GIF invites Applications from Climate Resilience Innovators.

GIF is pleased to announce a dedicated call for applications for funding from innovators working to enable the world's poorest to adapt and be more resilient to changing climate. 

We are currently welcoming applications for investment in innovations which have the potential to address critical climate challenges for people living on less than $5 a day. Successful applicants will have a credible case, ideally backed by evidence, of how their innovation can deliver adaptation and resilience, and have the potential to scale to bring benefits to millions of people.

Why now?

GIF’s decision to focus our current open window on climate resilience innovators comes as the world grapples with the urgent need for adaptation and resilience building in vulnerable communities. The latest climate science shows the window to adapt is narrowing fast. Despite the initial optimism following the Paris Agreement, the world is far off in limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees celsius. At the same time, the gap in adaptation finance is widening, with only a fraction of the trillions needed being mobilised and even less reaching local levels and the most vulnerable.

The timing of GIF’s Climate Open window aligns with mounting calls for action. The UNEP Adaptation Gap Report 2024, calls on nations to increase climate adaptation efforts dramatically, starting with a commitment to act on finance. The report underscores the widening gap between adaptation needs and available resources, especially in developing countries where climate impacts are most severe. 

The urgency of the situation was further emphasised at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan where discussions centered on scaling adaptation finance. While developed nations pledged to mobilise $300 billion annually by 2035 to assist developing nations in addressing climate change impact, this commitment has been criticised as insufficient, with some developing nations estimating that $1.3 trillion is required annually to effectively meet the escalating challenges.

What we’re looking for

The Climate Open Call is looking to support innovations that can significantly improve the adaptative capacity and resilience of populations living on less than $5 a day in climate-vulnerable regions. By focusing on underserved, climate-vulnerable populations’  this dedicated window aims to bridge critical funding gaps and support innovations that can be scaled to benefit millions. This call not only contributes to global climate finance efforts but also ensures that resources are directed to communities that need them the most. 

For this Open Window, we welcome applications aligned with our key thematic areas that have the potential to create meaningful, long-impacts. While we provide examples of the target problems the innovations should address, we recognise that the diversity of climate challenges means there are countless local contexts and nuances that may not be fully captured by our guidance. Therefore we strongly encourage applicants to propose original, context-specific solutions that align with these themes - or even address gaps or opportunities we may have overlooked: 

• Nature-Based Solutions: Innovations that have a direct impact on the poorest across all types of ecosystems, including urban, agricultural, and coastal areas: 
• Climate and Health: solutions directly tackling the growing and diverse health challenges arising from climate change, especially in vulnerable and underserved communities. 
• Agriculture and Food Security: Scalable, climate-resilient innovations that address critical challenges in food and livestock systems. 
• Urban Resilience: Focusing on solutions that tackle critical urban challenges exacerbated by climate change including floods and extreme temperatures. 
• Water Security: Innovations that build the resilience of water systems in the face of climate shocks, such as droughts and stress events, like groundwater depletion and contamination. 
• Anticipatory or Early Action for Climate Shocks: Solutions that protect vulnerable people before climate shock occurs.
• Social Protection: Innovations that strengthen social safety nets and protect low-income households from climate-related losses.
• Gender Equality: Solutions that address specific needs and vulnerabilities faced by women and other marginalised groups exacerbated by climate shocks. 

Launching this dedicated window is just part of how GIF is refreshing its Climate Strategy, and builds on our track record of backing high-impact innovations for the poor. We have already funded promising climate adaptation solutions such as Build Change’s incremental loans for women to adapt their homes to extreme heat in Indonesia, Proximity Design’s microbial solution which breaks down crop residue, to enhance soil health for farmers facing erratic rainfall and drought in Myanmar, and Boomitra’s AI soil carbon marketplace enabling smallholder farmers to access carbon credits for adopting regenerative agriculture. We aim to surface a pipeline of locally led, high-impact, scalable adaptation solutions which address the most pressing climate challenges. 

GIF is hosting a webinar for innovators working in climate adaptation and resilience who are interested in applying for funding from us, which will take place on Wednesday 18th December at 10am GMT. This webinar is designed to help you find out more about how to apply and what we are looking for. You will also have an opportunity to ask questions.

To register for our webinar, please click here.