Panathenea highlights: cloud seeding, marine pollution and Climate Coffee

We had countless inspiring conversations at Panāthēnea last week. But two really stood out...

The first was with Alex Laplaza from Rainmaker Technology Corporation, who is developing the next generation of cloud seeding technologies. Their technology will be able to increase rainfall over a target area by 10–15%. For all the controversy surrounding cloud seeding as a tech area, it remains one of the best mechanisms for replenishing aquifers, and an inevitability that governments – from the US, to Greece, to Australia – are exploring today.

The second was with Orestis Pantelis Angouridakis, an ambassador of an impactful initiative called Eyesea, who use crowd-sourced photos, satellite spectrometry, and AI analytics to map marine pollution and turn it into actionable insights for local clean-ups and policy-making. We think there must be an impactful partnership waiting to happen between Eyesea and Enaleia, who train and incentivise fishermen to bring the plastic they 'catch' at sea back to port, alongside their regular fish catch.

Worth also noting that both of these conversations happened at Climate Coffee Athens, hosted by Investing For Purpose. It's a brilliant event that we'd recommend to anyone who is in Athens on the last Thursday of any month, likes passionate conversations about the climate over good coffee, and is capable of waking up early 😉

Lastly, a massive thank you to the Panathenea team for putting this event together. Besides the long queues, unenjoyable chemical porter loo experiences, and heaps of single-use packaging waste – the 3 days were fantastic, and we're very much looking forward to the next!

We hope to catch you all there in 2027.