Climate impact and
regeneration investments

Investing in for-profit climate solutions that avoid
greenhouse gas emissions, promote regenerative
agricultural practices, enhance carbon sequestration,
and contribute to climate resilience and adaptation.

• To date, our climate investments portfolio has directly
or indirectly (via funds) supported more than 140
high-impact climate startups across 20+ countries

• More than 65 percent of the portfolio company
founders are from diverse populations

Impact story:

Increasing inclusive access to clean energy in Africa

_{Jaza powers over 15,000 homes and 100,000 people a month, across 120+ sites in Tanzania and Nigeria.}

Jaza Energy is a company that builds and distributes rechargeable batteries powered with solar energy in Nigeria
and Tanzania.

Problem: About 600 million people, 43 percent of Africa’s population, lack access to electricity. The majority of off-grid houses use kerosene lanterns, candles, flashlights, or generators as primary sources of lighting and energy. These are often unsafe, inefficient, costly, inconsistent, and polluting.

Solution and Cisco support: Cisco Foundation made an early-stage investment into Jaza to enhance affordable access to clean energy across the region and drive climate action.

Impact: Jaza’s model establishes shops or ‘hubs’ in remote communities of 1000+ residents to distribute rechargeable batteries to families to power home appliances, phones, lights, televisions, stereos and on occasion, support their small businesses.

Impact story:

Using climate-tech to accelerate sustainable agriculture

_{A 30-45 percent reduction in chemical cover sprays and instead a move towards shifting agricultural systems to more regenerative and sustainable practices.}

RapidAIM is a company that uses AI and sensor technology for real-time crop monitoring to detect pests and reduce pesticide usage.

Problem: Today, more than 485,000 tons of insecticide are dumped on the planet each year, with 99 percent missing the targeted pests and creating toxic environmental pollution affecting biodiversity, human and environmental health. Insecticides contribute 8,002,500 tons of CO2 annually.

Solution and Cisco support: Cisco Foundation made an early-stage investment into RapidAIM to expand key technology that enables the transition towards regenerative agriculture and more healthy and sustainable global agricultural practices.

Impact: RapidAIM helps farmers adopt more targeted and sustainable pest control methods. This shift enhances crop protection and contributes to reducing harmful environmental impacts associated with chemical insecticides. The adoption of biologicals and advanced monitoring technologies like RapidAIM is essential for meeting modern agricultural demands while promoting environmental sustainability. Their work is operational in Australia, Europe, and the United States.

Impact story:

Digitizing and advancing carbon monitoring

_{By providing accurate tracking of forest carbon stocks and changes, Chloris supports the protection and scaling of nature-based solutions and is integral for stakeholders aiming to meet global sustainability targets.}

The company, Chloris Geospatial, is a data and analytics platform that turns space-based observations into data and insights about carbon & natural capital.

Problem: In the voluntary carbon markets—a market valued at $1.6 billion in 2023 and growing to $10-$40 billion by 2030, stakeholders are grappling with the challenge of verifying and monitoring carbon sequestration projects due to the time-consuming and error-prone nature of traditional methods. New technology solutions to standardize measurement, reporting, verification (MRV) can help buyers & sellers transact with assurance on the quality of carbon credits.

Solution and Cisco support: Cisco Foundation made an early-stage investment into Chloris to drive climate action by revolutionizing forest carbon monitoring and sustainability reporting.

Impact: Leveraging satellite imagery and AI/ML technology, Chloris offers high-resolution, accurate biomass data analytics through its cloud-based SaaS platform. The company addresses critical challenges in voluntary carbon markets and corporate greenhouse gas accounting by providing standardized, reliable data for carbon credit verification and Scope 3 emissions reporting globally.

Impact story:

Driving clean energy innovation across Southeast Asia

_{Unleashing innovation in utility scale renewables, distributed energy, grid modernization, electrification and green hydrogen across Southeast Asia.}

Southeast Asia Clean Energy Facility (SEACEF) fund aims to direct early-stage development capital investment into high-impact clean energy projects and businesses in critical Southeast Asian markets.

Problem: Southeast Asia, despite being the 5th largest energy consumer and highly vulnerable to climate change, sources over 40 percent of its energy from coal. This persists despite the region's vast potential for renewable energy due to longstanding vested interests and incentive systems favoring fossil fuels that hinder climate innovation in this space.

Solution and Cisco support: Cisco Foundation invested in SEACEF’s Fund II to provide early-stage development capital to solar, wind, storage, energy efficiency, electric mobility, and infrastructure businesses and projects in Southeast Asia.

Impact: SEACEF funding helps to de-risk businesses and projects to catalyze follow-on private sector investment for de-risked opportunities.