Shimrit Perkol-Finkel, cofounder and CEO of Israeli startup ECOncrete, has had an outstanding month of May.

She was one of four women crowned by the European Union as outstanding female innovators at VivaTech in Paris; received the women’s “Forward Actor of the Year” award at the GreenTech Festival in Berlin; and was named one of Fast Company’s “Most Creative People of 2019.”

ECOncrete pioneered a bio-enhancing concrete technology that increases biodiversity and richness of marine plants and animals at ports, waterfronts and other coastal and marine infrastructures while increasing their strength and resilience to climate change.

ECOncrete was one of six Israeli companies named by Fast Company earlier this year as the world’s most innovative companies, and by Forbes as one of top 50 women-led start-ups pushing the frontiers of innovation.

Perkol-Finkel’s cofounder, marine biologist Ido Sella, was selected by Globes in 2015 as one of Israel’s most promising individuals under 40.

The company has won worldwide design challenges such as HeroX Island of Happiness UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network Coastal Design Competition and the Biomimicry Global Design Challenge.

With 20 years of experience in marine biology and ecology in more than 30 countries, Perkol-Finkel has become a recognized expert in sustainable management of urban marine habitats and eco-engineering of coastal and marine infrastructure.

A Marie Curie Fellow, she is one of five honorees in the WE Empower UN SDG Challenge (a business competition for women entrepreneurs who are advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals) and was a finalist in the Women 4 Climate Tech Challenge.