USA – Here’s one that popped into our inbox that will speak to innovators in Colorado.
The Colorado NextCycle initiative
As a fast-growing state with aggressive recycling goals, Colorado is actively investing in infrastructure to collect and sort recyclables. But recycling requires more than just getting materials into a bin or bale.
Colorado contains no shipping ports which means most recovered materials must be trucked large distances to end markets – not the most economical or sustainable option. And with increasing populations that expect access to curbside recycling, Colorado’s goal is to nurture local end markets.
That is where Colorado NextCycle comes in. The program is aimed at supporting the development of business ideas that create or improve recovered commodity and organic material end markets within Colorado – creating a local circular economy.
In fact, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has committed $3 million in end market funding in the past year alone – with additional rounds of funding planned.
You get the idea. Colorado is serious about developing local end markets. The Colorado NextCycle program mentors teams toward shovel-ready end market business ideas – ripe for private investment or CDPHE grant funding. Colorado NextCycle goes beyond recycling to supporting new design, renewing recycled materials, and reviving local economies.
The application period for the second season of Colorado NextCycle is now open. Letters of Intent are due by 4:00pm MST on November 20th. Be sure to download the jump kit that contains information about the program, instructions on how to apply, a list of important dates, and links to resources to begin developing your business ideas. Download the PDF jump kit on the Colorado NextCycle webpage at: https://www.colorado.gov/cdphe/nextcycle.
