Darlene Damm

Today in #impinv news: ✏️ The Liist: Signals for impact fundraising in 2025. ✏️ Commercial and industrial solar in Vietnam. ✏️ Digital revolution in Africa. ✏️ Next front in climate and diversity wars: Major corporations. https://hubs.li/Q031qjph0

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"The time is now for ambitious, strategic funding. Philanthropy must seize this moment to accelerate progress toward 2030 climate goals. With countless investable solutions ready to scale, the field is ready to absorb significantly more funding right now. Collaborative platforms and resources are in place to guide funders toward maximizing impact for people and the planet." - Surabi Menon, VP of Global Intelligence, ClimateWorks Foundation This year’s #FundingTrends2024 report covers five years of foundation funding data from 2019 to 2023. ⬇️ 🔹Annual foundation funding for climate mitigation nearly tripled from 2019 to 2023. 🔹 Low-to-middle-income countries receive much lower levels of flexible or core funding for climate mitigation. 🔹 Adaptation and resilience initiatives gained momentum, receiving at least $600 million in 2023. Read the report: https://lnkd.in/gabxE5ty

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💡Dr. Zeitz and Reverend Redeem Robinson are shedding light on the challenges and triumphs of #grassroots advocacy in the modern era. ✊🏼After delving into their shared experiences of #activism, including their #arrest for demanding #climateaction at the #WhiteHouse🏛️, they address the pressing issues of #voter apathy, the complexities of the #2024election landscape and the need for #reparations for African Americans. #listennow https://lnkd.in/eH53kx7c 🗽With candor and urgency, they examine the need for transformative change in American🦅 #politics and offer practical strategies for mobilizing communities toward a more just and equitable future. ⚖️✊🤝🏼🏳️‍🌈 #justice #equality #changemakers #solidarity #advocacy #activism #activist #equalrights #makechange Get your copy of Revolutionary Optimism: https://lnkd.in/eGCb5qzy

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Echoing Green announces the launch of the Signal Fund, a financial tool that provides capital to social innovators at critical growth stages. Signal launches with $15.6 million raised and prioritizes founders with overlooked potential for scalable social impact. Signal Fund aims to test a new set of financial mechanisms and model more broadly accessible investment vehicles that can help fuel transformational social change and innovation globally. It will disrupt the current funding landscape that is misaligned with the needs of social innovators. “In the current economic climate, fundraising for entrepreneurs has become increasingly difficult,” said Echoing Green President, Cheryl L. Dorsey. “Through Signal Fund, we are strengthening and de-risking a new pipeline of social innovators — ones that we believe will expand the set of leaders who are too often overlooked by mainstream philanthropy and financial institutions. This fund can help proven social innovators move past the proverbial valley of death that so many start-ups face, achieving organizational milestones recognizable to traditional investors without compromising impact.” #YesWeInnovate https://lnkd.in/dgfjDqAd

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📧 Yesterday's Climate Proof not only covered the top stories in adaptation and resilience finance, tech, and policy -- it also included *23* links to other useful articles, research, and reports: all the content adaptation-heads could wish for! 🏛 One featured announcement is the reintroduction of the Safeguarding America’s Future and Environment (SAFE) Act in the US Congress. 📃 The bill would require federal and state natural resource agencies to form a working group to plan and implement a long-term national climate change adaptation strategy for fish, wildlife, and plants based on the best available science. 🔧 It would also codify the existing Climate Adaptation Science Center Network, which develops and compiles scientific information, tools, and strategies for adaptation. The bill was reintroduced last week by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Representative Matt Cartwright (D-PA). #climaterisk #climatechange #adaptaton #resilience #sustainability #conservation

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There is no "one size fits all" solution for the climate transition, but we have a powerful playbook. This is how I would summarize several of the major takeaways from last week's "Clean Power to the People: An Evening with Local Environmental Justice Leaders" in Oakland organized by YPE SF Bay Area. A few synthesized highlights from across panelists Allie Detrio (Reimagine Power), Jessica Guadalupe Tovar (Local Clean Energy Alliance), Mari Rose Taruc (California Environmental Justice Alliance), ​Espe Vielma (Coalition of Environmental Equity and Economics), and ​Travis Gibrael, MSW (Reclaim Our Power Utility Justice Campaign) (Moderator): 💦 Environmental justice (EJ) must be enacted locally to be achieved globally. EJ requires asking, for example, "Who is the community we are trying to transition?" and responding according to unique sets of needs. 🍃 A just transition means not sacrificing communities of people in the name of "progress." We must constantly assess our work as individuals and organizations to ensure we do not unwittingly reproduce environmental injustice as we transition away from fossil fuels. 💦 There is (still) a huge disconnect between policy makers and those impacted by new policies. Caring about democracy and procedural justice means expanding our efforts to channel community voices into public decision-making spaces — with the most important voices being those of community members most impacted by environmental harms and/or for whom new "green" or "clean" technologies prove inaccessible or harmful. 🍃 Climate justice is social justice is better health is a Free Palestine. It's all connected. We must center the coherent set of values that allow us simultaneously to pursue racial equity and justice, ecological restoration and protection, and indigenous liberation — and to recognize the abundant "nonenergy" benefits that come with a just transition. Complexity can overwhelm, but it also empowers and creates diverse in-roads for participating in problem-solving. Because it is a call to action, I love the Climate Justice Alliance's assertion: "Transition is inevitable. Justice is not." The transition to a new energy future will not be just unless we ensure it is. We have a multitude of entry points as individuals and organizations for propelling a just transition. In Espe's words, "The energy transition has to be now" — so we all must take a page from the playbook and get to work. 💫 #JustTransition #ActonClimate #EnvironmentalJustice #FreePalestine

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The recent Climate Rights International report highlights the increasingly harsh and disproportionate responses by "democratic" countries of the Global North/West to climate change protesters - including the UK, Germany, Australia, and the US - while they criticise similar tactics used in the Global South. This hypocritical narrative continues to delegitimize developing nations, and works to maintain systemic inequalities and power imbalances in global climate policy and action. Report: https://lnkd.in/eUtEha6H Press release: https://lnkd.in/euAbpQpi Guardian article: https://lnkd.in/eedtZ7pX #ClimateChange #GlobalWarming #ClimateCrisis #OneRaceHumanRace

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📣 CLIMATEBASE COHORT 6 processing loss… 📣 (San Francisco, CA) Chosen from a field of 4,000+ applicants, an ambitious collective of optimists, doers, creators, visionaries, disruptors, and explorers journeys through the Climatebase Fellowship, a 12-week educational program and career accelerator, covering Energy, Transportation, Food & Agriculture, Nature-Based Solutions, Carbon Removal, Corporate Sustainability, Built Environment, and Circular Economy -- topped off with a Capstone Project. 🌱 = = = 🗓 WEEK 10 – BUILDINGS, CITIES & ADAPTATION Disclaimer: It’s been a numbing week. Let’s extend ourselves a little *grace* if our hearts aren’t quite caught up with our heads.💕 Weeks ago America experienced hurricanes Helene and Milton. Last week: 1) Unprecedented flooding in Spain where 💚 Julian Moore of Climatebase shared that one year’s amount of rain fell in 24 hours! *Deaths: 200+* 2) Deadly typhoon Kong-Rey (largest in 30 years) hit Taiwan (relatives: safe!🙏). Grateful for our *RESILIENT* Fellows with shoutout to 💚 Caroline Wu: 📌 “I’d like to direct my [election] mourning towards action.” CURRICULUM: 💚 Matthias Muehlbauer (Co-Founder, OnePointFive (opf.degree)) is headed to COP29 Azerbaijan next week! - the Built Environment which includes concrete, steel, brick, aluminum (“aluminium” in Australian😉) - emissions from production *and* maintenance: HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) - Post-Hurricane Sandy, New York case study/important efforts in *ADAPTATION*: intriguing non-electric solutions to protect against subway flooding - 40% of the world’s population lives near water: possible Managed Retreat to move populations away from changing coastlines and rising waters - losses/damages that disproportionately affect the most vulnerable populations - 15-20 Minute Cities/Neighborhoods: urban planning where *daily needs* are met within 15-20m walk/bike ride, restricting high-polluting vehicles, creating community parks/gardens to improve the quality of life ➡️ People forget how climate personally affects them: *SUPPLY CHAIN* 🇪🇸 About Spain (our cautionary tale!): “It’s the political infrastructure that has failed us. It’s the media environment that has failed us… resulting in so much death & destruction. On top of all that is the shock. *Hopefully this will lead to reforms.*” ~JULIAN MOORE  (**See comments in this original post for 🔗 to related topics! ⬇️ ) = = = 🎉 CHEERS for more Cohort 6 Fellows in (4) images: 🌟 Adam Winston 🌟 Addy Spiller 🌟 Aune Michener 🌟 Benjamin E. Long, MBA 🌟 Chris Wingenroth 🌟 Dillman Delgado 🌟 Ece Özbaylı Halligan 🌟 Genevieve Gholizadeh 🌟 Georgia Lechlitner 🌟 Ignacio Franco 🌟 Meghna Varma 🌟 Mira Musank 🌟 Mohith Murlidhar 🌟 Sara Bermingham 🌟 Sarika Vora 🌟 Tovah Cook, Climate TBD podcast launch w/ Fellows 🙌 🗓 Reminder: April 19-27, 2025 is SF Climate Week (Year 3)! #ClimatebaseFellowship #ESG #ClimatebaseCohort6 #Climatebase6ers #ThankfulThursday

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ClimateWorks Foundation 2024 Funding Trends Report just dropped. In 2023, climate philanthropy hit a turning point, surging past $9 billion—a 20% jump from 2022—and outpacing overall philanthropic growth for the first time. Foundations led the charge, 3x more contributions over 4 years to reach $4.8 billion in 2023. Clean electricity, forests, and food systems remained top priorities, while fast-rising areas like super pollutants and sustainable finance gained traction. Public engagement emerged as the most-funded enabling strategy, signaling the growing importance of collective action. Yet, disparities persist. While funding to Africa, Asia, and Latin America grew by as much as 220%, 60% still flowed to the U.S. and Europe. The report calls for deeper, longer-term investments in regions and sectors with untapped potential, from Brazil’s pivotal role ahead of COP30 to the underfunded push for industrial decarbonization. The message is clear: philanthropy must go bigger and smarter—collaborate more, commit to multi-year funding, and scale solutions that match the speed of the crisis. The window is narrowing and we know the politics are tough but with decisive action, this could be the philanthropic moment we've been waiting for. https://lnkd.in/eYPEj9Cb

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On July 25, the Biden-Harris Administration published the first-of-kind "Climate Resilience Game Changers Assessment” to further catalyze innovation and investment for resilience. This Assessment builds on the previously released "National Climate Resilience Framework,” which notes that "becoming a climate-resilient nation requires developing and deploying new and enhanced tools in our nation’s toolbox to address climate-related threats." The new Assessment focuses on innovative technologies, practices, and strategies that can become critical tools with additional research, development, and investment. Among the game-changing technologies identified in the White House press release from Ali Zaidi and Brenda Mallory are: "advanced grid control systems for our energy sector, next-generation desalination and recycling technologies for our nation’s water, and Resilience Hubs that support public safety and promote community health." Also highlighted are "next-generation remote sensing, analytics, and forecasting technologies, … [and] novel approaches for harnessing the resilience benefits of natural systems." #climateadaptation #climateaction #resilience #innovation #nextgen #AdaptationLeader

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How machine learning can help city planners predict urban blight - a strongly correlated indicator of violence: "Our team built the Urban Blight Tracker to help the Child Poverty Action Lab (CPAL) and other community-based organizations and city agencies in Dallas pinpoint and identify blighted areas, enabling targeted interventions. Using street view data, we collaborated with CPAL to develop training data and model labels for urban blight detection, build and validate a machine learning model, and visualize the results via a novel web interface. This tool is designed as a leading - rather than lagging - indicator for violent crime, empowering service providers to rapidly address residents’ needs... Identifying urban blight is a complex challenge, requiring the expertise of domain experts and the participation of local communities. This process is labor-intensive, introduces human bias, and is often limited in scope and scale. Data on blight typically reflects where it has been reported rather than where it reflects the most urgent community needs. In partnership with CPAL and Kaart, we built a deep-learning computer vision model for multi-label multi-classification of street view imagery. Indicators of blight, such as broken and boarded-up windows and vacant lots, are classified, and a severity level is predicted. More than 180,000 street view images were first captured in May 2022 during the data collection campaign, over 7,500 of which were annotated by our Data Team (GeoCompas) as having one or more elements of urban blight. We used Mapillary to upload and process images, relying on their computer vision models to blur faces and reduce exposure of sensitive information like license plates... For CPAL and the City of Dallas, identifying where blight exists and its severity will help establish where and what steps to take next. Future processing and analysis of periodic street view imagery will help CPAL and partners measure the change in blight remediation over time. Thanks to the ubiquity of street view imagery and the increasing ability of machine learning to make high-confidence predictions, it’s easier than ever to provide the data that communities need to survey and analyze the built environment."

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As with many of my followers, I have clients and even family members who have either lost their homes or are poised to evacuate the Los Angeles wildfires. Even at this time of extreme concern and sympathy, there are some lessons to be learned. The author of this article used logic, clear eyed thinking and real world first hand observation to make a realistic risk assessment, develop a mitigation plan, and then trigger that plan to protect his family. I've been using Wildfires as an analogy for over a year now to draw a comparison to the Political Wildfire in the US. This Political Wildfire is comprised of political polarisation and violence; an epidemic of mass shootings; and dramatic increases in threats against "the other" based on race, religion and sexual orientation. Just as with the LA wildfires, why or who you think has caused the fire is ultimately irrelevant to the damage it can cause. In the face of the reality of Americans living in a Political Wildfire zone, prudence calls for the development of a strategy involving the "Fire Insurance" of a second residence/citizenship and a "Fire Escape Plan" to protect the well-being of your family. #wildfire #politicalviolence #masshooting #antisemitism #racism #islamophobia #taxtherich #fireinsurance #fireescapeplan #secondresidence #secondcitizenship #secondpassport #alternativeresidence #alternativecitizenship #alternativepassport #lineagecitizenship #citizenshipbyinvestment #residencebyinvestment #goldenvisa https://lnkd.in/dU99NdBa

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At UNFCCC’s #SB60, you can find many of today’s youth providing a major impact on the topic of climate change. Meet Xananine Ramirez, of the Stop Financing Factory Farming Coalition, as she sheds light on the conversations regarding agriculture and food systems, the industries affecting climate change the most, and animal and indigenous people’s rights. Championing a better future for us all, we reflect on how young people are taking #ClimateAction today. #ClimateChange #BetterFuture #StopFinancingFactoryFarming #CreateChange #EnvironmentalRevolution #YouthClimateMovement Stop Financing Factory Farming

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Since I wrote and published this article in April of this year about why #climatetech isn't working I have been inundated with requests for "catch ups", mostly from former colleagues at the various companies I've worked at, but also a fair amount of people who I hadn't previously met. On average I would estimate that I've had a call a week in the past 7 months. This has been a joy. The topics of conversation have been largely the same and easily categorised into two overlapping buckets: 1/ Why do I do with this feeling I have that there is something wrong with this whole "green growth" idea? 2/ How do I figure out *what* to do? "I don't know," is my usual answer, "but I'm happy to talk about it." If this seems like a cop out, it isn't. It is exactly what I think needs to be done. Listen, learn, debate, understand, then act. In many ways the exact opposite of the cutthroat VC model that not only values speed and profit at the cost of breaking pretty much anything, but is well known for a ridiculously high failure rate. Anywhere between 50-90% depending on how you count. What a colossal waste of time, energy, money, and people that could otherwise have had real #impact. However, back to the What can I do? question. You are certainly welcome to DM me for a chat 🙂 I also always recommend reading Braiding Sweetgrass, Bright Green Lies, and Less is More. And if you have time and money to invest in a guided educational programme I also recommend highly Project Tipping Point, RegenIntel's "Regenerative Foundations" course (with whom I'm affiliated), Melanie Rieback's series of free lectures on "Post Growth Entrepreneurship", and Stirling College's "Surviving the Future." https://lnkd.in/gbDG-vCz

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To create lasting change, policies and initiatives need reliable financing. The “Rewiring Education: The Climate-Education Nexus” Report provides recommendations on how funders and stakeholders can contribute to leveraging education for climate action. You can download the report here: www.rewiredsummit.org #Financing #Funding #RewiringEducation #ClimateAction #SustainableSolutions #RewirEdSummit

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📣 CLIMATEBASE COHORT 6 DIVES IN! 📣 (San Francisco, CA) Chosen from a field of 4,000+ applicants, an ambitious collective of optimists, doers, creators, visionaries, disruptors, and explorers begins the next Climatebase Fellowship, a 12-week educational program and career accelerator, covering Energy, Transportation, Food & Agriculture, Nature-Based Solutions, Corporate Sustainability, Carbon Removal, Circular Economy, Buildings, Cities & Adaptation, and topped off with a Capstone Project. 🌱 = = = 🗓 WEEK 2 - CLIMATE FUNDAMENTALS Hello, LinkedIn colleagues! 👋 Our Cohort 6 is getting a *super rich* view of Climate Fundamentals: threats on the Amazon's biodiverse lands, U.S. history on climate policy and oil & gas PR strategy, tools & tips to build companies & relationships, and honing in on our personal motivation for doing this critical work! MANY THANKS to: 🎉 Helena Gualinga (Ecuadorian Environmental & Human Rights Activists) 🎉 Nathaniel Rich (author, "Losing Earth: A Recent History" [2019]) 🎉 George Unc - MSc, PMP (Biotechnology & Data Program Manager) 🎉 Neil Yeoh (Founder, OnePointFive (opf.degree); Climatebase Course Lead) 🎉 Sophie Purdom (Managing Partner, Planeteer Capital; Co-Founder, Sightline Climate (CTVC)) 🎉 Dr. Thomas Hale (University of Oxford) 🎉 Magda Kufrej (she/her) (Founder, Work Ally) 🎉 Faith Kearns (author, "Getting to the Heart of Science Communication") 🎉 Dana R. Fisher (author, "Saving Ourselves: From Climate Shocks to Climate Action," Dir., The Center for Environment, Community, & Equity) 🎉 Dr. David Pervan (Climatebase Sr. Lecturer) --for sharing their life experience and knowledge! (**Kindly see comments in this original post for 🔗 to their valuable work/organizations! ⬇️ ) 📌 "...a report by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) which warns that continued use of fossil fuels as a primary energy source for more than 20 to 30 more years could result in increased atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide. The greenhouse effect and associate global temperature increase and resulting climate changes could, according to NAS be both 'significant and damaging.' " ~p.66, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), "Environmental Assessment of Coal Liquefaction: Annual Report" (Feb., 👉 1978 👈 ) 👀 😲 = = = Celebrating another group of Cohort 6 changemakers in (4) images: 🌟 Amalia Stern 🌟 Annastasia Haynie 🌟 Cole Stites-Clayton 🌟 Guadalupe Albuquerque 🌟 Hyla Wallis, PMP 🌟 Irina Hauser-Lenchuk 🌟 Joe Rittenhouse 🌟 Mary Michael Marlo 🌟 Matthew Hess 🌟 Meike Rachmana 🌟 Oluchukwu Chisom Sunday 🌟 Patrick Meeker 🌟 Prateek Srivastava 🌟 Ryan George 🌟 Ryan Kotler 🌟 Zac Nelson Have a lovely day! 🌍 🌏 🌎 🗓 Reminder: Put April 19-27, 2025 on your calendars for SF Climate Week (Year 3)! #ClimatebaseFellowship #ESG #ClimatebaseCohort6 #Climatebase6ers #ThankfulThursday

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The Equitable Evaluation Collective (EEC) a collaboration between ChEW and The Social Investment Consultancy (TSIC), has been working hard over the past year and we are excited to announce the launch of our new report! "Evaluation as an Ecosystem: Cultivating Equity in the Garden of Transformation." Join us for a virtual event on October 9th from 1-2:30 PM (UK time) to explore key findings and discuss how to foster equity in evaluation practices. This event is open to professionals working in evaluation, funding, and research, as well as individuals with lived experience and those interested in creating an equitable evaluation sector in the U.K. Why Attend: - Gain insights from the "Evaluation as an Ecosystem" report - Engage in meaningful discussions with fellow professionals - Explore strategies for creating a more inclusive and just evaluation ecosystem - Network with others passionate about equitable evaluation Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/e3BPe7Gh #EquitableEvaluation #SocialSector #Evaluation #ReportLaunch #CharityEvaluationWorkingGroup #TheSocialInvestmentConsultancy #Community #Research

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🚨 Initial analysis of population dynamics near the #ParkFire perimeter in northern California, based on mobility data from Data for Good at Meta is now available from the CrisisReady team. 🔥 As of Tuesday, July 30th the Park Fire is the fifth largest wildfire in California history measured by acres burned. The five counties neighboring and intersecting the fire perimeter -- Tehama, Butte, Glenn, Plumas, and Shasta -- are home to a total of 513,691 people, nearly 20% of whom are age 65 or older. 🚻 According to data on change in population totals as measured by the Facebook user base relative to a 90-day pre-crisis baseline, key areas of recorded population drop on Monday the 29th of July include the towns of Shingletown (-38%), Forest Ranch (-61%), Vina (-31%), Magalia (-4%), Artois (-11%), and Paskenta (-30%).The nearby city of Chico saw population increase of +9%, just slightly higher than Durham, Paradise, and Red Bluff which saw increases in the +7% to +8% range, albeit given baseline population sizes roughly 10-12% of Chico. Movement data also shows a moderately increased rate of population flow between Chico, Oroville, and Orland. ✔ Data on the Facebook population in this part of California is considered to be reasonably high representativeness of the general population. The Facebook population with foreground location services represents roughly 15.2% of the total population in this area. At the ACS Place level, the Facebook user population is correlated to the general Census population with an R2 value of .96. Direct Relief Harvard Data Science Initiative

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