ICONIQ Impact, ICONIQ Capital’s global collaborative philanthropy platform, has announced the launch of a fund of up to $50 million that will support organizations harnessing the power of the ocean to fight climate change.

With $42 million mobilized for the fund to date, Ocean Co-Lab aims to fund ocean-based solutions—such as replacing fossil fuels with offshore wind energy, protecting mangroves and other ecosystems that absorb carbon, and supporting coastal communities in climate adaptation—that will protect and preserve the ocean and mitigate climate change. The fund will award three-year grants to 20 projects in the categories of climate change mitigation, carbon sequestration, blue carbon, and adaptation and resilience.

Grants were awarded to organizations including Pacific Environment in support of its efforts to expand the Ports for People campaign to three of the world’s largest shipping economies: South Korea, Japan, and China; Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution for efforts to understand the effectiveness and scalability of ocean alkalinity enhancement, a process where alkaline substances are added to the ocean to enhance its capacity to absorb and store carbon; and Renewables Grid Initiative, a Europe-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting fair, transparent, and sustainable grid development.

“Our focus at ICONIQ Impact is to identify areas where our collaborative funding can have a catalytic impact and where existing funding is nowhere near commensurate with the need,” said ICONIQ Impact head Matti Navellou. “With the Ocean Co-Lab, we’re looking to fill a critical funding gap and champion solutions that governments and the private sector often overlook or are too early-stage to fund, such as new research in promising climate technology or supporting vulnerable coastal communities.”

For a full list of grant recipients, see the ICONIQ Impact website.

(Photo credit: Getty Images/FilippoBacci)