Ecocrumb

Climate change is the biggest global health threat and opportunity of the 21st century. Our health and well-being, as individuals, families, communities, and as a species, are at risk due to an increasingly unstable climate.

The healthcare industry alone is responsible for approximately 8.5% of carbon emissions in the United States, in addition to generating millions of tons of waste every year. Ironically, hospitals, which are supposed to be places of healing, often use products and materials that can be harmful.

Not only is healthcare a major contributor to climate change, but it is also at the forefront of the climate crisis. It will bear significant costs and impacts resulting from the negative effects on public health, including respiratory and heart diseases, mental health problems, injuries, and even deaths. Vulnerable groups, like children, older adults, people with chronic illnesses, and low-income and other marginalized communities, will be disproportionately affected.

To address these urgent issues, healthcare organizations must prioritize sustainability to mitigate their environmental impact and improve public health. However, transitioning to a greener healthcare system requires a centralized and data-driven approach to sustainability management. Individual hospitals need to track a wide range of data sources, stakeholder priorities, processes, and initiatives, and health systems need to track this at scale.

Healthcare sustainability teams face challenges due to their small size, limited resources, and difficulties engaging front-line practitioners. Volunteer green teams at hospitals feel siloed and unsupported without centralized resources and assistance. This hinders their execution of sustainability strategy and slows down progress towards climate goals and impact reduction.

Currently, sustainability teams use inefficient technologies like spreadsheets, emails, and chat conversations to manage their programs and engage with stakeholders. This lack of streamlined software causes inefficiencies, which can lead to errors, risks, and missed opportunities. Our platform aims to solve this problem.

We are developing a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform specifically designed for healthcare sustainability teams. Our platform aims to help organizations centrally track all their sustainability-related content, engage stakeholders, and reduce environmental impacts. Our software has three modules:

1) Centralized content and data management for transparency. Our platform allows users to collect and manage various sustainability-related content, including:

- Metrics such as energy consumption, waste generation, carbon emissions, water usage, chemicals, and sustainable procurement.
- Sustainability goals and targets.
- Programs and initiatives across facilities and the entire system.
- Risks, materiality assessments, and strategy.
- Documentation and reporting for regulatory and compliance requirements, and certifications.

2) Analytics and insights to reduce impacts. The platform will provide analytics and reporting capabilities to:

- Analyze sustainability data, identify trends, and derive insights.
- Present visualizations, charts, and reports to help stakeholders understand their environmental impact, identify areas for improvement, and make data-driven decisions.

3) Stakeholder engagement and collaboration to create a culture of sustainability. The platform will facilitate communication and engagement among stakeholders, including employees, practitioners, suppliers, and eventually patients and the public. It will offer:

- Collaborative features like document sharing, version control, real-time editing, and commenting, allowing stakeholders to work together on sustainability projects, initiatives, and goals. This fosters a sense of shared ownership and enables collective problem-solving.
- Tools for sharing information, updates, and announcements related to sustainability initiatives, enabling two-way communication to gather feedback, ideas, and suggestions.
- Educational resources, training materials, and e-learning modules to educate stakeholders (e.g., Green Teams in hospitals) about sustainability practices, principles, and initiatives. The platform can offer courses, quizzes, and certification programs to promote knowledge sharing and skill development.
- Discussion forums, interest groups, and social networking capabilities to foster community building, share best practices, and encourage peer-to-peer learning.

We have prioritized the development of the centralized content management system as we believe that sustainability data and information are foundational to enabling other capabilities such as analytics, insights, and engagement.

We have also validated this product roadmap and prioritization through comprehensive discovery interviews with hundreds of sustainability teams.

Sustainability teams in healthcare systems are facing burnout due to the overwhelming workload and limited resources. They are burdened with reporting requirements, manual tasks, and the constant changes in regulations. Our goal is to alleviate this strain and empower these teams to make a meaningful impact.

Our solution is a trusted digital platform designed specifically for healthcare sustainability teams. By leveraging automation, workflows, and data-driven insights, we aim to significantly reduce the workload and provide valuable support. The platform will enable hospital systems to prioritize their resources effectively, focusing on initiatives that have the maximum impact on all stakeholders.

Through our platform, sustainability teams can streamline their processes, track progress, and identify opportunities for improvement. By freeing up their time and resources, they can actively implement initiatives to reduce environmental impacts, improve healthcare accessibility, and serve their communities better.

Vulnerable populations, including marginalized communities, low-income groups, indigenous peoples, and those lacking access to resources or living in environmentally compromised areas, are often disproportionately affected by unsustainable behavior and practices.

Ultimately, by greening healthcare, we believe it holds the promise of planetary healing that extends far beyond the healthcare system.

The founders are experienced sustainability practitioners. Amy has worked on sustainability projects and educational campaigns with businesses, public institutions, and cities. Some of her notable accomplishments include designing an improved bus stop experience for the local public transportation system, creating educational displays on geothermal and co-generation energy systems, and leading a city-wide litter cleanup event in Minneapolis. She also served as the chair of her city's environmental commission and was a former board member of the Alliance for Sustainability, where she played a key role in launching the Resilient Cities and Communities Coalition.

Gautam, on the other hand, brings extensive experience as a technologist and executive. He has provided guidance to boards and C-suite officers on risk and technology-related matters. He has firsthand experience in assisting large organizations with enterprise transformations, including sustainability, and integrating it into their business operating system. Both met while doing a graduate degree in sustainable design.

In addition to our practical experience, we have conducted interviews with hundreds of sustainability teams to gain insights into their priorities, challenges, and objectives. We have a deep understanding of their fears and aspirations. Working closely with our beta customers and design partners, we have mapped out stakeholder groups and developed strategies. Through our research, we have identified common problems faced by sustainability teams and have learned how software can alleviate their pain through meticulous experimentation.

Our advisors include incredible women who are leaders in the field of corporate sustainability. They are also pioneering researchers in biomimicry and psychology, giving us a unique perspective on the intersection between sustainability and human psychology. Recently, we added an advisor who perfectly embodies our customer and user persona. He previously served as the sustainability leader for the Ford Medical Health system. He is working closely with us to design software that is purpose-built for healthcare and empathetic to its needs.

Additionally, we are building partnerships with organizations like Health Care without Harm and Practice Greenhealth. These alliances will help us quickly and effectively reach thousands of hospitals through their network, making a significant impact at scale.

1. Our radical idea is to leverage generative AI and natural language processing to gradually reduce and eventually eliminate the need for a user interface (UI). Through our interviews with customers, we have discovered that the main obstacle to engagement from stakeholders both within and outside of a health system is the resistance to adopting a new software system. We firmly believe that in order for sustainability to truly become ingrained in an organization, we must meet stakeholders where they are already working. Imagine a scenario where a sustainability officer can simply text or message a virtual sustainability assistant and ask it to perform tasks such as, "Please summarize our waste goals, progress, and metrics for an executive discussion." Or a healthcare practitioner inquiring, "Should [specific item] be disposed of in the blue or white pharmaceutical waste container?" Or even a concerned community member asking, "How much scope 1 emissions did my hospital reduce compared to last year?" All of this information would be readily available at their fingertips, enabling them to make more informed decisions that reduce impacts.

2. Ecocrumb is specifically built to meet the sustainability needs of the healthcare industry. We offer ready-to-use templates that simplify data and metrics tracking. These templates are based on best practices recommended by leading institutions such as Practice Greenhealth, AASHE, GRI, SASB, and more. Generic software platforms and tools like spreadsheets and document management systems are not scalable and require expensive customization. They also result in a significant amount of manual work. In our interviews with customers, we have heard how existing options often fail to meet the specific requirements of the healthcare sector. For instance, accurately tracking regulated waste streams or energy usage across different facilities within a healthcare system involves various nuances. Our focus is on incorporating these requirements to provide a relatively turnkey solution for healthcare systems.

3. Healthcare systems have different needs depending on their size, maturity (in terms of sustainability), and goals. Our modular design offers a flexible approach, allowing our customers to choose the specific modules that will help them achieve their objectives. For instance, one of our beta customers operates a single hospital and is currently in the early stages of implementing a sustainability program. Their focus is on data collection and defining metrics. In the past, many software solutions in this field were unaffordable for them due to their high cost and excessive features that were not necessary at this stage. We understand their situation and provide the option for customers to start small and gradually grow. Our software can grow alongside their system as they expand their strategy and address more challenging sustainability issues.

By addressing sustainability within healthcare operations and fostering a holistic approach to resource management, the software platform can support the overarching goals of SDG 3 by promoting good health and well-being for individuals and communities. Integrating sustainability practices into healthcare operations not only benefits the environment but also contributes to better health outcomes and a more resilient healthcare system. Our platform can contribute to UN SDG 3 for Good Health and Well-Being in several ways:

1. Efficient Resource Management: Our platform can assist healthcare facilities in managing resources more efficiently, reducing waste, optimizing energy usage, and ensuring responsible procurement practices. This indirectly contributes to a healthier environment and supports better health outcomes.

2. Data-Driven Decision Making: Our platform provides data analytics and insights to help healthcare institutions make informed decisions regarding resource allocation, patient care strategies, and initiatives, while also considering the potential impacts. This data-driven approach can lead to improved health outcomes and more efficient healthcare delivery.

3. Reducing Environmental Impact: Our software can facilitate hospitals in adopting eco-friendly practices, reducing their environmental footprint. This indirectly contributes to better health by mitigating the impact of environmental factors on public health, such as air and water quality improvements.

4. Supporting Preventive Healthcare: The platform can assist in promoting preventive healthcare measures by supporting initiatives aimed at educating patients and healthcare providers about sustainable practices that positively impact health. Encouraging healthy behaviors and preventive measures can contribute to better overall health and well-being.

5. Community Engagement and Collaboration: Facilitating collaboration between healthcare providers, community organizations, and local authorities can promote health awareness campaigns, wellness programs, and community initiatives that foster better health and well-being.

Data science: The platform will integrate with various data sources distributed across the health system to create a unified source of sustainability data. Examples include information on energy consumption, waste generation, carbon emissions, water usage, supplier data, etc. Our goal is to extract insights from this data to identify efficiencies and opportunities for cost reduction and environmental impact reduction. For instance, we can plot energy usage across different facilities, allowing sustainability and facility teams to identify unusual energy consumption patterns. Based on these insights, they can recommend equipment upgrades to reduce energy usage and lower costs.

Machine Learning: We will leverage machine learning algorithms to predict the environmental impacts and resource usage of healthcare systems. By analyzing historical data and patterns, our platform will provide valuable insights into how current practices may impact the future. This will enable healthcare organizations to make informed decisions and take proactive measures to reduce their environmental footprint.

Generative AI and Natural Language Processing: By utilizing publicly available LLMs, our initial goal is to offer stakeholders in health systems convenient and transparent access to sustainability content. This is crucial for enhancing engagement and overcoming communication barriers that hinder the adoption of sustainability technologies. Ultimately, our aim is to construct a domain-specific LLM using the data we collect from our product's usage. This will enable us to create an intelligent copilot specifically designed for healthcare sustainability.

We strive to utilize published guidelines and principles to promote ethical development and usage of AI, with a focus on safety, fairness, and transparency. For instance, we are committed to following guidelines published by organizations such as the Alan Turing Institute and the Department of Defense. Additionally, we are particularly attentive to the impact of algorithmic bias and closely monitor guidelines published by leading ethicists in this field, including Timnit Gebru and the Distributed Artificial Intelligence Research Institute (DAIR).

Currently, we are in the initial stages of developing our technology and rely on public domain algorithms and LLMs (Language Models) that have robust programs to assess, manage, and mitigate AI-related risks.

As our solution progresses, we anticipate seeking mentors and advisors who specialize in this field to assist us in implementing transparency and processes to proactively address AI-related risks.

Despite our efforts, the field of AI ethics and safety is continuously evolving, and challenges persist. Like many other organizations working on AI, we acknowledge the complexity of these issues and continue to refine our approach to ensure responsible AI development and usage.

Our 5-year vision is to assist approximately 300,000 hospitals worldwide in providing environmentally and socially sustainable healthcare. We aim to achieve this by:

1. Offering a sustainability management platform that enables hospitals to understand and monitor their impacts.
2. Establishing a collaborative platform where sustainability teams can work with stakeholders to manage impacts.
3. Utilizing technologies like AI to predict potential impacts and recommend remediation actions before they occur.
4. Expanding our reach to more hospitals through positive word-of-mouth and by cultivating institutional partnerships, including state/federal governments, non-profits, and international organizations dedicated to the mission of making healthcare environmentally positive (e.g., Health Care Without Harm, Practice Greenhealth, etc.).

Our team consists of 5 full-time engineers, designers, and sustainability practitioners, including the two founders. Additionally, we have 4 advisors who are experienced healthcare sustainability leaders, startup operators, technologists, and organizational psychologists. Occasionally, we also engage consultants to provide technical subject matter expertise or industry knowledge.

We founded this company in October'21 and launched our MVP in May'22. Since then, we have been actively prototyping and testing various hypotheses with our pilot customer and multiple design partners. Our approach to launching features is highly disciplined, involving gathering feedback quickly and making adjustments based on customer input. When customers are not engaged, we delve deeper to understand the reasons behind it.

Through this process of discovery and iteration, we identified a significant need in the healthcare industry in September'23. Within weeks, we secured a beta customer and established partnerships with large health systems to collaborate on design.

We are a woman and minority-led startup with equal equity between the founders. Our core values of social justice, service, and integrity have guided us throughout our professional lives.

We have experience leading diverse teams and collaborating with professionals from various countries and cultures. At Ecocrumb, we are committed to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion by hiring and supporting employees from different backgrounds, as well as serving customers from diverse communities. Consistent with these values, our current team of five includes four people of color representing diverse ethnicities and cultures (Mexican, Indian, and American). We plan to continue offering employee equity options to all eligible team members.

We operate as a socially and environmentally conscious business. This includes working with minority and mission-driven service providers, like Odetta, which provides remote work opportunities for women in developing economies. Our founders prioritize giving back to their local communities; for instance, Amy leads her city's environmental commission.

Our equity goal is to offer our services at a reduced rate to mission-driven small businesses that work with healthcare organizations. Early on, we partnered with Chowgirls Catering, a women-owned sustainable catering company. We think that supporting these small businesses is crucial to creating a more sustainable and equitable economy with huge positive impacts on our local communities.

As an early-stage startup, we prioritize flexibility as a key factor. Our operational strategy revolves around continuously validating assumptions, iterating based on feedback, and remaining adaptable to changes in the market and customer needs.

Our team consists of skilled individuals who complement each other in building the product. Amy oversees overall product design, while Gautam is responsible for engineering and fundraising. Both founders share the responsibility for sales. Additionally, we have two experienced engineers dedicated to the backend and frontend of the product. Our third team member is an experienced user interface designer who contributes to the day-to-day design of screens and user experience.

To amplify our impact, we plan to reach a large number of healthcare organizations through the following approaches:

1. Network: Amy and Gautam both have extensive networks that help us arrange meetings with potential users. Amy, a former sustainability consultant and member of the ISSP (International Society for Sustainability Professionals), is connected to buyers, influencers, and consultants who have introduced us to potential users. Gautam leverages his background in big-4 consulting to establish connections with leadership at large healthcare companies. The Techstars and CleanTech Open networks have also been valuable sources for introductions.

2. Referrals: Our existing customers and design partners frequently refer us to new customers. They are excited about our unique offering and highlight how we differ from ESG and reporting software. For example, Brian Nelson, our beta customer at PeaceHealth Memorial, is considered a thought leader in sustainability and has referred us to Allina Health. We are also making progress with HealthPartners. Referrals and word of mouth currently serve as strong channels for us.

3. Strategic Partnerships: We are actively developing partnerships with businesses or service providers that target the same or similar customer base. For instance, we are exploring a partnership with Practice Greenhealth and Health Care Without Harm, the leading organizations for improving sustainability in healthcare. Additionally, we are establishing relationships with consulting companies that cater to our customer base. We incentivize these partners by offering reselling fees, and this strategy has proven successful thus far.

4. Industry Events and Webinars: We actively participate in the sustainability community and frequently attend relevant industry conferences, trade shows, and webinars. This allows us to showcase our expertise, network with potential users, and generate opportunities for pilot projects. For example, we expect to exhibit at CleanMed in May 2024.

Initially, we plan to achieve financial sustainability through a combination of customer revenue, equity-based financing, awards, and grants. Our past successes in securing these types of financing demonstrate our ability to do so.

We are committed to using external capital as a tool to help us develop a world-class product and grow quickly, rather than relying on it as a crutch. In the long term, considering the strong and increasing demand for sustainability software, we expect to become profitable within a few years.

- We generated $30,000 in revenue in 2023.
- To date, we have raised $345,000 in pre-seed investment from prestigious early-stage investors such as Techstars and angel investors. We utilized equity-based financing, convertible notes, and SAFEs.
- In November 2023, we were awarded the Launch MN Innovation Grant in the amount of $31,500.
- Additionally, we were the winners of the CleanTech Open Regional Prize, which awarded us $5,000.

Business model and market size:

- Our business model involves charging an annual subscription fee for our product. The initial fee ranges from $5,000 to $50,000, depending on the size of the healthcare organization (number of facilities) and the specific modules they choose to subscribe to. For example, we have already received verbal commitments from potential beta customers willing to pay 5-10k specifically for our data collection module.
- As we continue to add more product features, we anticipate that this annual fee could potentially reach six figures for larger organizations. With these assumptions, the global healthcare market alone is worth billions of dollars.
- Furthermore, there is potential for expansion into adjacent large markets such as higher education, manufacturing, and engineering, which have similar needs.

Our current monthly burn rate is approximately $20,000. Here is a breakdown of the costs:

- $1-2k for software and hosting
- $1-2k for legal, bookkeeping, and miscellaneous administrative expenses
- $17k for salaries for our 3 team members

Founders do not take any salary currently and do not anticipate taking one until we raise our VC-backed seed round in Q2/Q3 of 2024.

We do not expect a significant increase in our operating costs for 2024. Our forecast is approximately $300,000, based on serving 10-15 customers. In the next 6 months, we anticipate the following additions:
- Hiring a part-time Business Development Representative (BDR) to assist with scaling lead generation and sales. We estimate this cost to be around $5-10k in total. As this team member will be based in Minnesota, we expect a portion of this cost to be offset by the Launch MN Innovation Grant we received earlier this month.
- Allocating $5-10k for data feeds and AI tools.

However, if we experience substantial demand and rapid growth, our operating expenses are expected to be proportionately higher. We have been cultivating relationships with top-tier investors, and we anticipate their investment kicking in when we experience exponential growth.

We are seeking $70,000-75,000 in funding to add additional features to our product and onboard 10 customers. Additionally, Gautam (founder) will invest $50,000 of his own money. We have also been awarded $31,500 by the Launch MN grant. We expect to raise an additional $150,000 from existing and new angel investors (have verbal commitments). This total amount should cover our operational costs for 2024.

The funding from Cure will be used for the following product features:

- Developing integrations to collect waste, energy, water, chemicals, and other sustainability data.
- Analyzing this data, drawing insights and creating visualizations to aid decision-making.
- Creating a prototype version of our AI assistant for healthcare sustainability teams.

A portion of the funding will also be allocated to accessing public datasets and large language models.

We believe that CURE can play a crucial role in providing our startup with the essential resources, mentorship, networking, and educational support needed to accelerate our growth, establish ourselves in the healthcare industry, and overcome the challenges commonly encountered by early-stage startups. Specifically:

- Mentorship and Guidance: CURE provides mentorship from experienced healthcare professionals and advisors. This guidance is invaluable, offering insights, advice, and networking opportunities to navigate challenges, refine our strategy, and make informed decisions crucial for our startup's growth.

- Networking Opportunities: Being part of this program allows us to connect with fellow entrepreneurs, potential investors, industry experts, and professionals. These connections can lead to collaborations, partnerships, and access to funding opportunities, enhancing our startup's visibility and growth prospects.

- Community and Support: Being part of this program helps us build a close relationship with a supportive community of like-minded individuals and startups. We believe this sense of community offers peer support, shared experiences, and collaborations, fostering a conducive environment for growth and innovation.