Ecological start-up ReHabitat has been named the winner of Taronga Conservation Society Australia’s HATCH Accelerator Program 2023 in a public pitch event held at the Taronga Institute of Science & Learning at Taronga Zoo.
ReHabitat has made a name for its ‘habitat pods’ (pictured) – biodegradable shelters that protect ground-dwelling wildlife from predators after bushfires.
“It felt surreal but amazing to be named the winner of HATCH 2023,” ReHabitat founder and conservation ecologist, Dr Alexandra Carthey, said. “This win validates the belief and hard work I’ve put into this project, as well as the support and backing of all my collaborators, colleagues, and friends. It feels a little bittersweet that not every team could win because each and every one of the finalists was deserving of that win as well.”
As the winner, ReHabitat received a $55,000 grant, plus an additional $5000 grant for having also won the People’s Choice Award. Carthey plans to utilise the grants to deploy more pods for the coming bushfire season and for future product development.
“We were inspired by all six finalists, and I know with certainty that each and every one of them are helping to change the world,” Taronga Conservation Society Australia CEO, Cameron Kerr AO, who moderated the event and the judging panel, said. “The judges were particularly impressed with Dr Carthey’s depth of knowledge, the partnerships she has chosen for her business model, and the opportunities for product development and scale.
“ReHabitat’s habitat pods are a simple yet effective solution to wildlife and habitat degradation, which is a nationwide and global threat to biodiversity and wildlife,” Kerr added. “The devastating black summer bushfires made it clear that we all need to do more to protect our wildlife. I’m so grateful for the leadership of our generous donors who have recognised that the need to nurture and support innovative minds to ensure their great ideas for the planet become a reality.”
Dr Carthey shared that the idea for ReHabitat came after the 2019-20 black summer bushfires, when almost three billion animals were killed, injured or displaced. Those who survived found their habitat destroyed, and the lack of vegetation cover left small, ground-dwelling animals exposed and vulnerable to cats and foxes.
“I was struck by the need to provide emergency shelter for wildlife, just as we do for people,” Dr Carthey explained. “Habitat pods will be a core part of future disaster responses for wildlife. When the Black Summer fires hit, we didn’t know what to do in the face of all that animal suffering. Next time, we will have emergency shelters ready to deploy to assist surviving wildlife in situ, supporting population recovery and boosting the regeneration of their habitats.”
HATCH is notable to be the only accelerator program in the world that is run by a conservation zoo and aims to inspire, support and launch innovative ideas and actions that address key environmental or conservation challenges.
Participants of the HATCH accelerator program received more than 100 hours of mentor support, as well as fully immersive days with workshops, presentations and discussion panels in a span of 14 weeks, which began in February.
