Environment & Conservation

Access Ventures is an innovative impact multiplier that leverages catalytic capital to drive economic prosperity, social equity, and environmental sustainability in communities. They operate as dreamers, doers, and risk-takers who use blended finance approaches to create lasting transformative change, guided by the belief that people are at the heart of any true community transformation. Their mission is to revolutionize the global investment landscape through a blended finance approach and a "one-pocket mindset," proving that financial return and social impact can coexist while improving access and agency for all. They meet complex challenges with creativity, high tolerance for risk, and willingness to be catalytic with capital, emphasizing the development of the next generation of change-makers. Access Ventures serves as a catalyst for change in the impact investing ecosystem, bridging gaps between traditional finance and social impact through their deep understanding of catalytic and blended finance strategies. With 10 years of experience empowering change, they have established themselves as community-focused impact multipliers who teach, advise, and invest in ways that yield both high financial returns and significant community impact, fostering a resilient and dynamic economy where every person can thrive.

Acumen is a venture philanthropy organization that invests in visionary entrepreneurs building transformational companies from seed to scale. They focus on funding bold entrepreneurs who are creating inclusive solutions across sectors like sustainable agriculture, quality education, renewable energy, healthy communities, dignified jobs, and gender equality. Their mission is to break the cycle of poverty through patient capital investments in high-innovation, high-impact enterprises. They operate by deploying philanthropic capital to shape markets and support entrepreneurs who are addressing the world's toughest poverty-related challenges, investing where traditional funders won't. Acumen Ventures has established itself as a significant force in the impact investing ecosystem since 2001, with an A to Z directory of portfolio companies spanning over two decades. They matter because they've reinvented the rules of return, prioritizing impact alongside financial sustainability and helping to demonstrate that venture philanthropy can drive meaningful systemic change in underserved communities globally.

AirMiners is a leading platform advancing the carbon dioxide removal (CDR) industry through community, education, and early-stage venture support. Founded in 2017, the organization brings together scientists, founders, investors, and operators to accelerate the development and deployment of carbon removal solutions. Through its Launchpad accelerator and Kiloton Fund, AirMiners supports early-stage startups building technologies to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. The platform also operates one of the largest communities in the CDR space, helping talent, capital, and ideas converge to scale the industry.

Aligned Climate Capital is a U.S.-based investment firm focused on accelerating the clean energy transition through investments in renewable energy and climate solutions. The firm backs both companies and infrastructure projects that reduce emissions, expand access to clean power, and support long-term decarbonization. Operating with a “doing good by doing good” philosophy, Aligned Climate Capital integrates rigorous impact measurement into its investment strategy. The firm also commits a portion of its carried interest to leading climate nonprofits, reinforcing its role as both an investor and ecosystem contributor.

Ashoka is one of the world’s leading organizations supporting social entrepreneurs. Founded in 1980, Ashoka pioneered the concept of social entrepreneurship and has built a global network of changemakers working to solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Through its flagship Ashoka Fellows program, the organization identifies and supports high-impact entrepreneurs with funding, mentorship, and a powerful global network. Ashoka’s broader mission is to create a world where everyone is a changemaker, embedding social innovation across education, business, and civil society.

Beartooth Group specializes in making ranch properties more valuable both financially and ecologically across the American West. They work with landowners through various financial solutions including full or partial sales, adding investment partners to fund operations and acquisitions, restructuring existing partnerships, and other personalized approaches. Their mission centers on preserving the American West's vast open landscapes, wildlife, family ranches, and supportive communities in the face of rapid change. They operate by working closely with landowners to achieve their desired outcomes while navigating complex legal challenges, neighbor relationships, and family needs that often accompany ranch transactions. Beartooth Group positions itself as bringing new financial tools to address the challenges facing the changing American West. They serve as a critical bridge in the ecosystem, helping preserve ranch properties and rural communities by providing innovative investment capital solutions that traditional financial tools cannot adequately address.

Beyond Impact is an impact investment firm focused on accelerating the transition to a more sustainable, animal-free economy. Founded in 2017, the firm backs companies developing alternatives to animal-based products across food, materials, pharmaceuticals, and consumer goods. The firm’s mission centers on building a “kinder, cleaner, healthier world” by investing in scalable businesses that reduce environmental damage, eliminate animal suffering, and improve human health. Its portfolio targets high-growth sectors such as plant-based foods, alternative proteins, and next-generation biomaterials.

Blue Haven Initiative is an innovative family office that operates as a multi-asset-class impact investor, managing a diversified portfolio spanning public equities, fixed-income holdings, private equity, and direct investments. They are dedicated to putting wealth to work for competitive market returns while generating positive social and environmental change across various sectors. As one of the first family offices created with impact investing as its primary mission and focus, Blue Haven seeks both market rates of financial return and maximum social and environmental impact. They take a total portfolio approach to managing investments, applying rigorous portfolio-management principles while leveraging their flexibility and multigenerational time horizon to deploy diverse forms of capital including traditional investments, grants, and catalytic investments. Blue Haven has established itself as a significant player in the impact investing ecosystem, being recognized as the Impact Asset Owner of the Year in 2018 by the Global Steering Group for Impact Investment. They believe that solving the world's biggest social and environmental issues requires creative long-term investors who prioritize partnership, patience, and continuous learning, positioning themselves as leaders in demonstrating how family offices can drive systemic change.

Burnt Island Ventures is a specialized investment firm that finds, funds, and supports the best entrepreneurs and founders in the water sector. They focus on water technology innovations that help water and wastewater services reach people and businesses at the right quality, quantity, price, place, and time, positioning themselves as experts in one of the most undercapitalized areas of climate and infrastructure innovation. Their mission is grounded in the belief that climate change is fundamentally water change, and that water is the medium through which society will experience the effects of a warming earth. The firm operates with the philosophy that the strongest impact compounds alongside strong commercial outcomes, working to manage Earth's most precious resource through strategic investments and founder support. Burnt Island Ventures plays a critical role in the water innovation ecosystem by bringing deep sector expertise and an extensive network to support portfolio companies. Their impact extends beyond capital, as evidenced by portfolio companies already delivering measurable outcomes including billions of gallons of water processed, hundreds of millions of gallons saved, and major improvements in incident response, treatment, reuse, and energy systems.

Capricorn Investment Group is a sustainable investment platform that has been serving families, foundations, and institutional investors for over 25 years. The firm provides comprehensive Outsourced Chief Investment Officer (OCIO) services and impact investment solutions aimed at solving environmental and social issues while building sustainable wealth for clients. With $14-19 billion in assets under management and 46 employees across offices in New York City and Palo Alto, Capricorn has established itself as a leader in sustainable investing. The company was founded in 2000 with the belief that sustainable investment practices can enhance risk-adjusted returns while demonstrating the investment potential in breakthrough commercial solutions to the world's most pressing problems.

Cerulean Ventures is a $10 million pre-seed venture capital firm that backs founders building asset-light, rapid scaling software companies focused on climate solutions. They specifically target companies applying AI to build exponential solutions for nature and climate change. Their mission is to bring climate solutions to market quickly while fighting greenwashing and moving the climate economy beyond the green premium. Unlike traditional climate investors who focus on niche markets with green premiums or first-of-a-kind moonshots with decades-long timelines, Cerulean takes a different approach by identifying systemic leverage points where proprietary data, compute, AI scaling, and fintech solutions can rapidly scale. Cerulean matters in the ecosystem because they focus on transforming large economic sectors that have been resistant to digital transformation, including mining, niche manufacturing, soft tropical commodities, pharma supply chains, and emerging markets of natural capital and biodiversity. They position themselves as addressing the gap in climate investing by targeting systemic change rather than status quo business model disruptions.

Climate Collective is a leading innovation network that specializes in putting digital technologies to work for climate and nature at scale. They focus on connecting AI and digital tools with environmental impact, running innovation programs and building AI fluency across climate and nature nonprofits. The organization operates by connecting innovators, nonprofits, and global leaders to turn technology into lasting climate and nature impact. They accomplish this through running innovation programs, building AI fluency across climate and nature organizations, and convening sustainability leaders and technologists to foster collaboration and knowledge sharing. Climate Collective plays a crucial role in the ecosystem by bridging the gap between technology innovation and environmental impact. Their flagship AI Explorers Summit brings together 100 leaders annually and is co-hosted by major organizations like Conservation International, UNDP, and TechChange, demonstrating their significant influence in shaping how AI is responsibly deployed for climate and nature solutions.

Climate Fund Managers (CFM) is a for-profit investment manager specializing in climate finance across emerging markets in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The firm uses blended finance structuring to attract public and private capital for high-impact climate investments, with over USD 2 billion in assets under management and targeting an additional USD 6 billion. CFM provides complete lifecycle financing solutions for infrastructure developers, covering development, construction, and operational stages of projects. Their investment approach focuses on climate change mitigation and adaptation in areas most affected by climate consequences, delivering both environmental impact and risk-adjusted returns to investors.

Conservation Resources is a leading alternative investment specialist focused on impact real assets, founded in 2004. The firm specializes in acquiring off-market timberland, farmland and downstream assets in North America, applying regenerative management and innovative deal sourcing to generate competitive returns and measurable environmental outcomes. Built with a vision that environmental and financial value are complementary and mutually accretive, Conservation Resources has been leading the way in natural capital investments that protect and restore the environment while seeking competitive financial returns for investors. The firm is registered as an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

EcoEnterprises Fund is an impact investment fund that has pioneered investing in nature-based solutions for over two decades. The fund uses tailored financial instruments including mezzanine equity and debt to drive growth in companies focused on natural climate solutions that preserve biodiversity while contributing to local economies in Latin America. Their investment portfolio spans regenerative agriculture, agroforestry, certified forestry, circular systems, blue economy, ecotourism, and emerging climate-tech opportunities. With a track record of generating $3.1 billion in sales, supporting over 150,000 smallholder farmers, benefiting 823,000+ local people, and protecting 24.9+ million acres, EcoEnterprises Fund demonstrates measurable impact. The fund emphasizes gender-inclusive and women-led companies, particularly those collaborating with Indigenous communities to boost incomes and create more equitable societies. As a certified B Corp and ImpactAssets 50 Emeritus Fund, they maintain high standards of social and environmental impact.

Fashion for Good operates as a platform for collaborative innovation that unites the fashion ecosystem to transform and build a regenerative industry. They focus on fostering collaboration and facilitating connections to bring innovative solutions to the forefront, with particular emphasis on next-generation materials, tier 2 decarbonization, footwear circularity, textile waste, and transparency and traceability. Their mission centers on creating a comprehensive platform that enables innovation scouting, collaborative validation, and commercialization and scaling of sustainable fashion solutions. They operate by continuously tracking emerging innovative solutions, facilitating joint testing between brands, innovators and suppliers to validate performance and impact, and co-creating commercial models that address key scaling barriers. Fashion for Good has established itself as a significant force in the sustainable fashion ecosystem, having scouted over 3,500 innovators and supported 187 of them through their innovation pipeline. Their platform approach has generated substantial impact with over €2.31 billion in capital committed and 421 implementation cases, demonstrating their ability to bridge the gap between innovation and market adoption in the fashion industry.

The Ford Foundation is a global philanthropic organization that works to reduce poverty, challenge inequality, and strengthen democratic values worldwide. Their investment focus spans multiple critical areas including civic engagement and government, creativity and free expression, disability rights, future of work, gender/racial/ethnic justice, global governance, natural resources and climate justice, and technology and society. The Foundation operates with a mission spanning eight decades, functioning as a legally separate entity from the Ford Motor Company. They work through various grant-making initiatives including the BUILD Program, The Heartland Initiative, Dignity and Justice Fund, and Social Bond grants, while also investing in individuals through fellowship programs and supporting mission investments that align with their values. The Ford Foundation matters significantly in the social justice ecosystem as a major institutional funder driving systemic change across multiple continents. Their global reach extends across regions including the Andean Region, Brazil, China, East Africa, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Mexico, Central America, Middle East, North Africa, Southern Africa, United States, and West Africa, making them a pivotal force in advancing equality and human dignity worldwide.

The Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment operates through both philanthropic grants and strategic investments to address climate change and environmental degradation. They focus on protecting and improving the health of the global environment through a dual approach of funding environmental advocacy, applied research into climate solutions, and investing in entrepreneurs building green industries and technologies. Their mission is to protect and conserve the natural environment, with communication and collaboration as top priorities to build widespread public support for preventing catastrophic climate change. The Foundation operates as a 501(c)(3) private foundation with five Grantham family trustees, while also working through The Jeremy and Hannelore Grantham Environmental Trust, a public charity with independent trustees from major environmental organizations including Rare, The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund US, and Rocky Mountain Institute. Established by Jeremy and Hannelore Grantham, the Foundation plays a significant role in the environmental ecosystem by addressing what they identify as humanity's greatest challenge - climate change and the race against time to avoid existential threats. Their impact matters because they recognize that environmental philanthropic resources are immense compared to available funding, making strategic alliances and targeted investments in both advocacy and technological innovation crucial for preventing catastrophic environmental change.

Gratitude Railroad is a community-driven impact investment firm that champions innovative ideas to advance planetary health and social well-being. They function as both an investment manager and a community of investors focused on mission-driven businesses, investing in early to growth stage companies and emerging private market funds dedicated to solving social and environmental challenges. Their mission is transforming capital for a thriving world, operating through a collaborative approach that brings together asset owners committed to learning, collaborating, and moving capital. The organization is supported by an experienced team with decades of relevant experience and diverse perspectives from the impact, investment, entrepreneurship, and philanthropic sectors, along with Venture Partners, Investment Committees, and a governing Board of Stewards. Gratitude Railroad plays a significant role in the impact investment ecosystem by fostering a community built for action and promoting systematic approaches to impact measurement and management. They actively engage in learning and convening activities, hosting conversations on the progress and future of impact measurement in collaboration with organizations like Fiduciary Trust International, helping to advance industry standards and practices.

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is a global climate finance institution established to support developing countries in their efforts to combat climate change. With a shrinking window of opportunity to address the climate crisis and global temperatures already 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels, GCF focuses on limiting global warming to 1.5°C through strategic investment decisions over the next decade. The fund operates through a comprehensive governance structure including a GCF Board, accredited entities, and national designated authorities to ensure effective climate finance delivery across countries and regions.

Greentown Labs is the world's largest climatetech and energy incubator, operating as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that supports entrepreneurs developing climate solutions. They provide incubation services, membership programs, and resources to startups working across various sectors including agriculture, buildings, electricity, manufacturing, transportation, and resilience adaptation. Their mission centers on catalyzing climate solutions at speed and scale by bringing together entrepreneurs with innovation, corporate leaders with scale, investors with capital, and philanthropists with support. They operate as a community-driven organization with locations in Boston and Houston, fostering collaboration between startups, corporations, and other stakeholders in the climatetech ecosystem. Greentown Labs serves as a critical hub in the climatetech ecosystem, connecting entrepreneurs with the resources, mentorship, and partnerships needed to transform society through energy innovation. Their comprehensive approach to supporting climate entrepreneurs positions them as a key player in addressing the climate challenge through technological innovation and community building.

IKEA Social Entrepreneurship focuses on supporting social entrepreneurs and enterprises that create positive impact for vulnerable and marginalized communities. They operate through multiple approaches including developing products in partnership with social enterprises, accelerating impact through partnerships with organizations like Ashoka, Acumen, NESsT, and WWF, and providing local services support. Their mission centers on creating a better everyday life for as many people as possible, with particular emphasis on empowering vulnerable and marginalized people and social entrepreneurs. They lead by example through their actions and share learnings to find solutions that support social entrepreneurial activities, aiming to contribute to significant and lasting change in communities worldwide. IKEA Social Entrepreneurship has become a significant player in the social enterprise ecosystem, supporting 120 social enterprises across 21 countries and contributing to the creation of over 20,000 jobs and incomes. Their model demonstrates how corporate partnerships can scale social impact, starting from initial collaborations that created over 100 jobs in 2012 and growing into a comprehensive platform that accelerates the broader social entrepreneurship movement.

Impact Engine is a venture capital and private equity firm that invests in companies driving positive impact across three core areas: economic empowerment, education, environmental sustainability, and health. As a registered investment advisor, they build and manage diversified portfolios that seek to optimize both financial and social returns through their dual approach of fund investments and direct co-investments. Their mission centers on bringing more capital to markets where financial returns drive positive social and environmental impacts. They operate through multiple strategies including private equity fund investments balanced across growth equity and buyout stages, co-investments in select portfolio companies, and bespoke partnership vehicles tailored to meet specific investor objectives in collaboration with partners like Bernstein Private Wealth Management. Impact Engine has established itself as a recognized leader in the impact investing ecosystem, earning recognition as a Top Impact Company 2025 and inclusion in the ImpactAssets 50 as an Emeritus Impact Manager. Their portfolio companies have demonstrated significant real-world impact, with measurable outcomes like preventing millions of pounds of food waste, improving patient quality of life, and saving millions for student loan borrowers, positioning them as a meaningful force in scaling impact-driven businesses.

King Philanthropies is an impact-focused foundation that seeks to make a meaningful difference in the lives of the world's poorest people by multiplying the impact of high-performing leaders and organizations. They focus on combating barriers to economic development through both grants and impact investments, specifically targeting those in extreme poverty defined as living on $2.15 or less per day. The organization operates through a data-driven, evidence-based approach to accomplish the most good, conducting proactive and rigorous due diligence aligned with their core mission. Their investment areas include agriculture, food & water, and girls' education & livelihoods, aligning with what those in extreme poverty need most for their livelihoods. They make grants and impact investments while providing expertise and building networks that enable high-impact solutions to reach more people. King Philanthropies has established itself as a significant player in the impact investing ecosystem, aiming to reach 100 million people with their interventions. They have already made substantial progress toward this goal, having reached 32.9 million lives to date through their strategic partnerships. Their approach of backing non-profits and social ventures that embody essential elements of excellence positions them as a catalyst for scalable solutions addressing global poverty.

LowCarbon.Earth is a climate-tech accelerator that supports early-stage startups developing innovative solutions to tackle climate change and environmental challenges across the Asia-Pacific region. The program focuses on sustainable goods and services addressing climate change, nature loss, and pollution across core sectors including renewable energy, mobility, air quality, and sustainable agriculture. Launched in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) by Massive Earth Foundation, the accelerator operates through intensive bootcamps, workshops, mentorship programs, networking sessions, and investor pitch opportunities. Their mission centers on catalyzing climate action by empowering passionate founders and creating scalable, impactful solutions for a sustainable future. Since inception, LowCarbon.Earth has established itself as a significant force in the Asia-Pacific climate innovation landscape, having evaluated over 3,000 startups and supported more than 180 through their programs. The accelerator has gained recognition through national media coverage including CNBC Awaaz and has built a vibrant community of founders, industry leaders, investors, and VCs who collectively shape climate-tech innovation across the region.

Lowercarbon Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in companies developing technologies to combat climate change through three primary approaches: slashing CO2 emissions, removing carbon from the atmosphere, and buying time to address planetary climate issues. They focus on backing what they call "kickass companies" that can make real money while addressing environmental challenges across sectors including energy, transportation, industrial materials, and agriculture. The firm operates on the philosophy that fixing the planet is good business and that market forces, rather than shame and guilt, will drive the necessary climate solutions. They combine hard science with ambitious goals, seeking companies that can deliver better, faster, and cheaper alternatives to fossil fuel-based technologies. Lowercarbon Capital plays a significant role in the climate tech ecosystem by funding innovative companies across diverse sectors from solar and wind energy storage to fusion technology, electric aviation, and carbon-free chemical production. Their portfolio includes companies like Antora, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Heart Aerospace, and Solugen, positioning them as a key player in scaling climate solutions that can achieve commercial viability while delivering environmental impact.

New Climate Ventures (NCV) is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in innovative startups building the future of how we produce, power and consume. They focus on companies developing technologies for carbon reduction or avoidance, taking an active and diversified investment approach that leverages their expertise in energy, commodities, climate, technology, finance, and regulatory analysis. NCV's mission centers on the belief that a new industrial renaissance is underway where emerging technologies can transform our environmental impact without requiring lifestyle changes. They partner with entrepreneurs to navigate early stages of company development by providing operational guidance, investment expertise, team-building support, and mentoring, while connecting founders to their global network of investors, startups, and corporations. The firm plays a crucial role in the climate technology ecosystem by empowering entrepreneurs to turn visions into commercially successful companies that drive a cleaner, greener future. NCV is committed to sustainable best practices and integrates sustainability as the baseline for their investment thesis, positioning themselves as leaders in supporting technologies that achieve both commercial success and environmental impact.

Planet A Ventures is a European venture capital fund that supports founders tackling the world's largest environmental problems by investing in green technology startups. They focus on building the economy our planet needs by partnering with European green tech start-ups that have significant positive impact while building scalable businesses globally. Planet A operates as the first European VC with an in-house science team that calculates life cycle assessments to quantify the impact of startups before investment. Their scientists hold veto power over investments if there is no significant positive and quantifiable impact, ensuring a rigorous science-based approach with no greenwashing. They combine venture capital with scientific know-how to mentor and support founders in developing sustainable solutions. The fund is pioneering scientific impact investing as the new normal in venture capital, openly sharing their methods and results to inspire others to adopt a scientific approach to investment decisions. Through their operational platform and extensive network, they provide ongoing support beyond just capital, making environmental impact the central metric of success. Their portfolio includes innovative companies working on solutions from compostable materials and carbon mineralization to AI-powered sustainable supply chain decisions.

ReGen Ventures is an impact-focused venture capital firm that invests in foundational regenerative technologies designed to power a future of abundance. They focus on four core investment areas: clean energy, planetary intelligence, programmable matter, and adaptive robotics, partnering with founders who are building transformative technologies from the atomic to planetary scale. The firm operates with a mission to reimagine the world by supporting technologies that make regeneration inevitable, enabling infinite growth and prosperity on a finite planet. They take a hands-on approach with founders, providing comprehensive support that ranges from business modeling to personal wellness, emphasizing long-term sustainable returns over short-term wins. ReGen Ventures positions itself as an innovator in the investment space, paving a new path for what investments should be by focusing on root causes rather than symptoms of environmental challenges. They are building what they call a "ReGenerative Future" where climate change is reframed as an opportunity for transformation, backing founders with unreasonable ambition who alter understanding of what's possible in addressing planetary challenges.

Renewal Funds is a sustainability-focused impact venture capital fund based in Vancouver that supports exceptional founders building technology and platform businesses driving the affordability and accessibility of climate solutions. They invest across five primary sustainability themes: energy transition, mobility, food systems, zero waste, and natural resources, focusing on opportunities where their expertise and network can best support mission-aligned founders. As a "mission venture capital" firm, Renewal Funds operates with the dual goal of achieving financial success while creating positive impact for people and planet. They make minority preferred equity investments in high growth, capital efficient businesses, partnering with exceptional, mission-driven founders who have built category leading companies and can demonstrate excellent product-market fit and customer traction. Renewal Funds has established itself as a significant player in the impact investing ecosystem, currently managing $240 million in assets under management across three funds. Their influence extends beyond direct investments, as they work to prove to investors and the broader financial community that mission-driven investing represents the future of finance, contributing to the growing acceptance and adoption of impact investing approaches.