The Solutions Project, Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice, and The Climate and Clean Energy Equity Fund resource climate solutions, policy and organizing among 365 partners across the United States
The Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice, The Solutions Project and the Climate and Clean Energy Equity Fund announced today that their organizations have been awarded unrestricted grants from MacKenzie Scott totaling $140 million. The gifts signal the philanthropist’s commitment to advancing climate progress by resourcing those most impacted by climate change. They also drive forward the case for increased philanthropic climate investments in the US at a time when the country is grappling with climate disruption, escalating energy costs, and extreme threats to democracy.
The three organizations join a cohort of award recipients that are focused on mobilizing people and dollars to support equitable, community-led solutions to the climate crisis.
“This extraordinary investment signals a major national recognition of what community leaders have long known: the pathway to a just clean-energy future is built from the ground up, powered by community organizing and movement-aligned collaboration,” said Andrea Mercado, President and CEO of the Equity Fund. “As we deepen and expand our reach across states, we consider this a critical opportunity for philanthropy to align with community-rooted strategies and co-invest in infrastructure needed to deliver equitable climate solutions.”
“At a moment when philanthropy is deciding its role in shaping our future, this gift points to a path forward in the second half of this defining decade,” said Melanie Allen, Co-Director of Hive Fund. “MacKenzie Scott chose to invest in organizations with a proven ability to pair deep impact with collaboration, recognizing that transformational change requires many actors moving together. Our strategies are rooted in the leadership of everyday people and the bold solutions they’ve built to reduce pollution and make clean energy affordable and accessible to all. This investment will not only stabilize vital community-based organizations in the South, but also create the conditions for deeper alignment, shared imagination, and new approaches that can shape a truly just energy future.”
“This critical investment comes at a pivotal moment,” said Gloria Walton, CEO of The Solutions Project, “The energetic leadership of the grassroots climate justice movement is critical to sustaining a vibrant and healthy democracy and to positioning the United States to prepare, adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change. “As federal climate commitments are rolled back and public funding becomes increasingly uncertain, frontline climate leaders are met with growing challenges but with fewer resources to enact innovative, locally responsive solutions. I hope this is just the beginning of an urgently-needed infusion of investment, inspiring other donors to follow her lead with similar hope, courage, and boldness.”
The awards are a vote of confidence in a collaborative funding model that has invested in successful and long-term community rooted leadership that has resulted in successes such as:
By giving to the three funds, the awards underscore that climate work is not performed in a silo but is interconnected to grantees’ working for multi-racial democracy and an economy that works for people and the planet.
The Equity Fund, the Solutions Project, Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice are all collaborative (movement aligned intermediary) funds and follow a giving model based on accountability to local communities and grassroots movements. Such funds allow major donors to find, fund and amplify the work of small grassroots organizations in an efficient and high-impact way.
The three organizations all place an emphasis on awarding flexible, multi-year grants that allow organizations to build sustainability and respond nimbly to local needs. Using this approach, all three organizations continue to see their grantee partners build local solutions and land influential policy wins that, for example, bring down utility bills while accelerating an equitable transition from fossil fuel dependency to a clean energy economy. Following the infusion of increased funding from MacKenzie Scott, the three organizations will be deepening their existing collaboration and working to create greater impact across the investment, support and amplification opportunities they offer to grassroots climate groups across the US.