Accelerating Natural Climate Solutions to Improve Climate Resilience
Allen Family Philanthropies, formerly known as the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, today issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for up to $10 million to fund projects accelerating Natural Climate Solutions (NCS) that overcome implementation barriers in the U.S. The foundation is seeking projects that develop and deploy science and technology that advance NCS, one of the few “shovel-ready” solutions that continue to maintain broad public support.
Defined as deliberate, nature-based “human actions that protect, restore, and improve management of forests, wetlands, grasslands, oceans, and agricultural lands to reduce carbon emissions,” NCS projects can provide cost-effective global CO2 mitigation needed to stabilize warming while providing real, tangible co-benefits to people and the environment.
“NCS projects work with nature to avoid carbon emissions or increase carbon sequestration through actions that conserve ecosystems,” said Yuta Masuda, science director at Allen Family Philanthropies. “NCS pathways, while seemingly as simple as planting trees in croplands or preserving at-risk grasslands from development, face huge barriers such as water availability, incomplete supply chains, access to markets, or aversion to new practices which must be overcome in order to accelerate NCS project implementation.”
This RFP follows on the heels of the foundation’s Pacific Northwest-based series of NCS grants that provided $5M in funding to six organizations working to deploy natural solutions for place-based projects in Alaska, British Columbia, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. This new RFP engages the national NCS community to support projects across diverse U.S. ecologies and biomes.
Aspects of the funding were informed by surveying more than 100,000 individuals working in conservation and climate mitigation to understand where barriers exist, and the foundation is more hopeful than ever that “for every barrier, there is a solution that utilizes science and technology approaches.” The eight NCS barriers include 1) material inputs, 2) finance, 3) markets, 4) adverse NCS impacts, 5) knowledge, 6) social and behavioral, 7) rules and laws, and 8) governments and organizations.
“The world needs science-based innovations that lead to durable and sustainable climate solutions,” said Lara Littlefield, executive director, Allen Family Philanthropies. “The foundation has been engaged in environmental conservation since it was founded nearly 40 years ago, and this RFP continues our commitment to engage diverse teams of scientists, technologists, and key stakeholders to develop and implement nature-based solutions that will benefit our communities.”
The RFP process begins with the submission of a Letter of Interest (LOI) by January 15, 2026. Non-profit organizations, governmental agencies, or academic institutions that are based in the U.S. with project concepts that address NCS pathway(s) and targeted barrier(s) are eligible to apply. After reviewing the LOIs, the foundation will invite a select number of applicants to submit a full proposal. Final selection and funding of the top six or seven projects are scheduled for mid-2026.
The foundation will host an informational interview for prospective applicants on December 9, 2025. For more information, visit the Accelerating Natural Climate Solutions RFP page on the foundation’s website.
