This is #6 episode of the podcast 'Show Me Your Actions' where we dive deep into conversations with industry experts on entrepreneurship, circular economy, sustainability and startup life.This time we have a special guest: Eugene Tomilin, co-founder & CTO of S.Lab. Usually far from the spotlight, Eugene is the mind behind S.Lab’s core innovation. In this episode he opens up about how it all started (hint: not in a lab), what it’s like to be a CTO without engineering degree and why he thinks real change starts with stubborn curiosity. Julia and Eugene also talk about building business with your partner, gender bias in fundraising and the future they would like for their kids.--Eugene TomilinJulia BialetskaS.LabS.Lab produces green packaging combining only two plant-based components. By harvesting the strength of agricultural waste and the binding power of mycelium [the network of mushroom roots], S.Lab creates strong and reliable material capable of fully replacing foamed plastic. The material has all the same features as polystyrene in terms of thermal insulation and water resistance, but after the usage it will fully biodegrade in the soil without any trace in 30 days. Today S.Lab has developed its proprietary production technology designed explicitly for plant-based packaging, making it possible to adjust production capacity to meet growing demand.
This is #5 episode of the podcast 'Show Me Your Actions' where we dive deep into conversations with industry experts on entrepreneurship, circular economy, sustainability, and startup life.This time our guest is Teresa Hernandez Martin, an experienced innovation professional and the project lead of the Women TechEU, an initiative dedicated to empowering women in deep tech and shaping the future of women in the technology industry. Driven by a deep-seated belief in the transformative power of technology, Theresa has created a successful career in innovation spanning over 15 years and encompassing both intrapreneurial and external consulting engagements. She believes that innovation is not just about creating new technologies but also about empowering individuals and communities to realize their full potential.
In this episode, Teresa shares how Women TechEU is helping women break into deep tech and why support like this is still so needed. We talk about the invisible barriers women face: from being judged on achievements rather than potential, to how these challenges vary by region. Teresa reflects on her own journey, what keeps her inspired, and the lesson that stuck with her: make the impossible possible. We explore how different countries approach innovation, what Europe needs to stay competitive and why finding the right allies matters — especially in a male-dominated field.
Teresa Hernandez MartinJulia BialetskaS.LabS.Lab produces green packaging combining only two plant-based components. By harvesting the strength of agricultural waste and the binding power of mycelium [the network of mushroom roots], S.Lab creates strong and reliable material capable of fully replacing foamed plastic. The material has all the same features as polystyrene in terms of thermal insulation and water resistance, but after the usage it will fully biodegrade in the soil without any trace in 30 days. Today S.Lab has developed its proprietary production technology designed explicitly for plant-based packaging, making it possible to adjust production capacity to meet growing demand.
In this episode, Julia Bialetska, CEO at S.Lab, together with Daniel Seager, Senior Manager Sustainability Solutions at HP, discuss how big corporations implement sustainability practices, why changing mindset of both business owners and consumers in a first step to success, how to set and achieve net zero targets, consumers’ perception of circularity and many more! What key sustainability trends will we see in 2025?Are customers ready for circularity?How is sustainability influencing corporate strategies today?Our guest Daniel Seager has 15 years of experience in sustainability, compliance, and corporate sustainability strategies, primarily in the IT and consumer electronics sectors. He specializes in building circular economy models, including refurbishment services enablement, repair services strategies, and extended producer responsibility policy. Daniel is also adept at managing supplier sustainability and compliance strategies.His interests include net zero transition, circular economy, clean energy transition technologies, e-waste recycling, and environmental policy. Daniel has been with HP for the past 14 years, focusing primarily on sustainability. Before joining HP, he worked as an Environmental Specialist at LG Electronics and as an Environmental Flows Researcher with the WWF.
Julia Bialetska Daniel Seager S.Lab
S.Lab produces green packaging combining only two plant-based components. By harvesting the strength of agricultural waste and the binding power of mycelium [the network of mushroom roots], S.Lab creates strong and reliable material capable of fully replacing foamed plastic. The material has all the same features as polystyrene in terms of thermal insulation and water resistance, but after the usage it will fully biodegrade in the soil without any trace in 30 days. Today S.Lab has developed its proprietary production technology designed explicitly for plant-based packaging, making it possible to adjust production capacity to meet growing demand.
In this episode, Julia Bialetska, CEO at S.Lab, together with Erki Ani, the founding partner in the pre-seed cleantech VC fund Sunly Future Ventures, discuss blooming Estonian cleantech startup ecosystem, why governments should support innovative entrepreneurship, what key factors contributed to the growth in investments in technological sector and many more. What needs to be done for the next unicorn to be from the climate tech ecosystem?How to evaluate the potential impact of a startup?How can we bring more women to the tech field?Our guest Erki Ani is one of the founders of the Estonian cleantech startup sector and has helped the Estonian cleantech sector develop since its birth. In 2016 he started in Cleantech Estonia as the CEO, leading the acceleration programmes for startups, he's also the Co-Founder of Little Green Fund and one of the region’s first cleantech specialized accelerators, Beamline, combining a portfolio of 100 cleantech startups. He is the co-founder and was the Executive Director of Cleantech for Baltics, making sure that innovation opportunities and policy walk the same path.
Erki Ani Julia Bialetska S.Lab S.Lab produces green packaging combining only two plant-based components. By harvesting the strength of agricultural waste and the binding power of mycelium [the network of mushroom roots], S.Lab creates strong and reliable material capable of fully replacing foamed plastic. The material has all the same features as polystyrene in terms of thermal insulation and water resistance, but after the usage it will fully biodegrade in the soil without any trace in 30 days. Today S.Lab has developed its proprietary production technology designed explicitly for plant-based packaging, making it possible to adjust production capacity to meet growing demand.
In this episode, Julia Bialetska, CEO at S.Lab, together with Raphaele Leyendecker Fabbri, Managing Director at Techstars Sustainability Paris discuss climate tech fundings, how female leadership contributes to the promotion and implementation of environmental and social practices, European startup ecosystem and many more.How to create a funding ecosystem that supports entrepreneurs and their ventures?Female entrepreneurs — who are they? What society do we want to build for future generations? Our guest Raphaele Leyendecker is a sustainability entrepreneur, startup board member and early stage investor in over 60 startups, among which 40% are women founders, in the field of energy, circular economy and sustainable consumption. At the moment is the Managing Director of Techstars Sustainability Paris Accelerator. Her expertise lies in strategic innovation and venture building, as she worked with more than 50 corporations including Schneider Electric, L’Oreal and Nespresso.
This is #1 episode of the podcast 'Show Me Your Actions' where we dive deep into conversations with industry experts on entrepreneurship, circular economy, sustainability, and startup life.Helena Wasserman is a founder of Unstoppable Climate Accelerator and co-founder of Investors for Climate. Over the last decade, Helena worked for the Clinton Foundation, Big Data for Humans, Techstars and Top Tier Impact. Her mission is to empower 1M climate founders to build scalable solutions to fix climate change, and we think that it’s awesome!
In this episode, we talk with Helena about her mission to empower one million entrepreneurs to build scalable solutions that address climate change. She shares what initially motivated her to invest in climate tech and why more and more investors are entering this space today. We look at how the profile of a typical tech investor is shifting and what that means for climate-focused founders — including the unique challenges they face and how investors can actually help mitigate risk along the way.
Our guest also opens up about the persistent gender imbalance in the industry. Nowadays only 2% of funding now goes to female founders. With Helena, we explore the structural barriers behind this number and discuss how the system needs to change to truly support diverse entrepreneurs.