Global climate tech accelerator and regranter Subak has announced its latest funding round targeting £20million.
The fundraise will help the organisation to expand to a total of eight data-led climate centres (‘nodes’) across six continents by 2025. Each node will be self-sustaining and led by local experts to tackle the region’s most critical issues and create a cascading global impact.
It will also aid Subak’s development of a grant technology platform to democratise access to climate funding around the world and allow funders to directly invest in critical environmental projects with confidence.
Parallel to booming VC investment in climate tech, Subak is the first global not-for-profit accelerator and regranter for data-led climate startups. Their unique model offers a vital funding route to those not suited to equity funding, empowering climate startups to scale their critical missions without pressure to deliver profit.
The organisation was launched in 2021 by Baroness Bryony Worthington, lead author of the UK’s Climate Change Act. With two hubs established in the UK and Australia and a global Data Catalogue (dubbed the ‘Google of climate data’) in operation, Subak is projected to fund and scale hundreds of data-led climate organisations and projects in the next five years.
The growing community of data-led startups and researchers is supported by some of the best minds in tech, environment and science, including Amali de Alwis (former MD of Microsoft for Startups UK and CEO of Code First: Girls), Michelle You (co-founder of Songkick), Gi Fernando MBE, and Dr Jack Kelly (former Google DeepMind ML engineer).
Amali de Alwis MBE, CEO of Subak, said: “We call on all investors who share our sense of urgency and commitment to the climate crisis to join us in this pivotal phase of Subak’s journey and the larger fight against climate change. Equity funding in the climate sector is vital but it cannot be the only option – we need a unified approach from the for-profit and not-for-profit worlds if we’re going to have a real impact on the climate crisis.
“It’s our mission at Subak to help bring these worlds together and create a cascade of global climate impact. If a single organisation that we support can influence policy, empower activists and drive change in consumer behaviour – then imagine what’s possible when we apply this framework on a worldwide scale.”
Baroness Bryony Worthington, Co-Founder of Subak, added: “I helped set up Subak in order to build a global ecosystem of organisations and individuals that are using data tools for climate solutions in the charitable and not-for-profit sector. We see an incredible untapped potential to fund and scale climate interventions that are primed for impact rather than profit.
“Often it is civil society that creates the perfect conditions for not-for-profits to enter markets and scale but they receive very little support. And out of the 100 most well-funded not-for-profits in the US in 2021, none were exclusively focused on climate mitigation.
“This fundraise marks the beginning of Subak’s next chapter – new organisations are invited to learn more, offer feedback and provide funding to help usher in climate solutions at speed.”