SAJIDA Foundation, in partnership with The British Asian Trust, has launched the Climate Innovation Fund - an ambitious fund that aims to identify and support innovative local solutions working to build greater resilience to the impacts of climate change on agriculture, food security, water security, and livelihoods in Bangladesh. With an initial commitment of USD 1 Million, the fund aims to mobilise further funding and partnerships in this sector.
Climate Innovation Fund
Climate Innovation Fund
Bangladesh and Climate Change
Bangladesh ranks seventh among the most affected countries on the Global Climate Risk Index. Its unique geography, high poverty, and population density make it extremely vulnerable to climate change and its effects. The United Nations predicts 13.3 million people could become internal migrants in the next 30 years due to water scarcity, rising sea levels and threats to agriculture and livelihoods.
Adverse effects of climate change such as temperature rise, land erosion, frequency of floods, volatility of rainfall, and other extreme weather are already leading to the loss of agricultural land and degrading water and soil health. As the effects of climate change continue to materialise, rural and poor communities will be even more vulnerable to the loss of livelihoods, food insecurity, and water scarcity.
The Climate Innovation Fund
While Bangladesh is increasingly taking a leadership role on climate action globally, there is an urgent need to invest in locally led climate innovations which will help communities build their resilience in the coming years. Despite overwhelming evidence on the high rate of return on investment in climate-resilience, insights suggest there is inadequate investment in innovation in this sector in the country. Bangladesh will need at least $12.5 billion (approximately 3% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product) in the medium-term for climate action.
This challenge presented us with the opportunity to create a Fund which brings together global resources and local knowledge to support Bangladesh to build greater resilience to climate change and drive innovation and scalability which could be applied globally. Through performance-based grants and support, the Fund will provide opportunities for the most impactful and promising solutions in climate resilience to establish and scale.
The Climate Innovation Fund aims to stimulate and drive innovation in climate resilience by:
- Identifying some of the most promising and innovative approaches to climate resilience in Bangladesh and supporting these solutions to establish and scale
- Building a strong and credible pipeline of initiatives and facilitating support from other agencies and investors
- Building opportunities for development and networking to facilitate learning
What Do We Offer?
Who Can Apply?
From the applicant pool, the most promising innovations will be identified and supported. These could include:
- Enterprises and other organisations that have tested innovations and are working towards financial sustainability but require funding and support to enhance their business models. These could include private limited companies, social enterprises, sole proprietorship entities, or NGOs.
- Individuals that have well-defined innovations, are dedicated to developing and testing their ideas, and are determined to achieve financial sustainability.
Applications received will be assessed and selected for one of two distinct pathways of support:
- Venture building (grants between $15,000 - $50,000): For early-stage innovations that would benefit from in-depth mentoring and advisory support as well as funding
- Catalytic funding (grants up to $80,000): For more mature innovations that would benefit from larger funding and business development support
How to Apply
Applications for this cohort are closed and evaluations are currently underway.
Want to Get Involved?
Have questions? Want to collaborate? Reach out to us at cif@sajida.org
TRANSFORM Climate Challenge
With the shared commitment to build climate resilience through innovation and entrepreneurship, the Climate Innovation Fund, led by the British Asian Trust and SAJIDA Foundation, has partnered with TRANSFORM, an impact accelerator led by Unilever, the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), and EY, to launch the TRANSFORM Climate Challenge.
The TRANSFORM Climate Challenge is a specialized initiative that aims to identify and support enterprises working on climate resilience, with a special focus on innovations addressing plastic circularity challenges. Eligible enterprises should have innovative, scalable and sustainable business models that work on at least one of the following:
- Improving the collection and processing of plastic waste, while integrating informal waste pickers into the value chain
- Implementing innovative technologies/business models to enhance recycling capabilities for plastic waste, particularly for flexible plastics
The TRANSFORM Climate Challenge expands on the Climate Innovation Fund’s vision to support innovations in the key areas of agriculture, food security, water security, and livelihoods, and offers a unique opportunity for climate innovators in Bangladesh to receive support and funding from TRANSFORM and the Climate Innovation Fund.