National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Mumbai Climate Week Launch MCW 2026 Innovation Challenge to Spotlight Climate Solutions from the Global South
In a significant step towards strengthening India’s climate innovation ecosystem, Mumbai Climate Week (MCW), in partnership with National Stock Exchange (NSE), today announces the launch of the MCW 2026 Innovation Challenge – a flagship platform designed to identify, evaluate, and accelerate high-impact climate solutions aligned with India’s sustainable development priorities.
The Innovation Challenge invites early-stage, growth-ready, and sector-focused innovators from startups, civil society, academia, and the wider climate ecosystem from across the Global South to apply with breakthrough solutions aligned to MCW’s three core themes: Food Systems, Urban Resilience, and Energy Transition. The Challenge aims to surface scalable, equitable, and investment-ready innovations that address climate vulnerabilities while contributing to India’s long-term vision of inclusive and sustainable growth.
Shortlisted innovators will progress through a structured and rigorous evaluation journey, including application screening, expert jury rounds, mentorship and acceleration clinics with thematic partners, and final-stage presentations during Mumbai Climate Week 2026, scheduled to be held from 17–19 February 2026. Selected innovators will also benefit from enhanced visibility through exchange-supported platforms and access to MCW’s curated Investor “Speed-Seeding” sessions, connecting them with investors, ecosystem partners, and enablers.
Speaking on the launch, Shri Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, NSE, said: NSE, in collaboration with Mumbai Climate Week, has launched the Climate Innovation Program: our call to action for new-age climate startups to bring forward transformative ideas that can shape India’s green future and become capital market–ready enterprises of tomorrow. Product Innovation has always been at the heart of NSE’s journey. By launching instruments such as Electricity Futures, ESG Debt Securities to designing the next generation of market solutions: including Contracts for Difference (CfDs) for the power market, Green Equity Criteria, and Social & Development Impact Bonds, we are embedding sustainability into the very fabric of capital markets, positioning them as gateways to climate finance in India. In the years ahead, such enterprises and instruments will play a vital role in bridging the gap of climate financing of estimated USD 10.9 trillion climate finance required for India's path to Net Zero by year 2070.
Through these efforts, NSE is building public markets that not only enable growth, but define the pathways to a more resilient, low-carbon, and inclusive economy for the future.”
Speaking on this occasion Shishir Joshi, Founder & CEO Project Mumbai said, “Mumbai Climate Week is fundamentally about creating the conditions for India's climate solutions to thrive—building the infrastructure where innovation becomes impact. By partnering with NSE, we're connecting India's most innovative climate minds with the capital and platforms they need to scale. Through the MCW Innovation Challenge, we're creating a rigorous, credible platform that welcomes breakthrough innovations from across the India & Global South, evaluated on merit, innovation and ability to scale for impact potential. This is about turning climate ambition into a competitive advantage where climate action can become a driver of economic and social progress, while establishing India as a launchpad for Global South climate innovation"
The Innovation Challenge is open to early-stage and growth-ready innovators, with a strong emphasis on Global South relevance, climate impact, innovation quality, equity and inclusion, and scalability. Only complete applications meeting the eligibility criteria will be evaluated. Global North entities may participate as observers or technical contributors but will not be eligible for selection.
Applications for the MCW 2026 Innovation Challenge open on 12 December 2025, with the last date to apply set for 10 January 2026. Shortlisted applicants will be announced by the end of January 2026, followed by jury pitch rounds and mentorship sessions leading up to the final showcase during Mumbai Climate Week
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