NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Pioneering Change: Catalyzing Climate Solutions with Sarah Kearney

Climate change, a defining challenge of our time, requires both existing and new technological solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the scale required. Yet, the path from groundbreaking idea to scale is fraught with financial and structural obstacles.

Prime Coalition, founded and led by Sarah Kearney, stands at the forefront of this journey, steering catalytic capital through Prime and influencing capital outside of Prime toward scalable solutions to climate change.

Prime Coalition’s mission transcends just money; it involves substantiating, designing, constructing, fundraising, implementing, and evaluating groundbreaking impact-first investment programs, and providing resources to help many hundreds of other investment managers consider the future climate impacts of their investment decisions. Prime’s approach has been pivotal in turning potential into progress in the fight against climate change.

In this Luminarias Series webinar, Impact Entrepreneur’s Laurie Lane-Zucker welcomes Sarah Kearney to explore the transformative role of Prime Coalition in addressing climate change.

Topics to be discussed include:

• Engaging Philanthropic and Impact Investors: Understanding Prime Coalition’s role in bridging the gap between donor advised funds, private foundations, corporate giving programs, and other mission investors to support impactful investment opportunities in climate technology.
• Mission governance: Hearing about Prime’s lessons learned across its first decade about the roles the nonprofit plays to safeguard impact and avoid slippage toward finance-first practices on a day-to-day basis.
• Prime Coalition’s Investment Strategy: Exploring Prime’s venture capital programs’ investment criteria from its first ten years and looking forward to Prime’s ambition to stand up at least four impact-first investment teams over the next ten years.
• Spotlight on Success Stories: Showcasing specific early-stage companies supported by Prime Coalition over the past ten years. Examples include breakthroughs in carbon capture and storage, novel sustainable agriculture techniques, and advancements in zero-emission transportation.
• Catalytic Capital in Action: Delving into how Prime Coalition’s unique approach has been instrumental in bringing these innovations from concept to market-readiness.
• Overcoming the ‘Valley of Death’: Discussing the challenges faced by early-stage climate solutions in securing funding and how Prime Coalition’s programs offer a lifeline.

This session promises to be a deep exploration into the world of climate solutions, offering a unique perspective on the role of catalytic capital in absorbing disproportionate risk across a variety of climate-related cause areas. Participants will gain valuable insights into the mechanics of impact investing in the climate sector and the transformative work of Prime Coalition.