Impact

Catalyzing solutions to decarbonize

Growing a highly effective organization

In 2021, we began deploying a $4m grant to enable Clean Air Task Force (CATF) to scale worldwide across key emerging economies.

Four years of Founders Pledge recommending, promoting, and granting to CATF (beginning in 2018) had already helped spur significant growth, crowding in more resources and changing the trajectory of their organization.

Climate action on a global scale

With the help of our grant CATF became a truly global organization, establishing themselves in China, India, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa, and strengthening their presence in Sub-Saharan Africa.

They've brought their work to decarbonize the global energy system to new regions, driving policies and technologies, and developing new ideas.

Delivering progress and policy wins

CATF continues to make meaningful progress; below are some highlights from the past few years.

• Successfully campaigned for the European Union to adopt a methane leak standard for imported oil and gas. It's expected to reduce global emissions of methane from oil and gas by a third and avoid health damage to 10 million people.
• Produced studies on how African nations can reduce grid electricity losses, and explored how expanding clean energy grids can be financed.

• Helped design, then successfully pushed for, a new federal US rule that would force global warming emission cuts of up to 90% from coal and gas plants.
• Launched the world’s only comprehensive civil society fusion energy program, beginning research and convening experts to explore how to advance and regulate the potential energy source.
• Brought about, through their advocacy in the US, the first-ever pilot demonstration program for deep dry rock geothermal technology that allows for “geothermal anywhere.”

Scaling up carbon removal

Seizing an opportunity

In late 2020, we deployed $400k for Carbon180 to engage the incoming Biden administration on climate policy.

Carbon180 champions carbon removal solutions, which at the time did not receive much attention or funding. A 2020 report showed it was the top technology group in need of the biggest budget increase, having received less than $100 million in R&D support annually.

Shaping policy

Carbon180’s advocacy improved negotiations around the bill, and contributed to the passage of major legislation in the US in 2022: the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Acts (IRA).

They successfully worked with Congressional offices and committee staff to ensure carbon management provisions — namely the SCALE Act, Regional DAC Hubs, and Class VI funding — drafted by the Senate remained in the IIJA. Congress appropriated $898m for carbon removal in the IIJA.

Multiplying the federal budget

Coordinating across Congress and the Senate, Carbon180 contributed to $255m being appropriated for carbon removal across 2021-2022. That's spread across multiple departments and offices, supporting research and development on ocean carbon removal, direct air capture R&D technologies, carbon sequestration surveys, and other carbon capture and storage initiatives.

They also worked with key Senate offices and Finance Committee staff, advocating for important provisions within the 45Q credit for direct air capture.

Repowering the world

Launching a new organization

We've supported Terra Praxis since they began, deploying $237k in seed funding to help them launch in 2020 and another $405k in their first year to enable faster growth.

They began developing innovative, scalable solutions to decarbonize the largest sources of global emissions (coal, industrial heat, and heavy transport).

A plan to transform existing coal plants

Through REPOWER, they’re developing fast, low-cost, repeatable solutions to repurpose existing coal plants to provide clean energy (one of the largest carbon reduction opportunities).

They’ve built a global consortium of partners — including governments, regulators, academics, and industry stakeholders — to design and execute the strategy. With their partners at Microsoft, Terra Praxis launched the first tool in its digital platform at COP27 in 2022, allowing coal plants to quickly evaluate the feasibility, cost, and time required for repowering.

Building global support

They've continued working closely with coal plant owners, governments and other stakeholders in key markets, including the US, Central and Eastern Europe, India and South Africa.

In 2024, they formed an unprecedented partnership with the World Economic Forum: nuclear energy will be integrated into their programs of work for the first time. In November, they released a global framework to accelerate the deployment of advanced nuclear.

Paving the way for advanced nuclear

At COP29, Terra Praxis announced it was awarded a U.S. Department of State grant to help facilitate the transition of Ukraine’s coal-fired power plants to advanced nuclear.

Terra Praxis recently introduced new AI capabilities to the advanced nuclear market, with Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service. This will significantly accelerate the licensing and permitting processes, removing barriers to develop clean energy.