Welcome to HATCH: Taronga Accelerator Program. HATCH aims to inspire, support and launch innovative ideas and actions to help address some of the most pressing environmental and conservation challenges currently facing our planet.
We are calling on innovators, thought leaders, disruptors, developers, passionate individuals and everyone in between to help develop and implement brilliant ideas for the planet.
One simple idea could change the future. The future starts today. What’s your brilliant idea?
HATCH Program 2021 - Applications now open!
We are really excited to learn about your exciting idea, product or service to address a conservation or environmental challenge! Applications are open from Wednesday 31 March to Tuesday 11 May 2021.
Program overview and structure
HATCH is a 14-week accelerator program designed to help you develop your brilliant idea into a not-for-profit or social enterprise venture that has a positive impact on the environment. The program will involve two immersive events, weekly online workshops and a final pitch event.
What is an accelerator?
Think of an accelerator as similar to a University or TAFE unit – a structured, fixed term development program. However, the purpose of an accelerator program is not only to educate, but to help participants to develop and refine their initiative or business venture.
During the HATCH program, you will undertake education sessions, peer collaboration, and have access to mentors from a range of different expertise. You will also undertake work on your game changing idea or product for the planet in your own time.
Accelerators often provide seed capital to participants as well. HATCH: Taronga Accelerator Program will provide $2,000 to each participating team.
At the end of the structured program, participants will pitch their ideas to a panel of experts. The panel will provide feedback and determine which idea or product is the overall winner and recipient of the major funding.
If you have an innovative idea, an accelerator such as HATCH is a great place to develop your idea with the support of experts, and to meet and collaborate with like-minded people.
HATCH program inclusions
- The opportunity to receive up to $50,000 to bring your brilliant idea to life
- $2,000 seed funding for each team participating in the program (at zero equity)
- A blended approach of face to face workshops (subject to COVID-19 restrictions), online sessions and digital modules to provide you with the knowledge to develop your initiative
- Expert learning, guidance and support from mentors and subject matter experts including Taronga experts, industry professionals, and not-for-profit and social enterprise leaders
Your brilliant idea is...
- Targeted to address a key conservation or environmental challenge
- An innovative approach to address the issue you’re targeting
- Designed to make a positive impact on the natural environment
- Aligned to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Taronga’s 360 degree approach to conservation (see below)
- A concept, pre-launch or early stage venture – you bring the concept, we’ll help you to assess, test and validate it
- Is established as, or plans to develop into, a not-for-profit or social enterprise organisation
- Has potential to scale up for ever greater impact over time
Taronga's 360 degree approach to conservation
At Taronga we recognise that to achieve successful conservation of species we must also consider and support the habitat in which the species live, and the communities that interact with the species and habitat. Below are some examples of activities that Taronga undertakes under each area that may help you to consider how your initiative aligns to these areas.
Wildlife
- Monitoring of wild populations
- Breed for release programs
- Rescue and rehabilitation of injured native wildlife
- Research and development of suitable nutrition
Habitat
- Habitat restoration, e.g. tree planting for Regent Honeyeaters
- Ensuring suitable habitat for native species within our two Zoo grounds
- Researching and monitoring habitat use
Communities
- Guest, student and community education programs
- Tools to enable the public to protect wildlife, e.g. the Wildlife Witness app
- Working with local communities to address challenges and be self-sufficient, e.g. Beads for Wildlife
Eligibility criteria
Read the full list of eligibility criteria
- Open to Australian citizens and permanent residents only
- All applicants must be 18 years and over
- Teams can be a maximum of 4 people per team; individual applicants are welcome
- Initiatives must align to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to Taronga’s 360 degree approach to conservation
- Initiatives must be delivered in Australia to benefit/support the Australian environment
- Not for profit and social enterprise initiatives are welcomed; for profit initiatives are not eligible for this program
- If applying as an organisation, the organisation will likely have an annual revenue of less than $150,000
- All participants must comply with the Terms and Conditions associated with the HATCH Program
- All participants must comply with Taronga’s Code of Conduct
HATCH program 2021 dates
View the key program dates
View the program key dates
| Stage | Location | Dates |
| Applications open | Online | Wednesday 31 March 2021 |
| Applications close | Online | 5pm on Tuesday 11 May 2021 |
| Applications review | Online | May - June 2021 |
| Short-listed applications to provide additional information | Online | Early June 2021 |
| Short-listed applicants panel interviews | Via video conference | Monday 21 and Wednesday 23 June 2021 |
| Program participants confirmed | Online | End June 2021 |
Program welcome session (5pm - 7pm Sydney time) | Online | Tuesday 20 July 2021 |
| Immersive One (in-person) | Taronga Zoo Sydney | Thursday 22 July to Saturday 24 July 2021 |
| Immersive One (online*) | Online | 4 x half day sessions:
|
Mentor introduction session (5pm - 7pm Sydney time) | Online | Tuesday 27 July 2021 |
Weekly workshops (5pm - 7pm Sydney time) | Online | Tuesday 3 August to Tuesday 31 August 2021 |
| Immersive Two (in-person) | Taronga Zoo Sydney | Wednesday 1 September (night) to Friday 3 September 2021 |
| Immersive Two (online*) | Online | 4 x half day sessions:
|
Weekly workshops (5pm - 7pm Sydney time) | Online | Tuesday 7 September to Tuesday 19 October 2021 |
| Pitch event preparation, judging and public pitch event | Taronga Zoo Sydney | Wednesday 27 October to Thursday 28 October 2021 |
Public pitch event (Evening) | Taronga Zoo Sydney and online | Thursday 28 October 2021 |
*The online dates for Immersives One and Two are a back-up plan if we are unable to go ahead with the in-person Immersives at Taronga Zoo, due to COVID-19 or other reasons.
HATCH delivery team
The HATCH program is led by Danielle Fryday and Tom Allen, with involvement and support from other members of the Taronga and Impact Boom teams.
Danielle Fryday - Lead Facilitator
Danielle is the Co-Founder of the HATCH: Taronga Accelerator Program and Lead Facilitator. Danielle combines her ten years of experience in adult learning and development, three years’ experience at Taronga and her passion for supporting others to design and deliver the HATCH program and help passionate changemakers bring their brilliant ideas to life.
Tom Allen - Entrepreneur in Residence
Tom is Founder and CEO of Impact Boom. As a certified social enterprise and leading intermediary, Impact Boom helps entrepreneurs and innovators unleash their greatest potential to create a better world. Tom has worked closely with hundreds of social entrepreneurs globally to maximise their impact and is proud to be supporting HATCH as the Entrepreneur in Residence and delivery partner.
Mentors and subject matter experts
HATCH participants are supported by a range of mentors and experts from across the startup, business, and for-purpose arenas, as well as Taronga’s in-house expertise in conservation, community engagement, education and not-for-profit management. A huge vote of thanks to our mentors and experts for their commitment to support the HATCH participants and program.
Alex de Aboitiz
Warren Bingham
Francisco Caffarena
David Chung
Bradley Delamare
Robyn Foyster
Matt Gillam
Product & Engineering Leadership | Technology Strategy | Digital Transformation & Scale-Up
Ryan Kaveney
Tim Middlemiss
Obama Foundation Leader: Asia Pacific - consulting on Social Impact | Strategic Communications | Creative Campaigns
Lisa Miller
Ian Roth
Former Chief Veterinary Officer at NSW DPI
Taronga Conservation Society Australia Board Member
Tim Silverwood
Jill Storey
CEO ReadyFundGo | Non-Executive Director I Strategy, Innovation, Sustainability, Digital Disruption, CSR
John Sturt-Addicott
Strategic Advisor | Sustainable business models and strategic planning for for-purpose organisations
HATCH Program 2020
The HATCH: Taronga Accelerator Program was launched in early 2020 and the inaugural program ran from August to November. COVID-19 forced us to rework the program delivery plans, but we were delighted to be able to go ahead with a fully online program and final pitch event.
After a competitive national selection process, we selected ten passionate founders driving five exciting initiatives to address environmental issues. The teams were put through their paces over the 14 week accelerator program to establish their ventures, validate their approaches and prepare their pitches to share their brilliant initiatives with the world, and compete for the $50,000 HATCH Grant. Click below to learn more about the teams and their inspiring ventures.
“HATCH program has been an invaluable experience for us. Without the support and direction from this amazing program we wouldn't be where we are. This is one of the best programs out there and I feel extremely lucky that we could be part of it and share it with such a great community.” – HATCH 2020 participant
Every Drop
Our vision is to help communities across Australia engage with and protect their local water resources. We all know how important our water is and, with the escalating impacts of climate change, we are starting to feel the reality of water scarcity and poverty in many of our communities. We believe that the safest hands our water resources can be in is our own, and so we aim to give you the agency to take charge of your relationship with water by providing you with the tools to accurately monitor and stay informed about your local water resources, connect with your community and advocate for improved local and federal water management. While one short shower won’t end a drought, Every Drop offers you the opportunity to join a growing movement that cares for and protects our communities, improves climate resilience and conserves our most precious resource.
Founder: Samantha Moody
Watch the Every Drop pitch video:
Good-Edi
We are dedicated to solving the disposable cup problem. When we grab that takeaway cup, we are making a big mistake and become part of a huge environmental issue. Disposable cups are lined with plastic so aren’t recyclable or biodegradable. They create 60 tonnes of plastic waste per year in Australia, causing a huge amount of carbon emissions and water pollution. We have an innovative solution that actually solves the problem, an edible cup that is waste-free. It functions like a takeaway cup without harming the planet or compromising on convenience. Our cups are a healthy snack, plastic and paper-free, and if they end up in the bin they break down naturally in less than two weeks.
Co-founders: Catherine Hutchins and Aniyo Rahebi
Watch the Good-Edi pitch video:
PoopLoop
The PoopLoop is a community-based composting system designed to manage the copious amounts of dog poo produced in parks and green spaces every day. It will divert the dog poo away from landfill which once processed becomes a safe and productive compost for local parks and gardens. We want to close the waste loop by helping people to see dog poo as a resource, not a waste-product.
Co-founders: James Lyle, Samuel Hughes, James Chan and Sam Quinn
Watch the PoopLoop pitch video:
RePlated
RePlated wants to make single use history with our thoughtfully designed reusable takeaway food container systems. We manufacture our containers from recycled PET and glass right here in Sydney for distribution globally. As a business that is truly circular; from our philosophy to design and manufacture, we even take containers back at the end of their life for recycling into new products.
Practical solutions to our waste crisis are urgently needed to shift away from single-use. It takes just 15 washes for a reusable food container to be better than even the best compostable container. As we recreate a brighter and more socially and environmentally conscious future post-COVID, RePlated offers Australian businesses and organisations the opportunity to shift away from single-use for good.
Founder: Naomi Tarszisz
Watch the RePlated pitch video:
TOMbag
TOMbag is on a mission to rid the world of single-use garbage bags with our sustainable and functional reusable alternatives. Designed from the ground up, we’ve created a reusable garbage bag that is waterproof, durable, washable and is made with recycled plastic. A reusable garbage bag to replace single-use plastics at home and at work.
Co-founders: Johnathan Pestano and Aleksandra Pestano
Watch the TOMbag pitch video:
HATCH 2020 Pitch Event
The 2020 Program culminated in a fantastic online Pitch Event on Tuesday 10 November 2020. Check out the event recording below to hear from our passionate founders and learn about their brilliant initiatives to support us to all live a more sustainable life.
