CO2 Foundation
Seattle, WA · EIN 83-3981914. Reported 49 grants totalling $1,642,956 to 36 organizations across tax years 2020-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. CO2 Foundation did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $32,830. Half of everything it gave fell between $5,000 and $49,362; the smallest was $50 and the largest $98,419. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which the organization received money -- more than one means a real relationship rather than a one-off.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservation Biology Institute | Corvallis, OR | $169,850 | 5 | 3 | 2024 |
| Climate Central | Princeton, NJ | $100,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Grist Magazine | Seattle, WA | $98,419 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Ecoadapt | Bainbridge Island, WA | $97,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| University of Washington - Friday Harbor Labs | Friday Harbor, WA | $84,746 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Conversation US | Waltham, MA | $82,650 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Action for the Climate Emergency (ace) | Charlestown, MA | $71,250 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Utah Film Center | Salt Lake City, UT | $71,250 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Environmental Defense Fund | New York, NY | $67,687 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Oregon Environmental Council (oec) | Portland, OR | $66,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| League of Conservation Voters - Chispa Az | Phoenix, AZ | $57,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (ypccc) | New Haven, CT | $51,862 | 2 | 1 | 2024 |
| Earth Overshoot - Transmediavision | Mount Vernon, WA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Preventable Surprises | Brooklyn, NY | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Gbh Educational Foundation | Boston, MA | $47,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Point Blue Conservation Science | Petaluma, CA | $47,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Yale Program on Climate Change Communication | New Haven, CT | $47,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Urban Sustainability Directors Network (usdn) | Sanford, NC | $47,025 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians | Portland, OR | $46,012 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Zero Foodprint | San Francisco, CA | $45,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Knee Deep Times | San Francisco, CA | $40,375 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Wisconsin Academy | Madison, WI | $39,250 | 2 | 1 | 2024 |
| Inquiring Systems Inc | Santa Rosa, CA | $32,830 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Foundation for Water & Energy Education | Spokane, WA | $23,750 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Gbh | Boston, MA | $22,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Urban Ecology - Kneedeep Times | San Francisco, CA | $20,575 | 2 | 1 | 2024 |
| Montana Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate (mthphc) | Red Lodge, MT | $20,064 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Methow Valley Citizens Councilresilient Methow | Twisp, WA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Montana Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate | Red Lodge, MT | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| University of Washington | Seattle, WA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Foundation for Water and Energy Education | Spokane, WA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Here Now Project | Chicago, IL | $3,750 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (atni) | Portland, OR | $2,422 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Hasten Regeneration | Palo Alto, CA | $1,730 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Foundation for Water and Energy Education (fwee) | Spokane, WA | $1,250 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Washington Green Schools | Seattle, WA | $209 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
5 of 36 (14%) received money in more than one year over the 5 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 37%, across 2 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. A high number means its list is close to settled and a newcomer has to displace someone; a low one means it is still moving money around, which is where an opening is.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- Grist Magazine
TRAVELOG-STYLE MULTI-COMMUNITY STORYTELLING TOUR, FOCUSING ON EXTREME WEATHER IMPACTS AND SOLUTIONS. - University of Washington - Friday Harbor Labs
RUN A TWO-WEEK PROFESSIONAL TRAINING WORKSHOP DURING SUMMER 2024 ON PROJECTING THE IMPACTS OF MARINE HEAT WAVES AND OTHER EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS TO ENHANCE COASTAL CLIMATE RESILIENCE. - The Conversation US
PAYS FOR STAFFING SO THAT THE CONVERSATION CAN CONTINUE TO ACT AS A BRIDGE BETWEEN EVOLVING SCIENCE AND PUBLIC AWARENESS, COVERING EXTREME WEATHER REGULARLY AND CONSISTENTLY SO AS TO KEEP READERS ENGAGED WITH THE TOPIC. - Utah Film Center
FISCALLY SPONSORED, THE HERE AND NOW PROJECT, A UNIQUE VISUAL DIARY OF THE IMPACT CLIMATE-AMPLIFIED EXTREME WEATHER IS ALREADY HAVING ON ORDINARY PEOPLE AROUND THE GLOBE. - Action for the Climate Emergency (ace)
DELIVER AND ANALYZE A NATIONAL SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN CONNECTING EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS AND FOSSIL FUEL POLLUTION, INCLUDING DATA COLLECTION ABOUT HOW INFO IS RECEIVED IN THE WAKE OF SPECIFIC EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS. - Environmental Defense Fund
THIS PROJECT WILL IDENTIFY ACTIONABLE STRATEGIES FOR DISASTER INSURERS TO HELP LOWER RISKS, PRODUCING A REPORT TO BE SHARED THROUGH EXISTING NETWORKS WITHIN THE INDUSTRY.
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 21 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 | $50 | $50 |
| 2021 | 1 | $159 | $159 |
| 2022 | 9 | $335,137 | $46,012 |
| 2023 | 11 | $303,580 | $25,000 |
| 2024 | 27 | $1,004,030 | $45,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Already committed for future years
Form 990-PF has a separate schedule for grants approved but not yet paid. CO2 Foundation has 21 of them, worth $158,151. This is the one part of the filing that looks forward rather than back -- and it also tells you how much of the next year's budget is already spoken for.
| Organization | Location | Approved |
|---|---|---|
| Climate Central | Princeton, NJ | $50,000 |
| Ecoadapt | Bainbridge Island, WA | $50,000 |
| Grist Magazine | Seattle, WA | $5,180 |
| Zero Foodprint | San Francisco, CA | $5,000 |
| The Conversation US | Waltham, MA | $4,350 |
| Utah Film Center | Salt Lake City, UT | $3,750 |
| Action for the Climate Emergency (ace) | Charlestown, MA | $3,750 |
| Environmental Defense Fund | New York, NY | $3,562 |
| Oregon Environmental Council (oec) | Portland, OR | $3,500 |
| Conservation Biology Institute | Corvallis, OR | $3,150 |
| Conservation Biology Institute | Corvallis, OR | $3,000 |
| League of Conservation Voters - Chispa Az | Phoenix, AZ | $3,000 |
| Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (ypccc) | New Haven, CT | $2,598 |
| Gbh Educational Foundation | Boston, MA | $2,500 |
| Point Blue Conservation Science | Petaluma, CA | $2,500 |
Where its money goes
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 23% of this one's giving went to organizations in Washington. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are the strongest available signal that two funders have overlapping priorities, and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $32,830. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Washington.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from CO2 Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2020-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred, or estimated.
Address of record on the latest return: 2442 Nw Market St 971, Seattle, WA, 98107. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 83-3981914 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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