By Riley Kaminer
For the last three years, Seaworthy Collective has been at the forefront of developing solutions for environmental regeneration, beginning with our ocean.
Daniel Kleinman is at the helm of the Miami-based 501(c)(3). “Sustainable Development Goal 14, Life Below Water, is the least funded of all 17 SDGs,” he told Refresh Miami. “It’s been such an under-invested space.” That’s a problem since the ocean represents a major opportunity to combat climate change.
Kleinman and the Seaworthy team have been fighting for startups in the BlueTech space, supporting current, aspiring, and underrepresented founders who are working on ocean and climate impact projects.
Uniquely, Seaworthy places an emphasis on founders with untraditional or interdisciplinary backgrounds. Anya Freeman, founder of 3D printed seawall company Kind Designs, is a perfect example of this as a lawyer turned BlueTech entrepreneur – with the support of Seaworthy. “She didn’t do anything regarding ocean innovation in her past career, but she’s been super resourceful and has shown that she’s willing to do whatever it takes to create an impact,” said Kleinman. In September, Kind Designs raised $5 million to construct and deploy their panels.
Now, Seaworthy has some additional dry powder to fuel its own mission. It has partnered with Salesforce and received a grant to support its work. For Kleinman, this is a major validation of Seaworthy’s impact. “We knew that this would create a domino effect, and it’s great to see that Salesforce sees us as being worthy of their support.”
Seaworthy also secured a Stage 2 SBA grant as part of its Growth Accelerator Fund Competition. With these SBA funds, which now total over $200,000 in 2023, Seaworthy plans to create a BlueTech fellowship program with Miami-Dade College, on top of forging deeper collaborations with international partners. Additionally, earlier this year Seaworthy received a grant from the Department of Energy to seed their new year-round cohort to support founders.
Kleinman is not letting this forward momentum go to waste: he now has his sights set on a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “That would be the cherry on top since it’s the government organization that’s most appropriate for supporting us,” he said. This grant could be worth $10 million over five years.
“Now, to finally see available capital – it could not be more timely,” Kleinman asserted. “This has been the dream we’ve been working toward.”
Already, Seaworthy has supported 56 founders working on 26 startups. 57% of these founders come from underrepresented backgrounds. “This represents the equitable future we’re looking to drive in this space,” noted Kleinman. “Seaworthy is really as much of a social impact venture as it is economic and environmental.”
On October 21st, Seaworthy will be hosting a startup showcase at Ironside in Miami, featuring pitches from its 2023 startups, a keynote speech from investor Ted Janulis, and more.
“This is a great opportunity for the whole community to celebrate together,” Kleinman said.
READ MORE IN REFRESH MIAMI:
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