Brightwater Tools, a Vermont-based water technology company in CORI’s Green Mountain Accelerator Fund portfolio, has been selected for two highly regarded water-tech accelerator programs: the 2026 Imagine H2O Accelerator and The Water Council’s 2026 BREW 2.0 Post-Accelerator.

Based in Brattleboro, Vermont, Brightwater Tools is reimagining how buildings manage wastewater. The company develops systems that turn high-strength liquid waste streams, including sewage, into two valuable resources: non-potable water for reuse and concentrated nutrients that can be made into safe, natural fertilizer. In simple terms, Brightwater Tools is helping shift wastewater from a disposal problem into a circular resource system.

Communities, developers, farmers, and water systems are all facing growing pressure around water quality, wastewater capacity, nutrient pollution, fertilizer costs, and climate resilience. Today, many wastewater solutions still rely on costly centralized infrastructure, energy-intensive treatment systems, or waste-hauling models that are difficult to scale, especially in rural areas, agricultural settings, and areas where infrastructure is already strained. Brightwater’s technology sits at the intersection of those challenges. Their patented Freeze Concentrator could be a major industry disruptor, offering a new way to recover valuable nutrients and reusable water from waste streams. By recovering those resources at or near the source, the company is advancing a more distributed, practical, and resource-conscious approach to sanitation infrastructure.

The company’s selection into two global accelerator programs underscores the relevance of that work. It is also another reminder that transformative technology can be built from rural places, and that the ideas needed to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges are not confined to major tech hubs.

Imagine H2O’s 2026 Accelerator selected just 10 companies from more than 220 applications across more than 30 countries. The program is designed to help water entrepreneurs move from promising technology to real-world adoption by connecting them with customers, investors, mentors, and sector expertise. For Brightwater Tools, participation will provide access to a global network focused on helping water solutions scale in a sector where procurement, trust, validation, and customer fit are essential.

In The Water Council’s BREW 2.0 Post-Accelerator, Brightwater Tools is joining a 2026 cohort of 11 companies from eight countries. Based in Milwaukee, The Water Council is a globally recognized water technology hub, and BREW 2.0 is designed for companies ready to sharpen their go-to-market strategy, connect with corporate partners, and prepare for growth. The program includes targeted sales training, investor access, cohort programming, and opportunities to engage directly with industry leaders.

Together, these two programs offer Brightwater Tools more than recognition. They create pathways to customers, partners, capital, and market insight that can help the company commercialize and scale its solutions.

That is especially important in water technology, where good ideas must clear high bars for reliability, adoption, regulation, and customer trust. Accelerator programs like these can help companies bridge the gap between innovation and implementation, supporting founders as they move from technical promise to market traction.