And the winners are …

31.01.2022 Idea Call, News

Mushrooms, Plans, Wind and a Train station!

Around 100 viewers waited eagerly at the captivating evening event, which was held online, to see who would be chosen as the winner of our Idea Call! After introductory words of Ministers of the Styrian Provincial Government Barbara Eibinger-Miedl and Johann Seitinger as well as City Councilor Günter Riegler, the interesting evening with a varied program was led by Kirsten Tangemann and Rüdiger Wetzl-Piewald. The viewers learned exciting facts about the world of social entrepreneurship and about the work of the Social Business Hub Styria. The interviews with representatives of the already established impact ventures Julia Unterberger (Sindbad), Matthias Di Felice (Compuritas) and Leonard Röser (Look at the countryside) made the topic even more tangible.

At around 7 p.m. the time had come. The winners, selected by an expert jury from an unbelievable 64 submissions, were solemnly announced:

Atta GmbH: Lion’s Mane mushroom as a healthy meat substitute

With this idea from the “sustainable innovative agriculture/food production” category, the team is contributing to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly diet. The Lion’s Mane mushroom is native to Austria and is perfect as a vegan meat substitute due to its consistency. It can thus help to reduce excessive and health-damaging meat consumption and the associated factory farming. The mushrooms are grown in self-developed breeding facilities, where around 2,000 kg of mushrooms can be harvested monthly on an area of ​​80 square meters. Thanks to this efficiency, the cultivation systems can also be set up in cities and the mushrooms can be transported directly to the consumer without long transport routes. There is no waste whatsoever from the entire process, as all leftover materials can be composted. In the future, there are plans to expand the project even more towards a circular economy.

This idea came from Sebastian Modl, Andreas Haigl, Mario Grintschler and Christoph Kovacic from ATTA GmbH.ph Kovacic von der ATTA GmbH.


reach interactive GmbH: AccessYourCity – the barrier-free city map

The team developed an online platform that enables people with disabilities to find barrier-free and easily accessible restaurants, hotels and other business and leisure facilities tailored to their individual needs. The special feature also lies in the possibility of selecting relevant aspects of accessibility and filtering companies accordingly. This project aims to contribute to a more inclusive society and better coexistence between people with and without disabilities. For those affected, it offers an important piece of more self-determination. The platform is to be rolled out first in Graz.

Simon Jimenez and Peter Waltl from reach interactive GmbH in Graz are behind the idea.

Renewgery: wind panel – sustainable electricity fro

The team developed an online platform that enables people with disabilities to find barrier-free and easily accessible restaurants, hotels and other business and leisure facilities tailored to their individual needs. The special feature also lies in the possibility of selecting relevant aspects of accessibility and filtering companies accordingly. This project aims to contribute to a more inclusive society and better coexistence between people with and without disabilities. For those affected, it offers an important piece of more self-determination. The platform is to be rolled out first in Graz.

This ambitious project was submitted by Markus Schlagbauer, Harald Noack, Rene Maiberg and Horst Kautschitz from the company Renewegery, who have recently been working on their plans with the support of Science Park Graz.


Landjugend Gnas: Timetable for revitalizing the train station in Gnas

This year’s special prize for regional commitment went to young people living in the rural area of Gnas with their timetable for revitalizing the Gnas train station. The train station is currently in a desolate condition – but thanks to the active commitment of rural youth, this should soon change. The sanitary facilities are to be brought up to date again and catering for train passengers is to be made possible. In addition, the young team is planning a small railway history museum, a youth room and several areas for general use. The revitalization will also allow the station to be used for various events in the future. With these measures, tourism can be strengthened and young people get a new meeting place. Real added value for the entire region.

We are delighted to have received these innovative ideas and the outstanding commitment behind them.

The winners were surprised with an invitation to a video call and connected live to the award ceremony.


At the end of the event, the newly crowned winners were surprised with an invitation to join the event live via video call! Am Höhepunkt der Veranstaltung wurden die frisch gekürten Preisträger*innen mit einer Einladung, dem Event per Videocall live beizutreten, überrascht!

We would like to encourage all applicants who did not receive an award this year to stick with it and work on their ideas. Of course, with such a large number of submissions, not all of them can be awarded, but every idea that has reached us has the potential for a better and more sustainable future. In addition, of course, everyone has the opportunity to submit their idea at our next ideas call!


You can find out exactly what is behind the exciting winning projects and how they will continue on our website and our social media presence.

Missed the awards ceremony? Here is the link to the video of the entire event!

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