At Giving Green, our core mission is to identify the most impactful climate giving opportunities. Grantmaking through the Giving Green Fund (GGF) is driven by our transparent research process, in which we narrow down a short list of prioritized philanthropic strategies, write up detailed strategy reports, and make grants based on the leverage points identified in each report.

However, as we continue to navigate a rapidly changing climate philanthropy landscape, we know that great opportunities for impact can emerge quickly and sometimes fall outside our established grantmaking process. For example, opportunities to fund meta-organizations working to improve climate funding or support projects that fill critical gaps in basic climate research.  

To capitalize on these opportunities, we are launching a Discretionary Grants Program.

This new program allows flexibility along two dimensions:

1. Diversified Impact Opportunities: We often encounter high-impact climate nonprofits or projects whose work, while vital and promising, does not align with our current strategic priorities. This new program gives us the flexibility to back these high-potential projects, ensuring that truly effective work receives funding even if it doesn’t align with our core research track. 
2. Enabling Nimble Funding: Effective climate action often requires speed. This program allows us to act with greater agility, deploying capital rapidly without the detailed deliberation and extensive write-ups required for standard GGF grants. This speed will enhance our ability to respond to time-sensitive events and emerging policy windows.

Program Scope and Financials for 2026

We view this program as an important strategic complement to the larger Giving Green Fund grant cycles, which continue to be our primary mechanism for driving large-scale, systemic change.

For 2026, the Discretionary Grants Program will operate within the following parameters:

• Total Annual Ceiling: We have budgeted up to $400,000 for the program in 2026. This represents around 1% of the expected Giving Green Fund grants this year.
• Goals: Similar to our traditional grants, discretionary grants will be made with the intent to reduce warming with the maximum impact per dollar. 
• Grant Sourcing: There will not be formal calls for proposals. Opportunities will be sourced organically through the work of the research team. 

We are excited about the new possibilities this program will unlock and look forward to sharing more about our funding priorities and decisions in the coming months. We remain grateful for the continued support of our donors, whose commitment to effective climate philanthropy makes this work possible.

How to Support Nimble and Effective Climate Grants  

Interested in supporting us in this new chapter of fast and flexible grantmaking? Here are a few ways you can get involved: 

• Donate to the Giving Green Fund: Support our climate fund to contribute to highly effective giving opportunities identified by our team, with no management fees. 
• Support Giving Green’s research: Each year, we spend thousands of hours finding effective climate charities to fund. We do not take any cut of donations to our recommendations, so we rely on generous donors to fund our research and communications efforts. When you support this work, you support our ability as an impact multiplier—every dollar donated to Giving Green’s operations converts to $25.90 in additional donations to high-impact climate charities. 

Questions? Want to collaborate? We would love to hear from you. Contact the Giving Green team.