You’re standing in a field, staring at the ground. To most people, it’s just soil. But to the crew at CinSOIL, it’s a carbon-capturing, planet-saving goldmine. And they’re not afraid to get their hands soiled to prove it.
Meet Dr. Tavseef Mairaj Shah, one of the three musketeers of CinSOIL, along with Dr. Giorgi Shuradze and Dr. Antonella Succurro. They’re not your average Soilenthusiasts. Oh no, these folks are building a software solution that monitors soil carbon stocks using AI and satellite data. They’re giving the Earth a high-tech health check-up, one field at a time.
“We are building a software solution that monitors soil carbon stocks using AI and satellite data,” Tavseef explains. “By this, we aim at enabling agrifood companies to harness the carbon sequestration potential of agricultural soils to decarbonize their value chains at farm level.”
In other words, they’re turning farms into carbon-sucking superheroes. Move over, Captain Planet. There’s a new eco-warrior in town, and he’s wearing overalls.
From Soil to Data: The CinSOIL eco-nuke
Soil? Really? Couldn’t they have picked something sexier, like electric cars or solar-powered unicorns?
“Agricultural soils have this natural capacity of storing carbon (Carbon Farming), hence having the potential to balance the scope 3 emissions of the agrifood sector,” Tavseef explains. It’s Mother Nature’s hidden secret weapon, and CinSOIL is finally putting it to use.
But here’s the kicker: “The bottleneck, however, that prevents this from happening at scale is the lack of a robust soil carbon monitoring system; you cannot manage what you cannot monitor.” Like trying to diet without a scale: Sure, you might be losing weight, but without hard data, how can you brag about it on Instagram?
Not Just Another Carbon Copy
CinSOIL isn’t content with just being another drop in the ocean of climate tech. Oh no, they’re here to make waves. Or rather furrows.
“We understand carbon emissions is not the only challenge and cannot be tackled in isolation of other ecological challenges,” Tavseef points out.
“Latest policies around Carbon Farming stipulate that such projects that aim at storing more carbon in soil need to simultaneously contribute to other ecosystem co-benefits and sustainability initiatives,” he adds. It’s like they’re turning farms into all-you-can-eat buffets of environmental benefits. And who doesn’t love a good buffet?
The Soil on Their Success
CinSOIL didn’t just sprout up overnight like a well-fertilized weed. They’ve got a network more impressive than your aunt’s vegetable garden.
“We are lucky to have a very strong network of professionals and organizations involved with startups, who have contributed vitally to our progress at different stages of our development,” Tavseef boasts. They’ve got everyone from EIT Food to UnternehmerTUM in their corner. It’s like they’re the popular kid at the eco-startup lunch table.
And let’s not forget the EXIST Startup grant from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action.
Planting Seeds for the Future
When it comes to goals, CinSOIL isn’t just playing in the dirt. They’re aiming for the stars (while keeping their feet firmly planted in carbon-rich soil, of course).
Short-term? They’re scaling up pilot projects and chasing that sweet, sweet angel round funding. Long-term? Oh, you know, just casually “grow into a company that is an enabler of regenerative agriculture at the scale it is needed and enabling farmers and agrifood corporates to transition to regenerative agriculture.” Just revolutionizing global agriculture. As one does. No biggie.
Join the Soil Revolution
So, what can you do to help? Well, unless you happen to be an impact investor with a passion for soil(and if you are, call Tavseef ASAP), your options might seem limited. But fear not! You can still be part of the solution.
“Follow us in our journey of creating sustainable impact in the sector that everyone has to do with, on a daily basis: food,” Tavseef encourages.
On another note, Tavseef believes the entire impact community can step up its game. “One vital area where the impact community needs to be more successful at is communicating the urgency and getting the message across that impactful businesses are the way forward.”
At GICA, we’re all about supporting these soil-loving, carbon-capturing superheroes. Want to get more grounded in impact? Dig your way over to gica.community and join our ecosystem of change-makers. Maybe even take a look at what Alganize is doing to soil with… algae?
Remember: Every time you support companies like CinSOIL, somewhere in the world, a carbon molecule gets trapped in the soil. And isn’t that a much better mental image than another iceberg melting?
The future of agriculture is green, it’s data-driven, and thanks to CinSOIL, it’s got a whole lot of carbon locked up tight.
Tavseef on LinkedIn? Here!
