ChangeNOW by the numbers (2026)
ChangeNOW gathered 40,000 attendees from 140 countries, 1,400 investors, 10,000 companies, and 1,000 climate‑related solutions.
Luc Plancke, CEO and Founder of Enperas, attended ChangeNOW. This blog post shares his two‑day insights and takeaways.
Day 1 - ChangeNOW
ChangeNOW is more than a call to action, it’s one of the world’s largest sustainability events, drawing 40,000 attendees from 140+ countries.
The event brings startups together with impact investors and showcases solutions across every facet of sustainability. Large organizations present challenge and acceleration programs, while entrepreneurs demonstrate products and services that drive impact.
As an LCA specialist, I focused on the energy and climate track on day one, since energy choices are among the largest drivers of our assessed impacts. Electrification is accelerating EU electricity demand could rise by roughly 3,000 TWh over the next five years - the equivalent of adding another “Spain” to the grid - and on a global scale comparable to adding the “US.”
The electric market is already about twice the size of the fossil‑fuel market, and renewables often reach market faster and cheaper than alternatives; for example, offshore wind capex can be as low as ~€4/MWh versus ~€15/MWh for SMRs.
The energy transition offers four major benefits:
- Energy sovereignty
- Security of supply
- Price stability
- Speed to power
These advantages helped insulate Europe during recent oil shocks, particularly where industry electrification has reached ~40%.
Speakers at ChangeNOW emphasized the need for a resilient, decentralized grid to prevent nationwide blackouts. A notable talk by Oleksandr Senkevych, mayor of Mykolaiv, highlighted how decentralized energy systems, including renewables with fossil‑fuel backup in apartment blocks, have been critical to maintaining elevators, heating, and other essentials during conflict.
PS: de-growth appears to have fallen out of favour; the focus now is on moving beyond growth to enable thriving, sustainable development.
Day 2 - Materials & Energy
I followed the materials track, which - together with energy - drives our LCA results.
Cyrill Gutsch (Parley for the Oceans) presented the “A‑I‑R” strategy: Avoid, Intercept, Redesign. It didn’t end up in words, but active funding of some remarkable biomimicry solutions presented on ChangeNOW, including BANANAtex, Sparxell, TomTex, Ponda, Sway, and Nature Coatings.
L’Oréal presented Kelpi, a seaweed‑derived biodegradable coating funded by their accelerator. This could be a low‑hanging opportunity for eco-design. I’m looking forward to the LCA results. L’Oréal’s accelerator will open a second cohort - applicants must address one of their 74 sustainability challenges.
Materials and energy transitions require four priorities:
- Sovereignty
- Security of supply
- Price stability
- Speed to market
I’m looking forward to the next edition of ChangeNOW in 2027.
