Sequoia Climate Foundation
OVERVIEW: The Sequoia Climate Foundation supports climate change and clean energy, sustainable agriculture, and environmental justice.
IP TAKE: This is a young funder positioned to make a big impact. Its first round of grantmaking alone earned it a spot among the top climate funders in the world. One estimate ranked it as the 11th largest environmental funder in 2021. The foundation is not afraid to take “calculated risks,” which means it is not a conventional climate funder.
Sequoia has been a fairly opaque funder, but the foundation’s new grant database will better clarify where money is spent. However, it does not accept unsolicited requests for funding, so grantseekers will find it difficult to gain support here.
PROFILE: Established in 2020 and based in Irvine, CA, the Sequoia Climate Foundation “believes in a world powered by clean energy, where all people are protected by policies that have averted the worst effects of climate change.” An offshoot of Wellspring Philanthropic Fund, it is one of the largest organizations working in climate change philanthropy. The foundation seeks “to support “ambitious organizations and coalitions catalyzing rapid emissions reductions, transforming global markets, and accelerating the transition to clean energy around the world.” Sequoia’s grantmaking supports climate interventions that will have an impact by 2030, the deadline under the Paris Agreement for the world to cut emissions by half. Its nascent grantmaking prioritizes climate change and clean energy, as well as sustainable agriculture and environmental justice.
Grants for Climate Change and Clean Energy, and Sustainable Agriculture
Sequoia supports organizations and groups working in clean energy, sustainable agriculture and food, environmental justice, and climate change. It works “across regions and sectors to support grantees taking bold and ambitious actions to drive down emissions and accelerate a just and equitable transition to clean energy.” That said, the foundation’s grant database reveals that climate and clean energy grants invest in everything from climate education, climate policy, environmental justice, and sustainable food systems to decarbonization efforts.
- Sequoia looks for grantees positioned to make an immediate significant impact and supports projects and initiatives in places where its grants can make the greatest difference.
- It also considers cost and the probability of success. It is willing to “take calculated risks on strategies that are justified by their transformative potential.”
- Sequoia emphasizes that it supports groups and projects that address climate change’s disproportionate impact on “underserved communities and at-risk global populations, including communities of color.” This means your climate and energy work should center on more equitable social outcomes.
It has supported organizations around the world, including $28 million to the European Climate Foundation, where Sequoia’s president, Christie Ulman, serves on the supervisory board, and the Sunrise Project, Australia-based climate justice group.
Additional grantees include ClimateWorks, Instituto Clima e Sociedade, and the Energy Foundation, which received $16 million. Climate justice grantees included Climate Justice Alliance, Green New Deal Network, and Climate and Clean Energy Equity Fund. Policy recipients included the Center for American Progress and CLASP.
Important Grant Details:
In 2021, Sequoia gave out $126 million in grants and $180 million in 2022. This number is projected to grow for 2023 and 2024.
- While the foundation is still relatively new on the scene, so it is difficult to pin down grantmaking practices, but so far, it appears to prefer giving to intermediaries and regional foundations.
- New grantseekers can see a select list of “representative” past grantees here.
- The foundation recently added a grant database to better inform the public about where spending is invested.
It does not accept unsolicited proposals or requests for funding; however, it does invite grantseekers to reach out through its website with questions or general inquiries.
PEOPLE:
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