The climate future needs builders. Let's make sure youth are ready.
Bioloop Foundation launches Season 1 — embedding clean tech startups directly into classrooms, igniting entrepreneurial thinking, and showing young people the solutions start with them.
500+
youth — Season 1 goal
10
founding schools
8
startup partners
1
launch city
Four ways to close the loop
Every Bioloop program is designed so youth don't just learn about climate — they meet the people building solutions and start building their own.
In-school showcases
Clean tech startups deliver 5 live sessions inside classrooms — tech demos, founder stories, and real design challenges.
Design sprints
48-hour weekend hackathons where youth prototype real solutions with startup mentors coaching every team.
Job shadow days
High schoolers spend a full day inside a clean tech startup — standups, labs, and lunch with the founder.
Inaugural showcase
Our first-ever public pitch event — youth, founders, and community coming together for Season 1.
Innovation Sandbox
A therapeutic open studio at The Gathering Place — healing through circular design, repair, and community-led creation.
The Bioloop model
Click each stage to learn what happens
Discover
Learn
Build
Launch
Mentor
Youth encounter climate challenges and clean tech for the first time — through their classroom, a startup demo, or a conversation that sparks curiosity.
From the Bioloop team
Announcement
Bioloop Foundation officially launches — Season 1 applications now open
Founding schools, startups, and youth can now apply. Rolling review — spots are limited.
Partners
Meet our 8 founding startup partners joining Season 1
Save the date: Inaugural Youth Climate Showcase — Fall 2026
Youth pitches, live tech demos, a careers panel, and a community celebration.
Announcement
Bioloop receives founding grant from regional climate education fund
Covering Season 1 delivery, supply kits, transit support, and our inaugural Showcase.
Climate knowledge check
Three quick questions — how climate-ready are you?
Which sector produces the largest share of global greenhouse gas emissions?
Latest updates
From the Bioloop team
Launch announcements, partner reveals, and community updates as we build Season 1 from the ground up.
Season 1 · 2026
Programs designed for every kind of learner
No prior science or tech background required. Every program is built around curiosity, not credentials. Founded 2022.
Clean Tech Showcase
Flagship · Launching Fall 2026
Grades 7 – 12
Startups visit classrooms across 5 structured sessions — delivering live tech demos, founder stories, design challenges, and a final student pitch celebration. No prior knowledge needed. The loop starts here.
Grades7 – 12
FormatIn-school · 5 sessions
Duration8 – 10 weeks
Season 1 target8 startups · 10 classrooms
Cost to schoolsFree
StatusApplications open
Climate Design Sprint
Enrichment · Inaugural Sprint October 2026
Ages 14 – 19
A 48-hour weekend hackathon where teams of youth prototype real climate solutions. Startup mentors circulate as coaches, not judges. Every team receives written feedback and public recognition — there are no losers here.
Ages14 – 19
FormatWeekend event · in-person
Inaugural sprintOctober 2026
Team size3 – 5 youth
CostFree
StatusRegistration opening soon
Startup Job Shadow Day
Career · Grades 10 – 12
Grades 10 – 12
Cohorts of 4 – 6 students spend a full day inside a clean tech startup. Morning standup, hands-on lab time, lunch with the founder, and an afternoon debrief they bring back to their class. Transit support arranged for all participants.
Grades10 – 12
FormatOn-site · 1 full day
Transit supportFully arranged
Group size4 – 6 students
CostFree
StatusExpress interest now
Youth Climate Showcase
Community · Inaugural event Fall 2026
All ages
Our first-ever public showcase — youth pitches, a live clean tech demo fair, a climate careers panel, and a community celebration. This is the founding moment of Bioloop. Be part of it from the start.
WhoAll ages welcome
FormatInaugural public event
DateFall 2026 · TBC
SpotsOpen — register interest
Frequently asked questions
Season 1 · 2026
Where we are headed
After three years of groundwork since our 2022 incorporation, we are launching Season 1. These are our goals and the outcomes we are designing toward — we will measure and publish actual results at season end.
0
youth — Season 1 goal
0
founding schools
0
startup partners
1
launch city
5
sessions per classroom
100%
free for all students
What we expect youth to gain
Projected knowledge confidence lift by topic area, based on comparable youth climate education research. We will measure actual pre/post scores at season end.
Typical starting levelTarget after program
Season 1 launch — Vancouver, BC
Targeting school districts across Metro Vancouver. Expansion to additional cities planned for Season 2.
School selection targets — equity first
Priority placement for schools in underserved neighbourhoods and Indigenous communities.
Priority neighbourhood 50%Mainstream 30%Indigenous community 20%
Career awareness goals by sector
Interest shift we aim to unlock in youth — measured via pre/post surveys.
Why this matters
"Too many young people think climate action means sacrifice, not opportunity. We want every student who comes through Bioloop to leave knowing they could be the one who builds the solution."
Jaime Cabrera Melendez · Founder & Executive Director, Bioloop Foundation
"We have seen firsthand what happens when a founder walks into a classroom and says: I was your age, I had no idea what I was doing, and look what I built. That moment changes something."
Maria Paula Cabrera Meléndez · Senior Program Manager
"The clean tech sector needs the next generation — not in 10 years, but now. Showing up in schools is the best investment we can make."
Founding startup partner · Season 1 cohort
Incorporated 2022 · Our story
Founded by Jaime Cabrera Melendez
Bioloop Foundation is a British Columbia–based nonprofit advancing circular economy, sustainability, and community-led innovation. It convenes youth, innovators, governments, and community partners through workshops, hackathons, and public engagement to co-design regenerative solutions aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals — creating platforms where diverse voices, especially those historically underrepresented, can shape more equitable and circular futures. Learn more at www.bioloopfoundation.org
Mission
To cultivate regenerative innovation by creating spaces for slow incubation, meaningful mentorship, and community-led collaboration — empowering inventors, artists, designers, engineers, and knowledge-keepers to co-design circular systems that restore ecosystems, strengthen local economies, and advance equitable, decolonial futures.
Vision
A world where communities lead regenerative innovation — where circular systems replace extractive ones, creativity and ancestral knowledge guide design, and economies are rooted in care, equity, and ecological balance for generations to come.
What we stand for
Radical inclusion
No prerequisite knowledge, no barrier to entry. Every student belongs in the clean tech future.
Systems thinking
We teach youth to see connections, not just parts — because that is how climate solutions actually work.
Authentic relationships
Startups show up for students, not for marketing. Real relationships, real conversations, real change.
Evidence-based design
Every program is measured, iterated, and improved. We publish what we learn — good or bad.
The founding team
Jaime Cabrera Melendez
Founder & Executive Director
Maria Paula Cabrera Meléndez
Head of Programs
Sarah Armstrong
Head of Finance
Devon Arbuthnot
Head of Partnerships
Jaime Cabrera Perdomo
Head of Development
Esperanza Melendez Perez
Head of Marketing
Funding & governance
Bioloop Foundation is a registered nonprofit governed by an independent board of directors. All funders are vetted for values alignment. No advertiser or corporate funder influences program content or partner selection. We publish an annual audited financial report.
42%
Philanthropic
Climate-focused foundations
35%
Government grants
Federal & provincial education programs
23%
Corporate partners
Clean tech ecosystem partners
Ready to close the loop?
Book a free 30-minute call directly with Jaime Cabrera Melendez, Founder of Bioloop Foundation — whether you are a school, startup, youth participant, or volunteer. Jaime would love to hear from you.
Schools
10 founding spots · rolling review
Startups
Founding cohort · 8 partners
Youth
Design sprints · job shadows
Volunteers
Mentors · facilitators · events
Book a 30-minute call with Jaime
Pick a time that works for you. You will receive a Google Meet link by email once confirmed. Jaime Cabrera Melendez, Founder of Bioloop Foundation, looks forward to connecting with you.
A Regenerative Open Studio for Healing, Skills Development & Circular Innovation
In partnership with The Gathering Place Community Centre, Downtown Vancouver — a 6-month pilot program proposing a therapeutic, open-studio environment where participants heal through hands-on creation while developing practical skills aligned with circular economy practices.
6
month pilot
8–10
participants (target)
65–75%
weekly attendance goal
100%
free for participants
What is the Innovation Sandbox?
Proposed in partnership with The Gathering Place Community Centre, serving Vancouver's Downtown South community.
The Innovation Sandbox proposes a community-based therapeutic open studio at The Gathering Place — a space where participants heal through hands-on creation while developing practical skills aligned with circular economy practices.
The Sandbox will provide slow incubation, mentorship, and project-based learning for Gathering Place members — particularly those facing barriers related to housing instability, poverty, mental health challenges, and social isolation.
Through creative exploration, systems thinking, and regenerative design, participants co-create small-scale circular solutions that benefit both themselves and the broader community.
Why The Gathering Place?
The Gathering Place Community Centre serves community members in Vancouver's Downtown South, many of whom experience social and economic marginalization.
🌅
Meaningful engagement
Purposeful daytime programming
🧠
Mental wellness
Support through creative practice
🛠
Employable skills
Confidence through real work
🤝
Community connection
Belonging and peer networks
🌱
Purpose-driven pathways
Toward livelihood and impact
Four core components
Each component is designed to meet participants where they are and build toward where they want to go.
Open Studio Healing Lab
A dedicated weekly drop-in space to repair, upcycle, prototype, and create — with access to mentorship and reflective dialogue at every session.
Personalized guidance from technical experts, artists, engineers, and Indigenous knowledge-keepers — matched to each participant's lived experience and interests.
Community Showcase & Micro-Pilots
Participants exhibit projects, pilot small-scale circular initiatives, and build confidence through public presentation at The Gathering Place.
Therapeutic & trauma-informed approach
The Sandbox is not a clinical program — it is designed with therapeutic principles that create safety, agency, and belonging. "Healing through doing" is the guiding philosophy.
✓ Choice-based participation
Participants decide what they work on and when
✓ Gentle pacing
Slow incubation over rapid output
✓ Non-competitive
Strength-based language throughout
✓ Collective reflection
Reflection circles build community and insight
"Healing through doing" allows participants to rebuild self-trust, regain creative agency, experience accomplishment, and reconnect to purpose.
Project ideas
Small, achievable projects that build confidence, portfolio pieces, and practical skills. Click each to explore.
6-month pilot timeline
Expected outcomes
Individual outcomes
✓ Increased confidence & self-efficacy
✓ Skill development across disciplines
✓ Improved mental well-being
✓ Expanded social networks
✓ Portfolio-ready projects
Community outcomes
✓ Strengthened peer connections
✓ Circular initiatives at The Gathering Place
✓ Increased sustainability awareness
✓ Reduced material waste through repair
✓ Replicable model for other centres
Well-being & skill development targets
Measured via self-assessments at intake, midpoint, and completion of the pilot.
Interested in the Innovation Sandbox?
Whether you are a community partner, funder, mentor, or participant — Jaime would love to connect and explore how we can build this together.
