DESCA

05/13/2025

🌱 Startups of the First State
DESCA Spotlight: Livestock Labs Is Rethinking Meat from the Cell Up

At DESCA, we’re proud to support science-driven startups solving real-world challenges—and few are thinking bigger than Livestock Labs.

This early-stage venture, co-founded by Andrew Sayles, is working on the next frontier of cultivated meat. Their focus? Engineering robust, genetically optimized cell lines that can make lab-grown meat not only more sustainable—but also more scalable, affordable, and flavorful.

In our interview with Andrew, two things stood out:
1️⃣ The massive potential to slash agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, and
2️⃣ His casual confidence that one day, cultivated meat could fulfill the dream of an ethically sourced Komodo dragon burger.

This is what DESCA is all about: supporting visionaries who merge scientific rigor with planet-sized ambition.

🔗 Learn more about Livestock Labs: Livestock Labs on LinkedIn

04/23/2025

This Earth Day, DESCA celebrates the makers, thinkers, and doers who are turning bold ideas into real-world solutions. From bio-based materials that cut waste to novel catalysts that curb emissions, our mission is to empower sustainable science—fueling breakthroughs that restore ecosystems, safeguard communities, and pave the way to a cleaner, fairer future.

Together, we can transform environmental challenges into opportunities for innovation. Let’s harness the limitless potential of STEM to heal our world.

08/02/2024

Congratulations DESCA Chair Erica Nemser and the Ardent Team!

Congratulations to DESCA Chair Erica Nemser, CEO of Ardent, and the entire Ardent Team for being featured as a company to to watch in Decarb Connect's "Ones to Watch: Climate Tech Start ups and Scale ups 2024" report an...

10/24/2023

Calling all University of Delaware students: Join us for Ready to Launch with Spotlight Company Chesapeake Utilities Corporation

One of the partners in the Mid-Atlantic Hydrogen Hub, Chesapeake Utilities is more than your utilities provider. Come and learn how this company has evolved from its origins as the Dover Gas Light Company to its increasing focus on sustainability, hydrogen energy and biogas from waste.

LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER! https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/qnstwyb

10/13/2023

WE DID IT! Just over two years ago, DESCA began convening Delaware stakeholders in industry, academia, and government to discuss the viability of a hydrogen hub in Delaware. Similar discussions were taking place throughout the US and particularly in SE Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey. The Delaware stakeholders soon partnered with the two latter groups and together we formed the Mid Atlantic Green Hydrogen Hub (MACH2) and submitted an application to the Department of Energy under its Regional Clean Hydrogen Program. Today we see the result of our efforts: MACH2 has been selected as one of 7 clean hydrogen hubs that will jumpstart America's clean hydrogen economy. Words cannot express how proud DESCA and the MACH2 team are of this achievement!
https://desca.net/f/mach2-chosen-by-doe-as-one-of-7-hydrogen-hubs

08/30/2023

Medical can save lives but getting inventions to market isn’t easy. Online training under development by DESCA, University of Delaware and InsiteHub can help prepare biomedical to make the leap.

On August 21, 2023, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded a grant through the IDeA Program to iRED University – a new collaboration between DESCA, the University of Delaware and InsiteHub – that will deliver an...

01/02/2023

We are pleased to announce that the Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub Team has been given the green light by the DOE to submit a full application. The DOE received nearly 80 concept papers, 33 of which were encouraged to submit a full application by April, 2023. Forming part of the larger $8 billion hydrogen hub program funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs program includes up to $7 billion to establish up to 10 regional clean hydrogen hubs across the US.

As the Department of Energy deadline for hydrogen hub concept papers drew to a close, the Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub (MACH2) team submitted a comprehensive outline for the production, processing, delivery, storage a...

11/21/2022

What does a hydrogen hub mean for the mid-Atlantic?

As the Department of Energy deadline for hydrogen hub concept papers drew to a close, the Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub (MACH2) team submitted a comprehensive outline for the production, processing, delivery, storage a...

11/02/2022

A full house last night at the University of DelawareUniversity of Delaware as DESCA's Ready to Launch series spotlights Croda. Company leaders and employees discussed their career pathways and shared their insights with students.

The Ready to Launch series, sponsored by DuPont is a monthly series of seminars/networking events that will be held both at the University of Delaware and Delaware State University. Each month spotlights a different STEM company in the region.

10/19/2022

Check out the companies that presented at DESCA's 6th Investor Forum, upcoming events focused on clean technologies, and discover which Delaware company was recently included among the "10 Most Promising Companies."
https://conta.cc/3CPAvtx

    News & Updates   October 2022   11 Startups Showcased at DESCA's 6th Annual Investor Forum DESCA held its first Investor Forum in 2013 to connect angel investors and venture funds with emerging, h

10/18/2022

DESCA's Ready to Launch series kicks off at the University of Delaware with DuPont. Company Leaders F. Renarde Hill, Wanda Watson, Rebekah Lazar, and Haoyu Zhang discuss STEM career pathways and share insights with students. The Ready to Launch series, sponsored by DuPont is a monthly series of seminars/networking events that will be held both at the University of Delaware and Delaware State University. Each month spotlights a different STEM company in the region.

09/12/2022

Join us in Washington DC this November!

Join DESCA at the AFCC Biobased Economy Conference in Washington DC this November where we will be hosting a symposium on building a hydrogen consumer base and enabling adoption as the discussion around clean energy and ...