How grantmakers can drive environmental impact on Earth Day and beyond

Addressing climate change and environmental degradation has never been more important. And for grantmakers, Earth Day presents an opportunity to reflect on ways to support and uplift grantees in their work toward positive environmental impact.

Grantmakers are strategically positioned to help support environmental initiatives by investing in new funding areas, reconsidering measurements of green grants and assessing their own grant processes to ensure they’re as environmentally friendly as possible.

Top environmental funding areas for grantmakers

On Earth Day and every day, grantmakers have the opportunity to invest in critical environmental funding areas like:

Renewable energy

Grantmakers can support community-owned renewable energy projects, fund new research and development and even support grantees in policy advocacy for renewable energy initiatives.

Conservation and restoration

Conservation is one of the top giving trends for Earth Day. As habitat loss accelerates, grantmakers can focus on local impact grants that support organisations that protect critical ecosystems, lead conservation programs or focus on local or global restoration projects.

Environmental justice

Marginalised communities are disproportionately impacted by environmental harms. In response, grantmakers have the opportunity to support grantees who are leading environmental justice initiatives or advocating for these communities.

How to measure environmental grants

In tandem with new environmental funding areas, grantmakers also have a duty to consider how they evaluate and measure the success of these grants. Unlike other grants, green ones often require a bit more consideration. 

When measuring effectiveness and success, grantmakers should consider:

Developing sector-specific metrics: While grantmakers should always balance quantitative and qualitative outcomes, this approach is essential for green grants, too. When assessing the success of a grant, grantmakers should consider hard numbers (carbon reduced, acres protected, etc.) and more anecdotal evidence of impact (policy change, survey results, stories, etc.).

Embracing longer-term results: Climate change activism and impact takes time. Grantmakers should be aware they might not see immediate results.

Letting grantees take the lead: While trust-based philanthropy is always a best practice, it’s imperative for environmental-focused grants. Global Green Grants Fund, for example, notes that they “Trust local people to advance solutions and strategies that will best fit their needs, providing them the resources to make their ideas a reality.”

How grantmakers can go green every day

While there’s plenty that grantmakers can do to support green initiatives, there’s also a lot they can do to make their own grantmaking environmentally friendly  — and align their operational practices with their mission.

To help drive environmental impact every day, grantmakers should:

Connect virtually when possible: Grantmakers should offer virtual site visits and remote monitoring to reduce travel-related emissions.

Offer flexible funding: A flexible funding model can help grantees align their organisations with their values and mission, too. For example, flexible funding can help them make energy efficiency upgrades.

Go paperless: Grantmakers should invest in internet-based software systems like Good Grants that allow them and their grantees to go completely paperless. With Good Grants, grantmaking foundations can handle every part of the grantmaking process — from pre-award to post-award — in one centralised platform.