustainable business idea or interested in refining your business idea? Below are some sustainable business ideas as a starting point. The ideas are listed in general categories of environmental issues they might address. Start here and keep innovating — ideas are endless, particularly when technology advances such as apps, software, and artificial intelligence (AI) are incorporated to scale the ideas.
Air pollution reduced and/or climate change slowed
1. Bike and scooters as alternative to auto transportation — sell, rent, repair, refurbish
2. Car sharing program
3. Efficient stoves for cooking in developing countries
4. Electric car dealership
5. Carbon offsetting (trading incentives may include planting trees, distributing green products, updating inefficient manufacturing facilities, or capturing methane)
Reducing waste (including plastic) related to consumer materials
6. Composting business
7. Sustainable kids toys
8. Used book store
9. Consignment (clothing) store
10. “Upcycled” furniture/antique store
11. Refurbish/recycle old and unused technology for resale
12. Other secondhand retail store
13. Reusable water bottles
14. Shipping crate offices
15. Recycling inventions
16. Reusable takeaway food containers
17. Reusable grocery bags
Non-renewable/carbon-based energy use reduced
18. Geothermal installation
19. Solar panel installation
20. Solar hot water systems
21. Solar pool heaters
22. Production and sale of biofuel
23. Wind power installation
24. Geothermal technology development
25. Solar panel technology development
26. Biofuel development
27. Windpower technology development
Energy use reduced
28. Green app developer with a focus on energy use reduction
29. Sell energy efficient products such as lightbulbs
Reduce hazardous materials in consumer products
30. Sustainable spa or beauty salon service or products
31. Handmade all-natural organic products
32. Green florist
33. Green housekeeping services
34. Sustainable cleaning materials
35. Green products online store
36. Green pest control
Locally-sourced foods or farm-to-table
37. Sustainable food supplier to restaurants and organizations
38. Organic catering
39. Solutions for small space gardening
40. Raise and sell pollinators such as bees
41. Vermicomposting
42. Sustainable farmer
Increase recyclable content of products
43. Sustainable fashion design or handmade clothing with recycled fabric
44. Use of recycled glass in products (for example, glass blowing)
45. Start a post-consumer recycling business and used the materials collected to make other products (for example, paper, cardboard, aluminum)
Green building
46. Sustainable building/construction materials
47. Responsible landscaping materials or consulting
48. Green remodeling
49. Green architecture consultant for new buildings
Sustainable aquaculture
50. Local seafood processing and distribution
51. Drug-free fish treatments
52. Automatic feeders
53. Fish farm design and construction
54. App to track source of seafood
Improved drinking water
55. Purified drinking water systems for developing countries
56. Sell residential water systems such as reverse osmosis
Help others to be sustainable
57. Sustainable event planning
58. Eco-consulting
59. Energy efficiency or clean energy consulting
60. Business services (e.g., marketing and advertising) focusing on sustainable businesses
61. Energy auditing
62. Green app developer
63. Green financial planning
64. Sustainable business venture capitalist
Increase environmental awareness
65. Using ocean plastic or recyclables in art to increase awareness
66. Eco-travel planner
67. Education about environmental impact of daily activities and decisions
68. Green blogger
69. Sustainability podcaster
70. Environmental YouTube channel
Tools to get started
If you are fired up and want to start exploring business ownership NOW, check out these three books. Although the books are not specific to sustainable startups, they will help you to begin to form your idea into a business model.
The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Can Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses by Eric Ries — This book is used as a great guide to understand startups and the concepts are used throughout entrepreneurial ecosystems. The primary concept is that most startups fail (true), but the failures are preventable. It helps the reader to get started with mini-experimentation with their customers rather than spending a lot of time and money on business planning and building products and services that customers may not be want.
The Conquer Kit: A Creative Business Planner for Women Entrepreneurs by Natalie MacNeil — I recently finished this book, which I came across in a local bookstore. Although it does not delve into the specifics of starting a business, it is definitely inspirational and gives you tools to start organizing your thoughts about the business and how to make money implementing your idea.
Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers by Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur — This book describes different business models from “business model canvas” templates that help to get your ideas into a business model that will generate revenue and meet customer needs.
There are great free online resources for starting a business as well. Your first stop should be the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) website here.
Help to spread the word about sustainable startups
Did I miss a sustainable business idea? Do you have additional information to share? Please comment below.
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Heather McWhorter
