关于护肤产品中石化的嗡嗡声并不是一个主流模因，但证据很明显。Vaseline’s label trumpets its status as 100 percent petroleum jelly, but any non "clean" product soaked with mineral oil (hydration), polyethylene (penetration), sodium laureth sulfate (for cleansing), isopropyl alcohol (disinfecting) or benzene (scent) is also culpable. Heck,甚至我们今天知道的阿司匹林was discovered during experiments with coal tar. Bet you didn’t know that. I didn’t.

So, even as the world transitions to cleaner energy sources, the economy’s reliance on chemicals refined from crude oil, coal and natural gas continues to grow.一项研究预测预测related revenue will top $888 billion in 2028, up dramatically from about $372 billion in 2020. The oil majors have an interest in seeing that number rise to preserve their value. Consider that about 30 percent of埃克森美孚在2021年的收入came from petrochemicals, up substantially from 2020. (2020 is a tough year for comparisons, for obvious reasons, but that percentage is still nothing to sneeze at.)

气候技术材料对石油化学材料的成瘾是在大自然发展的气候材料启动，借助桑叶叶丝虫的帮助。该公司正在开发其活化的丝绸技术，以替代某些石化成分，从护肤产品和皮革和其他纺织品的保护涂料开始。进行转换既具有气候影响，从而减少了对化石燃料的依赖，也有人类健康的益处，有助于消除已知的内分泌干扰物的成分。联合创始人兼首席执行官格雷格·奥特曼（Greg Altman）上周对我说：“世界需要面对当今挑战的药物和材料，而不会对明天产生影响。”

6月下旬，这家波士顿地区公司与安大略省教师养老金计划委员会的风险投资集团一起披露了1.2亿美元的C系列资金，以及纽约对冲基金参议员投资集团。输液使公司的总支持达到2.11亿美元；以前的投资者包括杰夫·维尼克（Boston Red Sox的少数所有者），罗伊·迪斯尼（Roy Disney）（是的，那个迪士尼家族）和翡翠开发经理（纽约的早期风险基金）。

自然界的生物技术的进化核心是天然丝绸蛋白，该公司变成生物活性分子，可用于将保护性屏障应用于各种类型的皮肤。阿尔特曼说，该公司已经创建了可以用水稀释的浓缩片。然后将其在激活的丝绸品牌下销售的溶液被喷涂到皮革上，以制成防护涂层，以排斥水分，取代了今天用于此目的的薄聚氨酯膜的需求。通过以平板电脑形式交付其产品，该公司减少了水重的排放影响。

The Evolved By Nature coating is ultimately biodegradable, making it simpler to reclaim and reuse the material. "When you are done using it, it can go back into the earth’s circular economy," Altman said. Evolved By Nature is already working with fashion brands including Anya Hindmarch, leather tanneries such as Richard Hoffmans and nylon mills Alpine Creations and Apex Holdings on the application described above.

The approach is slightly different for skincare products. In those applications, Activated Silk could be used to deliver and lock in moisture, as it already does withits own brand of hand soap. While Altman was not at liberty to discuss customers, Evolved By Nature is working with a large consumer packaged goods company on personal care products that should be on shelves in the CVS retail drug store chain later this year.

The money from the Series C round will help the company grow its manufacturing capacity in Walpole, Massachusetts, from 150 metric tons of Activated Silk to 900 metric tons per year in 2024. For perspective, the company said that translates into the production of "900 million jars of petrochemical-free skincare, 150 million square feet of biodegradable, polyurethane-free leather, sustainable finish chemistry for 195 million pieces of performance apparel or a replacement for 7,200 metric tons of non-biodegradable petrochemical surfactants" from skin cleansing products.

"Evolved By Nature has a compelling vision to break through new scientific boundaries to reduce our reliance on problematic chemicals and build better, more sustainable supply chains in the process," said Olivia Steedman, senior managing director of Teachers’ Venture Growth, in a statement. "We’re delighted to partner with them in executing this vision and growing their operations globally."

在大自然的计划中，在接下来的18个月中，其劳动力几乎将其劳动力翻了一番。其发展计划还有另一个潜在的上涨空间，它超出了自己的劳动力：该公司希望为更广泛使用的机会创造机会粒土— the practice of raising mulberry trees, which silkworms eat to produce silk. The trees also help prevent soil erosion, and the berries are a source of protein, making them a potential new form of revenue for agronomists and farmers seeking to use their land for different crops. Mulberry trees, for example, enjoy the same conditions as vineyards.

While the company expects to focus on U.S. manufacturing capabilities, it anticipates cultivating relationships with farmers in China, Italy, Africa and Colombia, according to Altman. What’s more, he insists that using Activated Silk as a replacement isn’t disruptive to established production processes, which makes it fairly simple to embrace this substitute. "The most important point to make is that change is feasible now… The change is happening as we speak," Altman said.