ENGINEERING FOR CHANGE
WHAT 924 STARTUPS REVEAL ABOUT SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGY
An analysis of the more than 900 submissions to the UN STI Forum's Call for Innovations discovers trends in new technology and services for sustainable development.
Written by Rob Goodier
ANALYSIS OF AN UNUSUAL SET of data has suggested trends in technology for sustainable development is taking in low- and middle-income countries. The dataset is the 924 submissions to the 2026 Call for Innovations by the UN Multistakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals. The deluge of responses was nearly three times the amount received last year, the first year the call was opened to the public. Carolina Rojas and colleagues at Engineering for Change and ASME ISHOW reviewed the responses and drew out trends to take the pulse of the sector around the world.
The call was co-convened by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) and the Youth Science Policy Interface Platform of the Major Group for Children and Youth (MGCY), and Engineering for Change and ASME ISHOW partnered pro bono.
One of the notable characteristics of the data is their diversity. Submissions came from 98 countries, with 58 percent from Africa and 22 percent from Asia. Thirty-three percent of the startups and teams that submitted their solutions are led by women, and 51 percent are led by youth.
Photo: UN DESA/Predrag Vasić (used with permission)
Another feature is the stages of development of each solution. The technologies submitted are scattered evenly throughout the entire range of the nine-point Technology Readiness Level scale. Thirty-six percent of the solutions submitted are in the concept stage, or the earliest stages of development (1-3 on the scale), 32 percent are in the prototype stage (4-6 on the scale), and 32 percent are in the pilot or deployment stage (7-9 on the scale).
The distributions suggest a set of data that closely represents the technologies that young people in low- and middle-income countries are building to solve problems of sustainable development. These data may be about as representative as we could hope for.
The STI Forum published a Solutions Book that describes 60 standout technologies from the 924 submissions. It’s worth a look to see what people are building. It also includes the analysis by Rojas and colleagues that identifies five themes and six lessons learned from perusing the technologies submitted.
Five Themes
Taken together, the submissions reveal interesting trends. Generally, innovators tended to build close to the users, they integrate disciplines, and they design for continuous engagement rather than one-off deployment. Rojas and team identified these five themes.
First, many solutions incorporate AI to enable local services. Roughly 28 percent of submissions reference AI, but not the kind that requires high bandwidth. These are lightweight models for pest detection, local language tutoring, water and air quality sensing, and small business finance tools. The technology works close to the user and alongside existing services.
The Egypt-based Plstka is an example of an AI-powered service that gamifies waste collection and recycling. Users are rewarded for correctly sorting waste to increase the recovery of recyclables and improve waste collection.
Second, distributed clean energy is proposed as social infrastructure. About 15 percent of the solutions leverage solar or other off-grid energy. Solar mini grids, modular kits, and second-life batteries are rarely proposed as standalone products. These solutions bundle energy with other services to reduce upfront barriers for low-income users. Energy generators enable clinics, schools, irrigation, and community water systems.
Photo: UN DESA/Predrag Vasić (used with permission)
Third, many of the solutions are part of a circular economy, and hardware is made locally. Roughly 14 percent focus on circular economy or waste to value models. Plastic, biomass, used oil and e-waste become building materials, fuel, vehicles, and sanitation infrastructure. Local fabrication and vocational training go hand in hand with manufacturing.
The Nigeria-based startup Revnics exemplifies the second and third themes with its solar products made from e-waste. Revnics collects electronic waste, refurbishes batteries, and delivers the pieces needed to produce clean energy to power homes and small businesses in off-grid and underserved communities. To date, the startup has diverted more than 5,000 kg of e-waste from landfills, and has provided electricity to more than 500 homes and small businesses, according to their submission statement.
Fourth, communities are empowered to govern decentralized water and sanitation infrastructure. Another 14 percent of the solutions met water, hygiene, or sanitation needs using decentralized hardware with community-owned operations and maintenance. Solutions include solar pumps, remotely monitored filtration and low-cost shelters.
Fifth, women, youth, and Indigenous people are highly represented in leadership. Youth lead 473 of the teams that submitted solutions, women lead 218, and Indigenous innovators lead 81. These teams frequently emphasize co-design, training, and locally owned pathways to scale.
The Uganda-based Aqualama by ASEI exemplifies the fourth and fifth themes with their solar-powered water purification stations and delivery led by women to provide drinking water in informal settlements.
The Sixth Theme
In an interview, Rojas added a sixth theme she noticed.
Deployment considerations were a common thread, Rojas said. Some solutions add innovative financing and delivery models, even when the technologies they are selling may simply be off the shelf.
“They’re figuring out the ways to deploy these solutions,” Rojas said. “They’re innovating in the financing part, or the delivery part, and they are collaborating with stakeholders so that the technology gets in the hands of those who need it.”
Innovative funding models are increasingly important for innovation, Clara Brown, a Global Focal Point for the MGCY, said in a statement at the event.
“Youth also call for an evolution of funding systems to better support long-term research, innovation, and global public goods needed to achieve the SDGs,” Brown said.
Photo: UN DESA/Predrag Vasić (used with permission)
Six Lessons Learned
The analysis draws six lessons from the 60 innovations selected for deeper review. These solutions span hardware, software, and services, contributing to 12 Sustainable Development Goals with a strong focus on Goals 6, 7, 9, 11, and 17.
The first lesson is the importance of circularity. Many innovations turn waste into value, including e-waste, plastics, agricultural residues and industrial by products. These approaches reduce pollution and create new economic opportunities.
The second lesson is in using digital technologies as enablers. Artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, data platforms, and geospatial tools deliver real time insights and more efficient services across water, energy, mobility, and governance.
The third lesson is in inclusive and community centered design. Many innovations respond directly to underserved communities, women entrepreneurs, informal workers, and smallholder farmers, expanding access while strengthening local ownership.
The fourth lesson is in bridging systemic gaps. Beyond technology, these solutions address fragmented systems, weak coordination, financing constraints, limited data access, and low institutional capacity.
The fifth lesson is a focus on essential systems. Water, energy, cities, and core infrastructure appear prominently, reflecting urgent needs for access, resilience, and environmental sustainability.
The sixth lesson is to build for partnership and scale. Many innovations are designed in collaboration with communities, public institutions, local operators, and other partners, which increases their potential for adoption and growth.
A Global Cross-Section
This analysis is gleaned from data that could be viewed as a cross-section of the global landscape of innovation for sustainable development. It’s a rare and valuable resource, showing what scalable solutions in low-resource settings look like in practice.
This article is adapted from articles published at engineeringforchange.org. Read the original articles here: Ten Standout Sustainable Technologies at the UN STI Forum, and What 924 Startups Reveal About Tech for Sustainable Development.
Rob Goodier is news editor at Engineering for Change, a community working to prepare the international technical workforce to improve life for people and the planet. ASME is a founding partner of E4C.
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