The Wavebreaker
- United States
- For-profit, including B-Corp or similar models
Climate change is increasing the severity of coastal storms. Current methods of protecting coastal communities are too expensive and take years to build. Most coastal communities around the world cannot afford the current solutions- millions and sometimes billions spent on one structure that doesn’t even cover much of the shore. Coastal communities need multi-faceted protection immediately at an affordable cost that can be deployed rapidly and generate sustainable energy. Traditional methods like building a wall won't work in the future with sea level rise making these seawalls obsolete as the water rises over the walls. Climate disasters cost the world $313B in 2022, and a large portion of this number are hurricanes and typhoons making the cost of rebuilding unsustainable for the future. There needs to be a solution that is multi-use, can protect communities against waves and storm damage, and generate consistent power, especially during disasters.
The solution is The Wavebreaker, a patent-pending technology backed by science and validated by the best engineers around the world. The Wavebreaker is a 300ft wave “speedbump” that decreases the height and velocity of waves to protect coastal communities. The way that it works is that the wave hits the Wavebreaker, the structure bears the brunch force of the wave, it begins to rotate, and as it rotates the remaining waves are dissipated over the grooves, and the energy is converted for community use. The Wavebreaker is a multi-use system that protects the coast, prevents erosion, provides clean wave energy, uses sensors to predict future storms, and after a storm when traditional grid power fails, the Wavebreaker keeps generating power, allowing the use of charging stations on a microgrid. The Wavebreaker is moveable, affordable, scalable, easily deployable, streamlined for manufacturing, and does not get in the way of the fishing or tourism industries. It creates local jobs and will be manufactured in strategic locations around the world. The Wavebreaker can significantly reduce destruction and casualties from storms. We are speaking with communities from North America to Asia and we are going to be conducting a major pilot test next spring.
There are 372,000 miles of coastline on earth and more than half of the population lives within 40 miles of the coast. The main areas that will we concentrate for our market will be North America, the Caribbean, South America, west Africa, east India, Australia, and Southeast Asia because these are the areas in the world that are hit by major storms or have significant erosion issues that are destroying peoples homes. Our target population is mid-income to lower-income communities that do not have the funding or time to defend themselves with concrete walls or large engineering projects. In the United States for instance, most lower-income communities are left unprotected from storms because The Army Corps of Engineers which is supposed to help all Americans has a system called "cost-benefit analysis" where only communities that can afford to put value into the project will be helped. Our Wavebreaker goes right to the communities and because it's easily deployable and moveable it's flexible in where we can protect. The solution will address their needs because it is relatively affordable, will provide consistent power and will protect life and property.
I'm Alex Berkowitz, founder & CEO of Coastal Protection Solutions. In 2012, my hometown of Rockaway Beach, NY was devastated by Hurricane Sandy. After pumping 9 feet of water out of my parent's basement, I took a walk to the beach, only 2 blocks from my home. The beach was destroyed and the homes were decimated by giant 20-foot waves destroying lives and property. I vowed on that beach to never let any other community suffer like mine did- because my story is a global story of communities just trying their hardest to survive climate change. I had an idea on the beach that day that if I could build something that would float in the water and be able to decrease the height and velocity of waves, these homes and the beach would have stood. I worked for 5 years building back the community from the storm, working with numerous community organizations. I got feedback from members of my community about the project, which helped design it. After that, I decided to finalize the invention by going to the Harvard Graduate School of Design. For the last 2 years, I've been spending time listening to communities that are experiencing these issues- from Massachusetts to Indonesia, gathering input, and new ideas, and hearing about possible impediments of government or permitting.
- Adapt cities to more extreme weather, including through climate-smart buildings, incorporating climate risk in infrastructure planning, and restoring regional ecosystems.
- 7. Affordable and Clean Energy
- 11. Sustainable Cities and Communities
- 13. Climate Action
- 14. Life Below Water
- Prototype
We are currently conducting CFD ( Computational Fluid Dynamic) testing and are quantifying the decrease in wave energy and also fine-tuning the design along with the exact geometries. We currently have an LOI for a community in Cape Cod where we will be doing a pilot test with. We have been speaking with communities all over the world who are also interested in doing a pilot.
I am applying to Solve for multiple reasons. First, and most important is that I want to be a part of the Solve ecosystem and connect with other Solvers and mentors and perhaps partner with them on projects. Second, I am applying to Solve to get assistance and connections to expand The Wavebreaker worldwide. I am looking for partners in Asia and West Africa, specifically, to work with on this. I want to be part of the Solve network and I believe I can advance my company and my technology through this.
- Financial (e.g. accounting practices, pitching to investors)
- Human Capital (e.g. sourcing talent, board development)
- Product / Service Distribution (e.g. delivery, logistics, expanding client base)
- Public Relations (e.g. branding/marketing strategy, social and global media)
- Technology (e.g. software or hardware, web development/design)