You could mistakenly believe, judging by all the press about US cleantech, renewable energy, and green business ventures, that the hub for all things green and innovative is the US. Far from it. If Enviu, from which I learned and wrote about Happy Shrimp has their way, Europe will step forward strongly as a leader in fostering, developing, and supporting innovative sustainable ventures.

Enviu, together with 8 other innovation labs from Spain, Denmark, Poland, France, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands is soon to be launching the NEXT Europe Alliance. The launch is set for the upcoming iFest, the business inspiration fest in Spain where there will be, “ideas and energy to solve the issues of the near future.”

Europe’s top sustainable innovation labs? An overview

All of the labs could be the subject of an article each, but aside from the universal thread of a focus on innovation, each one has a different place at the table:

Enviu is a business incubator and sustainability educator, working together with area government and firms, and aims to have a global scope. Innovation Lab is a company which monitors current and upcoming trends for a range of major companies. Idélabratoriet focuses on educating professionals how to effectively ideate, and manage what they come up with effectively. La Fabrique du Futur sums it elegantly when they say,

The future is everyone’s affair and does not just concern experts. We therefore constitute an “in vivo” and “in vitro” laboratory for the detection of emerging practises initiated by avant-garde people, among whom cultural creatives are in the forefront.

Switzerland’s Lift Lab combines innovation consulting, workshop centered conferences, and numerous publications. Again besting us in their command of English, they say, in regards to their blogs, “Follow this reader-enhanced, transparent and interactive exercise, and feel free to participate and add information and opinions!” Pantopicon and Trendbüro likewise serve to act as an extra brain, a people & resource connector, and an innovation accelerator for businesses.

Each of these lab’s sites, and the resources they lead to will likely serve as an inspiration to you. Dig in! See if you can find who said,

Our strength rests on a foundation of comprehensive knowledge, a flair for dissemination and a capacity for innovation. Three building blocks never occurring in isolation.

Readers: Where else do you see innovation sprouting out there, in terms of sustainable and social ventures?

Further resources:

Fuel For Your Entrepreneurial Brain – Ecopreneurist

Who’s the Greenest of them all? Hint: Look to the Developing World! – Ecopreneurist

Recession Proof Your Green Business : Ecopreneurist

Sustainable Seafood Done Right: Happy Shrimp – Triple Pundit

Image source: enviuilab.blogspot.com