Cambridge Climate Challenge 2026

Explore climate and nature challenges, propose solutions, and win prizes with your team.

The Cambridge Climate Challenge empowers innovators to make a difference. It supports postgraduate students and postdoctoral researchers to take their first steps in climate entrepreneurship, or to progress early-stage ventures toward real-world impact.

Participants benefit from a free programme of networking, training workshops, mentoring, and socials between the launch at the end of January and the final at the beginning of May.

Prizes of up to £5,000 in cash are on offer for winning teams and runners-up. 

The Cambridge Climate Challenge is run by Cambridge Zero, in partnership with Carbon13, Cambridge Enterprise, the Maxwell Centre, Energy IRC, King’s Entrepreneurship Lab and CISL Canopy.

Carbon13 sponsors this year's competition. They build and back ventures addressing the climate emergency and Earth's critical life support systems. 

Who is the competition for?

We’re looking for small (2–4 people), interdisciplinary teams comprised of:

• Master’s students
• PhD students
• Students enrolled in the University of Cambridge Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program
• Postdoctoral researchers

At least 50% of your team must be current students or postdoctoral researchers of the University of Cambridge. Other team members are welcome! They can be individuals not affiliated with the University of Cambridge and may live outside the UK.

Full eligibility details will be published in the terms and conditions (pdf).

Why take part? 

• Skill development: Experience what it’s like to develop a concept from idea to pitch. Enhance your entrepreneurial, technical, and collaborative skills through workshops and feedback sessions.

• Visibility and networking: Meet, network, and socialise with other people interested in climate innovation. Showcase your solution to potential investors, partners, and stakeholders in the Cambridge climate innovation ecosystem.

• Funding opportunities: Compete for seed funding and resources to accelerate the development and deployment of your solution.

You don’t need to be a scientist, engineer, or seasoned entrepreneur, nor have a team ready before the launch! This competition is designed to connect a wide range of people and to spark ideas at the early stages of innovation. 

How does the competition work?

Teams propose innovative solutions to today’s challenges. Submissions can explore economic, societal, and behavioural shifts, alongside scientific and engineering breakthroughs that reduce energy consumption, cut greenhouse gas emissions, and drive nature-based mitigation and adaptation strategies.

The Climate Challenge offers two competition tracks, designed to support ventures at different stages of development:

• Track 1: new concepts, early hypotheses, or problem–solution ideas not yet tested
• Track 2: early-stage ventures such as projects with early prototypes, pilots, or research results which show promise for implementation

The competition has three stages:

• Introductory stage, with events to help participants form teams and ideas before entering for the next stage using the entry form.
• Semi-final stage, with workshops to help teams develop their entrepreneurial skills and climate solution before a semi-final submission to a judging panel
• Final stage, where finalists are paired with a mentor and invited to workshops to strengthen storytelling and pitching skills before pitching to a panel of judges

Workshops and training sessions will be run throughout the competition period, and are open to everyone, regardless of whether you want to take part in the competition or not. The schedule will be published in the Key Dates section below.

Prizes

The winning Track 1 team will receive a cash prize of £1,500, while runners-up will be awarded £500.

The winning Track 2 team will receive a cash prize of £5,000, plus access to a Carbon13 venture programme. Track 2 runners-up earn a £2,000 cash prize.

Standout finalists may also receive special awards in recognition of their innovation and impact.

All winners and runners-up will be offered mentor connections with climate-focused entrepreneurs, researchers, investment managers, and policy experts to help develop and shape their innovations.

Winners from both tracks will also be invited to speak at the Cambridge Zero Annual Research Symposium later in the year.

Full details of the competition are available in the full brief (.pdf). 

Key dates

How to get started

Interested in taking part? join the competition mailing list below.

More details of the 2026 Climate Challenge will be shared through the mailing list and on this page.