Meet Nima

Nima ShahabShahmir, a 2018 winner of the Youth Innovation Challenge, shares his thoughts on the connection between creativity, entrepreneurship, and action.

Inspiration strikes during the most unexpected of moments. The idea for Future Fungi, for example, grew from an observation Nima had while watching his grandparents repot plants years ago. In its most basic inception, his idea came from the curious realization that plant roots, when moved from one plant base to another, clung tight to the soil they’d grown in. This realization posed an important question to Nima: If roots can hold tight to the soil, despite the fact they’ve just been unceremoniously separated from their environment, what other substances can they be bound to?

Years later, Nima shared the answer to his question with us in the form of Future Fungi, a biodegradable solution to the global styrofoam and plastic problem. His innovative alternative uses mushroom roots (mycelium), to create lightweight, shock absorbent and compostable replacements for products ranging from packing peanuts to baseboard panels.

It was this idea, and its transformative potential, that won Nima the 2018 prize for the Youth Innovation Challenge. While he remains busy with developing his innovative approach to this major waste problem, he took some time to talk with us about his thoughts on the connection between creativity and action:

“I like to think about it like 3D printing but using natural substances!”

CEC: What was your winning idea/innovation for the Youth Innovation Challenge? What made you apply to the challenge?

Nima: My idea for the 2018 Youth Innovation Challenge was Future Fungi, LLC. The core mission of this research/business is to reduce plastic use by introducing a biodegradable material that nature is most familiar with. This substance is the mycelium (roots of mushroom) of edible mushrooms which bounds particles together and then it is easily molded into different templates to create a variety of products. I like to think about it like 3D printing but using natural substances!

CEC: What methods and strategies do you use to move from ideas to action?

Research is definitely one of the most important aspects when it comes to moving an idea to action. Developing an idea into a real-world application requires detailed information about each stage of the project. Of course, you can never predict the entire scope of the project, but I believe that by learning about each step of it, you will become more familiar with the overall vision. The benefit of this strategy is that as you turn an imaginary idea into a real-world project, it will be much easier to envision where the project shines or could be improved.

CEC: Remaining consistent and dedicated to an idea or project can be difficult. How do you stay motivated with your ideas?

The path to maturing an innovative idea is not the easiest but it is definitely worth it because you will create countless connections with professionals and learn how to problem-solve different aspects of the project along the way. Sometimes those who are trying to help you may not grasp the purpose of the project as you do, therefore I believe that communication is definitely an important key to remain consistent on all levels. And of course, the experimentations and prototypes may not always work flawlessly, learn from the mistakes made and use them as motivation to get one step closer to your goal!

CEC: What are some current and unique challenges young innovators face in the development of their ideas?

In my opinion, one of the first difficult steps for any research idea is to be able to receive an accurate scientific response to your idea and secondly, learning if this idea could be potentially viable from the business perspective. Young innovators across the globe are constantly observing environmental issues either by being face to face or learning about them using online communications.

CEC: Do you think climate change is one of those challenges?

It really depends on the project and its aim for helping the environment. I believe, [however], that any environmental and innovative business idea can [combat] rapid global climate change. For instance, my project is about reducing the use of plastics and styrofoam material by introducing a natural substance as a biodegradable substitute. This project may not be directly helping with climate change but by reducing the daily use of plastics, it could indirectly help with global temperatures as well. Plastics not only pollute our oceans — producing such materials are responsible for a large amount of global greenhouse gas emissions.

CEC: What are some other issues that make it difficult to move from idea to action?
…Sometimes it can be difficult to explain the main goal of [a] project to business coaches or investors since these professionals may have a different perspective on a “successful business start-up”. Innovative environmental business ideas can be mistakenly compared to many huge companies as their rivals. I personally believe that such [a] comparison is unfair and will only keep the project from succeeding in the near future.

CEC: What is one piece of advice you’d give to a young entrepreneur who is thinking of applying to the Youth Innovation Challenge?

My advice to young entrepreneurs and innovators is [to know] that your main vision for a project never stays the same, it goes through revisions, changes, and matures. Never get stuck holding on to your initial idea. Instead, give it some room and watch it grow!