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MaRS launches recruitment for the 2026–2028 RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator

Applications are now open for the fourth cohort of women-led ventures driving innovation in cleantech.

TORONTO, July 6, 2026 – MaRS Discovery District today announced that applications are now open for the fourth cohort of the RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator, a two-year program designed to help women entrepreneurs bring breakthrough cleantech innovations to market and scale their impact.

Despite the rapid growth of Canada’s clean technology sector, women remain underrepresented, accounting for just 28.6 percent of the environmental and clean technology workforce. The RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator helps address this gap by providing women founders with the resources, expertise and networks needed to accelerate commercialization and growth.

The 2026–2028 accelerator aims to select seven to 10 outstanding women entrepreneurs developing innovative solutions to pressing environmental and societal challenges. Participants will receive tailored support from MaRS advisors, strategic go-to-market guidance, market intelligence, communications services and access to capital, talent, investors and mentors.

The program also offers opportunities to build corporate partnerships, secure contracts and compete for non-dilutive prize funding. Through high-impact events hosted by MaRS and its ecosystem partners, participants will be given the opportunity to connect with industry leaders and join an exclusive MaRS Women in Cleantech Network.

“The RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator has helped women founders strengthen their businesses, attract investment and bring innovative climate solutions closer to market,” says Grace Lee Reynolds, CEO of MaRS. “As we open applications for our fourth cohort, we’re excited to connect with the next generation of women entrepreneurs and provide them with the mentorship, community and strategic support they need to grow.”

“To help respond to the complex issues of climate change and biodiversity loss, we need innovative solutions and diversity of thought and perspective,” says Thea Silver, who is the senior director of environmental impact, sustainability and impact at RBC. “RBC’s support of the RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator reflects this belief. We look forward to learning about this new cohort of entrepreneurs — and seeing their ideas move toward action.”

Between April 2024 and March 2025, founders in the RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator collectively raised more than $7 million in funding and secured $19 million in commercial contracts. Here are some of the key milestones they’ve achieved during their time in the accelerator:

  • ALT-PRO Advantage was selected by Mars Petcare and Big Idea Ventures, as one of three next-generation startups to develop sustainable ingredients using illuminated fermentation.
  • CERT Systems was selected as one of the 16 global winners and the only Canadian team to win Tencent’s prestigious CarbonX 2.0 initiative.
  • Permalution showcased scalable climate adaptation technologies for fog and cloud water harvesting at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
  • Seacork Studio was awarded $389,000 in funding from the CleanBC Plastics Act Fund’s Circular Economy Innovation stream.
  • Seedark developed a partnership with Native Seed Producers of Canada to build out a solution serving seed producers.
  • Synoro Medical Technologies presented at this year’s 2026 Cleantech Forum Asia in Singapore.
  • TerraFixing landed $2.5 million in federal funding from Natural Resources Canada’s Energy Innovation program to proceed with developing a compact direct air capture (DAC) unit.
  • Viridis Research completed a major field pilot program with H&M Group and three textile mill partners in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
  • Xatoms represented Canada at the World Economic Forum as a delegate of UpLink Ventures.

Applications for the 2026–2028 cohort are now open and will close on August 6, 2026. Interested founders can learn more about eligibility requirements and the application process here.

To learn more about the latest cohort, click here.

About MaRS
MaRS Discovery District is a charitable organization and one of North America’s largest urban innovation hubs, helping Canadian science and technology companies commercialize and scale. Building on a 25-year legacy of supporting founders, MaRS connects ventures with capital, customers, talent and expertise — through venture programming and partnerships, MaRS IAF (one of Canada’s most active seed-stage venture funds), MaRS Connect (a live digital marketplace linking commercially ready ventures with buyers, partners and sources of capital), and more than 1.5 million square feet of world-class lab, office and event space across the MaRS Centre and MaRS Waterfront in downtown Toronto. Since 2010, MaRS-supported ventures have generated $11.5 billion in cumulative revenue, raised $19 billion in funding and created and maintained more than 33,000 jobs. For more information, visit RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator.

Contact Information:
Media contact: Amanda Whalen
awhalen@marsdd.com
MaRS Discovery District