Climate-KIC and Philea announce strategic partnership to advance collaboration between philanthropy and the Climate-KIC community

Amsterdam, Netherlands & Brussels, Belgium – 31 October, 2024 – Climate-KIC International Foundation, the not-for-profit arm of Europe’s leading climate innovation initiative, and Philea, the Philanthropy Europe Association, announce a new partnership to advance collaboration between philanthropy and the Climate-KIC community. The partnership seeks to catalyse systemic change through innovation for the climate crisis, and ensure that the transition is rooted in justice, fairness, and inclusion.

To kick off their collaboration, Climate-KIC and Philea are launching a webinar series titled “Philanthropy Talks | A Journey towards Climate-Neutral European Cities through Imagination, New Skills and New Economies”, and they are inviting foundations, philanthropy infrastructure organisations and city representatives to reflect on the importance of these intervention areas (imagination, new skills and new economies) for a just and fair transition towards climate-neutrality.

The partnership will promote collaboration between public-benefit foundations and city leaders to address the immense challenge of achieving climate neutrality. The European Union’s Climate Neutral and Smart Cities Mission is working with 112 cities to fully decarbonise their energy, transport, and built environments by 2030, with more cities eager to follow.

Climate-KIC brings 15 years of experience as a Knowledge and Innovation Community focused on bridging the gap between climate commitments and current realities, while Philea nurtures a diverse and inclusive ecosystem of foundations, philanthropic organisations and networks in over 30 countries that are committed to effecting change for people and planet in Europe and beyond.

A partnership to channel philanthropic funding into climate programs

The partnership will explore joint efforts to channel philanthropic funding into climate programs and support various actors, from businesses and public authorities to grassroots organisations and communities, to catalyse systemic change. It will focus on co-creating knowledge, collaborating on current and emerging climate issues, and promoting environments that foster innovation and good practices.

Kirsten Dunlop, CEO of Climate-KIC, says: “The climate crisis requires new levels of collaboration, innovation, and financial mobilisation to create the scale of change we need. This partnership and webinar series bring together the power of philanthropy and innovation to drive impactful climate solutions for cities across Europe. The transition to climate-neutral cities requires technical and financial support but above all systemic approaches to innovation, community-driven solutions and creativity—this is where partnership with philanthropy can be transformative.”

Delphine Moralis, CEO of Philea, added: “We are thrilled to collaborate with Climate-KIC as we work to ensure that cities’ transition towards climate-neutrality is equitable, fair and inclusive. Philanthropy has a unique role to play in enabling experimentation, co-creation and innovation by being a trust-based partner that works on the long-term with stakeholders from the ecosystem.”

Register to the webinars

Contact Information:

Anne-Sophie Garrigou
Media and Campaigns Orchestrator, Climate KIC
media@climate-kic.org

Angela Pauly
Head of Communications, Philea
angelapauly@philea.eu

About Climate-KIC
Stichting Climate-KIC International Foundation is the non-profit arm of Europe’s leading climate innovation initiative, bringing together a diverse community of innovators to address the challenges of climate change through systemic and sustainable solutions.

About Philea
Philanthropy Europe Association (Philea) nurtures a diverse and inclusive ecosystem of foundations, philanthropic organisations and networks in over 30 countries that work for the common good. With individual and national-level infrastructure organisations as members, it unites over 7,500 public-benefit foundations that seek to improve life for people and communities in Europe and around the world.