Impact Panel is a research project aimed at developing a new monitoring system designed to systematically measure the long-term environmental, economic and social impacts of start-ups. In times of major societal challenges, it is crucial to be able to better understand the actual impact of sustainable start-ups. Start-ups can make important contributions to environmental and climate protection. However, there is often a lack of reliable long-term data to assess their impact beyond individual funding programmes or short evaluation periods. This new project, funded by the German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU), addresses precisely this issue by developing the so-called ‘Impact Panel’ over a period of 18 months. 

The aim:

• To develop a long-term business panel for measuring the impacts of start-ups
• To record environmental, economic and social impacts, as well as key success factors and barriers
• Linking prospective impact assessments with actual outcomes
• Establishing indicators, data architecture and survey and sampling methodologies for systematic impact monitoring

The benefits:

• Making impact visible: Start-ups’ contributions to sustainability can be measured in a long-term and transparent manner
• Improving funding: Funding programmes, investments and support services can be better aligned with actual impact
• Inform decisions: Policymakers, funding bodies, investors and start-up stakeholders receive more reliable data to support impact-driven decisions
• Strengthening innovation: Green start-ups and comparison groups can be systematically analysed, and success factors better understood