Kickstarting for Good

Our programme to help launch and grow new nonprofits, impact initiatives, and social startups.

I want to apply!

Are you ready to rock the food world as a social-impact entrepreneur? Do you have a high-potential idea for a new initiative or organisation? Can your project make a difference in the food system? We are looking for the best founders to execute the ideas that will have the biggest positive impact on the world’s food ecosystem. 

What is it?

Kickstarting for Good is the world’s first incubator and accelerator programme aimed specifically at nonprofit organisations, impact initiatives, and social startups working on transforming the food system. It is the new not-for-profit programme of the ProVeg Incubator, which is part of the food awareness organisation ProVeg International.

The programme culminates in a Demo Day
For social startups, nonprofits and impact initiatives

Who is it for?

We’re looking for the best founders to execute the ideas that will have the biggest positive impact on the world’s food ecosystem. Don’t have an idea of your own? Not a problem – we’ve identified a whole series of potential initiatives that you could take on. Find out what they are below.

Why take part?

You’ll get to take part in an 8-week expert-led programme with a tailor-made curriculum, expert mentoring, and exclusive networking opportunities, culminating in a funding-focused Demo Day. You’ll get to team up with like-minded co-founders, spend two intensive weeks in Berlin, and receive a grant of up to 5,000 euros  to cover travel and accommodation costs.

Build your network at exclusive events
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About Us

Kickstarting for Good is the world’s first programme focusing on high-impact nonprofits, impact initiatives, and social startups in the food and animal advocacy sector.

Our specialisation, your benefits:

  • Focus on impact: Kickstarting for Good’s programme is tailored to meet the objectives and needs of impact-focused social entrepreneurs in the alternative protein and animal advocacy space.
  • Integrated approach: We take an integrated, hands-on approach that combines incubation and acceleration together with learning and networking.
  • Network: We are part of an international food awareness organisation with a proven track record of spin-off interventions and organisations, along with a global network.
  • Ecosystem: The programme is part of ProVeg’s first-of-its-kind startup incubator with a unique position and ecosystem of founders, mentors, and industry professionals

The Programme

Our two-month programme offers an intensive curriculum with exclusive networking opportunities. The programme includes two intensive periods in Berlin in October and December; it culminates in a funding-focused Demo Day. Selected participants each receive a grant of up to 5,000 euros to cover travel costs and the time needed for the programme.

Our team of founders, funders, mentors, and researchers will help you identify the best approaches and right co-founder(s). Evaluate and validate your idea, set up a budget, dive into cost-effectiveness, develop a theory of change, and learn the fundraising ropes.

We’ll match you up with experienced mentors and advisors from our international network and our team at ProVeg International. We are experts in non-profit management and dedicated to supporting you on your entrepreneurial journey.

 

Programme Overview

Before the programme starts, we will share a list of literature, websites, etc. in order for you to prepare yourself.

The programme kicks off with an intensive on-site session in Berlin from October 20–24. If you want to extend your stay in Berlin, you are invited to join the Alumni & Partner Meetup of ProVeg Incubator (24 October) and/or the New Food Conference in Berlin (25/26 October).

By the end of the first week, you will have carefully defined the project that you want to launch and established which co-founder(s) can complement your team.

The virtual part of our programme runs from November through early December. Each week, you will be expected to attend two or three sessions with our team, mentors, and/or other participants (usually on Tuesday and Wednesday), as well as complete assignments, which will take at least 20 hours a week per participant.

Join us for another intensive on-site session in Berlin, culminating in our Demo Day where you present your social-impact project to potential funders and guests.

How It Works

For our first cohort, starting in October 2023, you can apply now. The closing date for applications is 31 August. If you want to submit and work on your own idea, please apply as soon as possible to ensure we can get back to you in due time. If you want to implement an existing idea we propose, please see our list below.

If your application passes the first round of evaluation, we’ll let you know by the end of August. At that point, we’ll also send you trial tasks to complete, along with a link to a cognitive test. These tasks and the test must be completed within the first week of September.

From the second week of September, we’ll invite successfully short-listed applicants for interviews with our team. These may be followed by another round of interviews, where you will also get to talk to advisors and potential mentors.

By 22 September, we will let you know if you have been selected as a candidate for the programme. Selected candidates are eligible for a grant of up to 5,000 euros in order to participate in the programme.

Application Form

Ideas To Work On

Interested in working with us and other participants on existing ideas? We collect ideas that can potentially be highly impactful. Here are our current favourites: 

A professional association of plant-based chefs who work collaboratively to showcase and promote more plant-based cuisine around the globe. WSPBC will provide tailored services to member-chefs and inform the media, industry, and public about their work to elevate the profiles of both members and plant-based eating in general.

A global platform to identify impactful thesis topics for the plant-based and farmed animal movements and provide support to graduate students. Vegan Thesis will support thesis writers with free coaching, connections to supportive supervisors, and advice on writing and potentially publishing their thesis.

A new organisation focused on raising money for vegan advocacy organisations, initiatives, and projects from previously uninterested funders. “Meta-Fundraising” will seek to substantially increase counterfactual funding for vegan charities by identifying potential donors and grantmakers and creating personalised strategies to encourage them to expand their philanthropic scope.

A fellowship program to identify, support, and promote promising plant-based nutrition influencers via social and traditional media. “Nutritionists Fellowship” will work largely behind the scenes to amplify the voices of plant-based nutrition influencers, with an emphasis on reaching large and neglected demographics around the world.

An organisation or program that supports vegan and plant-based influencers to increase the reach and impact of their work globally. The accelerator for influencers will provide training, tools, and funding to help maximise their potential to encourage interest and trial of plant-based eating among their followers.

A global community of animal advocates providing marketing, communications, and design expertise to accelerate plant-based initiatives. The agency will provide experienced public relations, communications, and marketing support  to vegan organisations and projects to help them be as effective as possible.

A programme or organisation to encourage plant-based businesses to contribute a percent of sales to marketing and public relations for plant-based eating. The Vegan Checkoff Program will allow plant-based companies to pool resources and more effectively compete with Big Ag in the public sphere through strategic advertising and public relations efforts.

A reboot of the existing Early Action Network that connects and supports organisations, groups or individuals working on veg-friendly eating and food awareness education in schools.

Team & Mentors

Our team and our mentors will support you throughout your entrepreneurial journey. We'll give you access to a unique network of leaders and founders, non-profit and for-profit experts, scientific pioneers, bestselling authors and seasoned advisers from diverse backgrounds.

Sebastian Joy

Founder & President - ProVeg International

Sebastian Joy is the Founding President of ProVeg International, a food awareness organization working to transform the global food system by replacing conventional animal products with plant-based and cultivated alternatives. He also helped kickstart 50by40.org, an international alliance of over 80 NGOs working to reduce the global consumption of animals by 50% by 2040, where he served as the Executive Chair. In addition, he is Vice President of the European Vegetarian Union, a partner of V-label Ltd., a mentor at Charity Entrepreneurship, and was a lecturer in Nonprofit Management at the Berlin School of Economics and Law for several years.

Albrecht Wolfmeyer

Director at ProVeg Incubator

Albrecht Wolfmeyer is Director at ProVeg Incubator. He joined ProVeg International in 2018 to build and launch ProVeg Incubator, the world’s first startup program dedicated to supporting impact-driven startups developing animal-free food solutions. Prior to joining ProVeg, Albrecht took charge of marketing and communications at the World Association of German Schools Abroad (WDA), a global non-profit organization. He led research projects in collaboration with the Bertelsmann Foundation and the University of St. Gallen. As a project and marketing manager at KPMG, Albrecht focussed on key topics like high-growth markets. As co-founder of a social startup, he gathered first-hand experience as an entrepreneur. Albrecht is a mentor, juror and speaker at numerous international food-tech, investment and startup programs, competitions and events. Albrecht studied in Berlin, Toronto, Paris and Fribourg. He holds degrees in non-profit and association management from the University of Fribourg and in social sciences from the Humboldt University of Berlin. Albrecht speaks German, English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.

Prakrit Sachdeva

Impact Program Manager at ProVeg Incubator

Prakrit Sachdeva is Impact Program Manager (Kickstarting For Good) at ProVeg Incubator. He is an entrepreneurship, ecosystem management and hospitality expert. Prior to joining ProVeg, he was with SAP.iO and SAP and co-founded HAKS – Hospitality And Kitchen Solutions in his hometown Delhi, India. Prakrit is passionate about the world of innovation and entrepreneurship, and how innovation can be used to do good for our society and the planet.

Che Green

Research & Impact Manager at ProVeg Incubator

Che Green is a change-maker focused on ethics, sustainability, and public health. Through his work with Moonshot Collaborative (co-founder), Cultivate Insights (principal), and Faunalytics (founder), he helps advocates and sustainable businesses achieve their potential and bring about much-needed change. Che specializes in product testing, marketing, operations, research, and business development. Che is a former analyst, investment banker, and research manager with experience in developing and implementing a range of research projects.

Esther Salomon

Animal Think Tank - Mentor

Esther Salomon is Director and Strategy Lead at Animal Think Tank, where she works to promote nonviolence, mass direct action, civil resistance and grassroots activism. Esther delved into full-time Animal Justice work early in life. She dedicates her time towards understanding and building people-powered organisations capable of creating transformative change. She helped to kick-start Animal Rebellion as a full-time member in 2019 and supported it through its first wave of resistance.

Hanna Yael Gabay

Beyond Impact / Animal Save Movement - Mentor

Hanna Yael Gabay is a partner at Beyond Impact VC. She was Director of Global Operations at Zero Egg, Global Campaign Director at Animal Save Movement and Co-Director at Plant Based Treaty, among other positions in for-profit and not-for-profit organisations. Hanna Yael has vast experience in food-tech, running global campaigns, and serving several not-for-profits boards.

Linda Obregon

Compromiso Verde - Mentor

Linda Obregon is Co-Founder & Director of Corporate Relations at Compromiso Verde. In 2018, she was awarded Peruvian Top Personality as a recognition of the results generated by Foodture, a plant-based food startup she founded, backed by three innovation programs in Chile and in partnership with Unilever. Following that, she was invited to lead the biggest Animal Rights organization in Latin America, Mercy for Animals, headquartered in Mexico. Lately, Linda boosted the Peruvian (home country) startup ecosystem by developing programs to strengthen incubators, accelerators, and angel investor networks, with a focus on sustainability and climate change. Linda holds an entrepreneurship diploma from MIT, and a bachelor’s in Industrial Engineering (Top 5%). Recurrent facilitator of Effective Altruism Virtual Programs; jury, mentor, and speaker for multiple startup programs.

Ria Rehberg

Veganuary - Mentor

Ria Rehberg is the CEO of Veganuary, a UK based charity that encourages people worldwide to try going vegan in January and beyond. Since 2014, Veganuary has inspired and supported more than one million people in 192 countries to try a vegan diet. Additionally, Veganuary works with hundreds of businesses to drive up vegan food provision in shops and restaurants, and have made veganism more visible and accessible through their work with national and international media. Before joining Veganuary, Ria was Country Manager Germany at Million Dollar Vegan and Co-Executive Director at Animal Equality Germany.
Read Bio

Want to be a mentor?

We are always looking for like-minded, mission-aligned mentors who are knowledgeable about the not-for-profit and plant-based/alternative-protein space. Perhaps you’re a founder who built your own charity or company from scratch or maybe you’re an expert in business models, marketing, impact evaluation, or fundraising? You can share your valuable expertise with our founders via workshops, talks, or Q&As!

If you’d like to get involved, please write to us and tell us how you can contribute.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

ProVeg Incubator is for food tech startups; Kickstarting for Good is for nonprofits, impact initiatives and social startups.

  1. Kickstarting for Good has a laser-sharp focus on the animal advocacy movement and the mission of reducing the consumption of animal products.
  2. We do not only work with full-fledged not-for-profit organizations but also programmes, initiatives, and social startups. At the same time, we are also open to working with and developing impactful revenue-generating ideas and models (e.g. for associations).
  3. Our programme is there to support at the ideation stage but also at the growth or repositioning stage for existing organizations.
  1. Intensive in-person sessions on site in Berlin (20–24 October, 8–12 December)
  2. Around 20 hours per week during the virtual programme phase from late October to early December

Yes, twice. It’s required to be present during the intensive weeks in Berlin, which would be at the beginning (20–24 October) and the end (8–12 December) of the programme.

Yes. Please apply jointly and list your co-founders and team members in the application form.

We think: yes! The ecosystem of today cannot solve all the pressing problems at hand. We need more specialized nonprofits, impact initiatives and social startups and also meta organizations that tackle those problems. We will be very thoughtful and intentional in our approach, however, and will only facilitate the launch of new organizations when there are compelling reasons to do so. Cost-effectiveness, problem-solution fit, theory of change and sustainability are crucial. Furthermore, our approach is very flexible: Apart from new organizations, we also support and work on initiatives or programmes that could be integrated in existing organizations.

We are constantly collecting and validating new ideas. For this, we connect with the community and collect their feedback. Curating, reflecting and developing that idea list is a constant process. Depending on the assessment and feedback we receive, we will promote and bring forward new ideas. The research and validation of ideas is a central part of the programme.

Absolutely not! You can join even without an idea, and can either choose one of the ideas provided by us, or can potentially join someone else already working on their own idea.

Yes. The program is shaped in a way that it is adaptable to already established organizations and initiatives in their early stage or at a stage of repositioning and pivoting.

Seed funding is crucial but we cannot guarantee that you will receive it. Having said that, we will connect you with potential funders and help you present your work in the most compelling way. We will also work with you on alternative business models as we see that the dependance on philanthropy alone can be a limiting factor for the ecosystem and the success of new organizations and initiatives.

Application Form

Our Team

Kickstarting for Good

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Location

Genthiner Straße 48
Berlin, Germany

Get in touch

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