Supported by IKEA Foundation
From Clusters to Circularity: ANDE’s India Milestones on Textiles and Waste Finance
ANDE South Asia convened textile and circularity leaders in New Delhi and released waste-management investment guides for Kenya and India, translating sustainability ambitions into scalable finance pathways.
Find here takeaways, videos, and access key documents. Learn more about developments in the Access to Green Finance project in India from 2024-2026.
2024 Events
April 9, 2024 — Investment Innovation Fund
The Investment Innovation Fund sourced, tested, and promoted creative and impactful solutions to improve access to finance for waste and circularity enterprises in India and Kenya. ANDE has awarded six grants, two in India and four in Kenya, for a total of $700,000 USD in funding.
April 16, 2024 — A2GF Investor-ESO Convening | Mumbai, India
ANDE South Asia, in collaboration with TechnoServe, hosted the Investor-ESO Convening on April 16, 2024 in-person in Mumbai. This session, led by investors, had 105 attendees in total consisting of investors, ESOs, and waste and circularity SGBs. The Convening hosted an “Investor Showcase” during which 12 prominent investors in the waste management and circularity sector built on the investment criteria matrix shared with participants during the convening, to share specific insights with ESOs which were incorporated into their applications for the Investment Innovation Fund.
July 11, 2024 — A2GF Policy Working Group Meeting | New Delhi, India
In India, ANDE South Asia has been engaging their local policy partner, Center for Responsible Business (C4RB) over the past several months, who is focusing specifically on the Ludhiana Textile Cluster to:
- Formulate an implementable roadmap for promoting circularity in the textile cluster of Ludhiana (currently underway).
- Facilitate meetings between industry stakeholders, financiers and technology providers.
- Develop a policy paper outlining potential interventions to facilitate the development of a circular textile cluster.
- Disseminate the findings to stakeholders representing other textile clusters, brands and buyers, financiers, policy makers (Ministry of Textiles, Ministry of MSME), and international organizations working on circular textiles.
ANDE South Asia has 31 confirmed working group members, who signed up based on the ToR circulated. We hosted an in-person working group meeting on July 11, 2024 in New Delhi, with 30 members joining. Ms. Prajakta Verma, the Joint Secretary of India’s Ministry of Textiles, delivered the opening remarks at the meeting to set the context.
October 9, 2024 — Access to Green Markets Convening | Mumbai, India
ANDE South Asia hosted its Access to Green Markets Workshop in Mumbai, focusing on the role of corporates in enabling small and growing businesses (SGBs) in the waste and circularity sectors to access markets.
November 11-15, 2024 — A2GF Investment Manager Training | Mumbai, India
ANDE’s Investment Manager Training (IMT) examined a central question: whether impact investing is a passing trend. It concluded that it is not, but notes that its perceived complexity stems from the dual mandate to deliver both financial returns and measurable environmental and social outcomes.
The program covered the full investment value chain from deal sourcing and due diligence to term sheet structuring, highlighting how investment terms influence outcomes for both investors and entrepreneurs. Participants engaged with practical case studies and applied cross-border tools under the guidance of John Kohler.
A focus on the circular economy added further depth, underscoring the diversity of sectoral value chains and investment considerations. Complementary research, including Climake’s analysis of waste and circularity in India, identified investable segments, with plastics emerging as a leading area of opportunity.
2025 Events
A2GF Sessions at BharatTex Expo 2025 | New Delhi, India
February 14, 2025 — ANDE South Asia joined the Global Textile Dialogues knowledge session at BharatTex Expo 2025 for a discussion on “Cluster Conversation: How India’s Textile Clusters are Leading the Sustainability Drive.” The session was co-hosted by the Centre for Responsible Business (CRB), KPMG India, and the Global Alliance For Textile Sustainability Council (GATS).
February 16, 2025 — ANDE participated in a Laudes Foundation-convened workshop alongside ANDE’s India Policy Working Group anchor partners—Centre for Responsible Business and the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW). The session, “India: A Global Circularity Hub—Developing and Scaling Post-Consumer Textile Waste Management,” convened ecosystem stakeholders to explore pathways to integrate 1 million metric tons of recycled fibers into global supply chains by 2030. Discussion topics included:
- Ecosystem mapping: Identifying priority areas for collaboration
- Investment and industry pathways: Unlocking opportunities to scale post-consumer textile waste management
- Policy interventions: Shaping enabling frameworks for circular textiles
- A joint roadmap for action: Clarifying priorities, roles, and next steps to advance a circular textile economy
Unveil Investment Guides to Boost Economies in Kenya & India
March 25, 2025 — ANDE released investment guides on waste management in partnership with Climake and KOIS Advisory, with grant support from the IKEA Foundation through the Access to Green Finance Project. The launch session was facilitated by Charlotte Badenoch (Principal, KOIS) and Shravan Shankar (Co-Founder, Climake).
The India guides cover:
- Plastic circularity
- E-waste and lithium-ion battery recycling
- Agricultural biomass waste
- Municipal solid waste management
Together, the reports outline how targeted financial strategies can help scale these sectors and mobilize investment.
Catalyzing Innovative Technologies in Waste & Circularity for Dignified Jobs Workshop
March 27, 2025 — ANDE South Asia, on behalf of Accenture and Villgro, brought together corporates and funding partners for an invite-only workshop focused on technology innovations in the circular economy and how they can catalyze safe, lucrative, and dignified livelihoods.
A2GF Investor – ESO Convening | Mumbai, India
April 16, 2025 — Hosted by ANDE’s Access to Green Finance project in India and TechnoServe India’s Greenr Sustainability Accelerator, in partnership with Mahindra and with support from the IKEA Foundation and VISA Foundation, the convening brought together investors, founders, and ecosystem enablers to strengthen pathways for scaling climate-first Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs). From honest insights in the reverse pitch to inspiring founder stories, the day was packed with conversations that matter and momentum that lasts.
The event featured a Corporate Dialogue that highlighted the need for flexible, blended capital approaches—combining equity, debt, and grants—while encouraging a shift from consumer-facing solutions to systems-level innovation. This was followed by an Investor Reverse Pitch, which offered SGBs insights into investor expectations and common red flags, while fostering stronger collaboration among capital providers. Overall, the event underscored the value of patient, strategic capital, and coordinated ecosystem support to scale impactful climate solutions.
From honest insights in the reverse pitch to inspiring founder stories, the day was packed with conversations that matter—and momentum that lasts.
Featured voices:
• Ajay Menon, Program Director, Greenr Sustainability Accelerator
• Rajendra Kamble, Director – Sustainability Consulting, JLL India
• Ankit Todi, Chief Sustainability Officer, Mahindra Group
• Shrikant Deo, Vice President – Innovation, Reliance Innovation Leadership Centre
• Kinkini Roy Choudhary, Managing Director, Accenture
This episode dives deep into how large enterprises can catalyze scale for climate-first Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs)—by showing up not just as investors, but as ecosystem partners.
Featured voices:
• Kinkini Roy Choudhary – Managing Director, Accenture
• Ankit Todi – Chief Sustainability Officer, Mahindra Group
Startup founders share their journey, narrating key insights and opportunities gained through the program.
Featured voices:
• Sheikh Ziaur Rahaman – Chief Business Officer, Pavings Plus
• Gaurav Dwivedi – Chief Executive Officer, UGreen Technology
• Shwet Agarwal – Chairman Emeritus, North East Granulators
• Ravindra Joshi – Founder, AmpCycle
• Rajat Kukreja – COO, The Sustainability Mafia
Climate-focused founders and investors came together to ask: What does it really take to fund and scale climate-first businesses in India?
Featured voices:
• Ajay Menon – Program Director, Greenr Sustainability Accelerator, TechnoServe
• Prakhar Singh – VC, Enzia Ventures
• Rohan Galla – Spectrum Impact
• Rajat Kukreja – COO, The Sustainability Mafia
• Kedar Kulkarni – Director, Biodoc
• Saurabh Agarwal – Founder, GROWiT
From patient capital and gender-lens investing to founder-first support and ecosystem strategy, here’s what leading voices had to say.
Featured voices:
• Rohan Galla – Spectrum Impact
• Gautam Khot – Managing Partner, 7thGen Ventures
• Hanisha Vaswani – Managing Partner, Majority
• Prakhar Singh – VC, Enzia Ventures
• Rachita Gupta – Peak Sustainability Ventures
• Rajat Kukreja – COO, The Sustainability Mafia
• Ananya Saini – Climate Lead South Asia, ANDE
A2GF Investor – ESO Convening | Bangalore, India
July 16, 2025 — ANDE South Asia, in partnership with TechnoServe India, hosted the South Chapter of Sustainability Stars – Access to Green Finance at the Taj MG Road, Bangalore. The event featured elevator pitches from climate-focused investors, who shared their investment approaches and visions for a sustainable future. Over 20 startups from the Greenr Accelerator portfolio pitched their bold, climate-forward solutions.
Debt providers consultation textile cluster | Ludhiana, India
September 10, 2025 — ANDE South Asia and the Center for Responsible Business (CRB) hosted an invite-only workshop to present the roadmap for building a circular and sustainable textile cluster in Ludhiana.
A2GF Investor Cohort Convening | Bangalore, India
September 18, 2025 — In collaboration with Upaya Social Ventures, we co-hosted “Capital for Inclusive Circularity,” bringing together founders from the Dignified Jobs Accelerator Circular Innovation Cohort 2025 and investors from ANDE’s Access to Green Finance Investor Cohort to explore pathways for unlocking capital towards a more inclusive and circular economy.
Unlocking Debt Guarantees: Risk-Sharing as a Catalyst for Waste Sector MSMEs
November 12, 2025 — Facilitated by ANDE, GIZ India, and SIDBI (Small Industries Development Bank of India), the session explored opportunities in composting, recycling, bio-methanation, RDF, and material recovery technologies, building new pathways for financing India’s circular economy. The conversations were driven by Jai Kumar Gaurav, Niranjan Demanna, Siddhant Malhotra, Abhijit Rege, and Rini Dutta.
2026 Events
The closing conclave for the ReGen Accelerator
January 30, 2026 — IIM Calcutta Innovation Park hosted the closing conclave for the ReGen Accelerator — a 15-month journey supported through ANDE’s Investment Innovation Fund.
From SGB pitches to honest discussions on the realities of building green businesses, the day created space for founders and investors to engage meaningfully. The event saw attendance from investors like Blue Ashva Capital, IvyCap Ventures, L&T Innovation Fund, and Indian Angel Network sharing their perspectives and backing the next wave of green innovation. The Conclave concluded with felicitation of the shortlisted SGBs who completed the program.
Focus Group Discussion on circular textile ecosystem
February 2, 2026 — Building on a survey conducted in November 2025 across 350+ textile units, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) convened a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) to validate findings, gather in-depth qualitative insights, and shape an actionable, locally relevant textile waste management framework for the city.
Held in Ludhiana, the FGD brought together textile associations, industry representatives, recyclers, waste aggregators, civil society organizations, and key government stakeholders, including the District Industrial Centre Ludhiana.
The study is being led by CEEW, with catalytic support from ANDE South Asia. Encouraging to see such cross-stakeholder engagement helping translate research into practical, on-ground solutions for a more circular textile ecosystem.
A2GF Investor Cohort Convening at the Lanka Impact Investment Summit 2026 | Colombo, Sri Lanka
February 10, 2026 — Investors, enterprise support organizations (ESOs), and ecosystem actors gathered to interrogate a persistent paradox: strong climate intent, yet slow capital deployment, particularly in waste and circular economy sectors.
ANDE plays a vital role in strengthening entrepreneurship ecosystems in developing economies by convening the right actors around shared purpose. I have had the opportunity to engage with ANDE in multiple capacities—as a collaborator on the Greenr Sustainability Accelerator Program in India, as a member of the Regional Advisory Committee, and as a Coach on the SCALE program. Across these engagements, I have consistently valued ANDE’s thoughtful approach, practitioner-led insights, and commitment to inclusive, sustainable enterprise development. The organization creates meaningful platforms for collaboration and learning, and I have thoroughly enjoyed contributing to and learning from the ANDE community. Their work continues to be highly relevant and impactful for the broader entrepreneurship ecosystem.
Ajay Menon, Senior Practice Lead, TechnoServe