Go Move: Pollinating Ideas to Protect the Planet
My family volunteers for a non-profit that supports a healthy ecosystem for pollinators in our hometown, and it’s gratifying to see my children learn about native plants to protect bees, birds and butterflies. Rowan, my 10-year-old son, is getting his hands dirty collecting seeds and learning about gardening for nature, and how pollinators need more native plants to increase our biodiversity.
Pollination of ideas is big in business, too. It’s about putting together the right mix of people in an environment to share knowledge and spark creative ferment.
We’re fostering this approach at Magna through an initiative that brought together our mobility technology company, automotive supplier BASF, five nonautomotive startups, and Greentown Labs, the largest climatetech startup incubator in North America.
The goal: develop solutions to decarbonize the automotive industry. “Let’s reimagine the way we move” was the mandate.
Called Greentown Go Move 2022, the project gave startups the opportunity to compete and then collaborate with two leading companies to help build their fledgling businesses. At the same time, it exposed everyone involved to new ways of thinking. Go Move 2022 wrapped up on May 11 with a showcase event. Most importantly, the project resulted in some key insights.
Impact is a key takeaway. By combining the power of Magna with BASF and the startups, we can make a bigger difference in creating more sustainable products and processes. These include partnering with startups that focus on bio-based materials with lower carbon footprints and greater recyclability throughout the lifetime of the product.
We’ve also made inroads into developing a “supply chain for collaboration” as we envision a path to production.
For example, startups can interact with farmers growing crops, such as hemp or agave. BASF can prepare the raw material for use in everything from more sustainable plastic pallets used in factories to parts for doors. Magna can make the automotive parts for our global customers.
We’re well suited to collaborate with startups because we understand their mentality. We pride ourselves on being a company of entrepreneurs with a startup mentality. We share core values, especially “think big” and “be collaborative.” We’re known for operating at a faster speed and with greater agility. Together, we can accelerate each other’s business.
Other sustainability challenges are on the horizon for Magna, including ones that focus on manufacturing and energy conservation. Of course, we’ll be looking to partner with more startups as we meld ideas and develop the best innovations. It’s all about successful cross-pollination, whether you’re planting a garden or protecting the planet.
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