Stephanie Van Putten

NEW fellowships! Time to open some doors. 🚪 Issue 22 of The Climate Code is here on a Monday! Check out these three awesome fellowships: 1️⃣ Stanford’s Ethics & Technology Practitioner Fellowship: A year-long, non-residential program offering $15K, mentorship, and project funding for mid-career professionals tackling real-world tech ethics challenges. 2️⃣ Berkeley’s BIDMaP Postdoctoral Fellows Program: A two-year research fellowship uniting AI, materials science, and climate innovation for PhD graduates solving global sustainability problems. 3️⃣ CAIDP AI Policy Clinic (Spring 2026): A global cohort empowering early- and mid-career professionals, especially from under-represented regions, to shape the next wave of AI governance and policy. Want in? Check it out: https://lnkd.in/eurNtuKT #AI #ClimateTech #Fellowships #Policy #Sustainability #GreenAI #ClimateCode --- The Climate Code: https://lnkd.in/eurNtuKT AI & Environment Resource Hub: https://lnkd.in/dCuj6hnM Portfolio website/book a meeting: https://lnkd.in/eVErGB4m

8

7 Comments

Air Aware capstone presentations are underway, highlighting the collaborative efforts between OUSD, HG, and the Sequoia Foundation to empower young people in East Oakland. This initiative focuses on the importance of Climate Action. Climate action is real and a critical aspect of our work.@Sequoia Climate Foundation. The presentations showcase the impactful projects developed by the youth, emphasizing their role in addressing climate challenges.

5

2026 federal funding update for ecosystem builders A week ago I wrote about where federal innovation funding stands for 2026. Here's what's changed in 7 days: What's now signed into law: The Commerce, Justice, and Science bill passed the Senate 82-15 on January 15 and is headed to the president's desk. This locks in: NSF → $8.75 billion (with protection against disproportionate cuts to any directorate) → Regional Innovation Engines: Up to $200 million EDA → Tech Hubs: $41 million → Build to Scale: $50 million → MEP: $175 million What passed the House, awaiting Senate action: The Financial Services bill passed 341-79 on January 14, confirming: SBA → Entrepreneurial development: $330 million (Congress rejected the proposed cut to $150M) → Regional Innovation Clusters: $9M → Federal and State Technology Partnership (FAST): $9M → Growth Accelerator Fund Competition: $9M What's still in flux: Leaders just released a final bipartisan package for Defense, Homeland Security, Labor-HHS-Education, and Transportation-HUD. The House may vote this week, with the January 30, 2026 deadline approaching. SBIR/STTR authorization remains expired. No new solicitations until reauthorization—though there's been some movement here. There's also a bunch of new AI policy I need to dig into still. The bottom line hasn't changed: You cannot build a 10-year innovation ecosystem on annual appropriations battles. The regions that succeed are strengthening their partnership infrastructure now, and leveraging federal funding as a bonus to accelerate outcomes. See the full analysis: https://lnkd.in/euDxDVkZ

10

Had a great time at DC Startup & Tech Week (Formerly DC Startup Week) moderating a panel with Scott Christensen (Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund (CBSCF) , Faith Davis (Exelon) and Bill McNulty (NextEra Energy Investments), convened by the great C'pher Gresham. Here's a quick recap: 1) The panelists were phenomenal - a mixture of corporate, state and foundation-backed VC's all focusing on climate. They're actively funding companies across a range of sectors - e.g. nature-based solutions, energy + AI, water, etc. Point being, we were lucky to have experts with such broad purviews. 2) The current climate could be pushing at least some climate VC's to focus on software and move away from hardware, at least temporarily. This type of capital may indeed just be better suited for software companies at this juncture. It also reflects the fact that certain segments of the climate-tech market are just more mature than others - e.g. software performs best once the hardware and the business case around it are solid, then it becomes and optimization and efficiency game. 3) Founders need to target "must-solve" climate problems from the investor lens. In other words, yes there's a sea of climate challenges where startups can be additive. However, in this environment, few of these areas are attracting meaningful capital. There's nothing wrong with tackling problem areas that are under-invested, we need this in spades. However, for those trying to get capital in the door, realize the constraints that come with targeting problems that investors just aren't prioritizing. 4) Look to funders overseas. The EU, where so much climate finance, policy and general expertise has come from, could be playing a much more important role. I'd also argue that Gulf countries like KSA and UAE are going to be critical here too, not to mention China, of course. 5) We need mentoring and coaching to be at an all-time high. With so much uncertainty, networks/communities where both founders and investors can learn from/lean on each other have never been more important. The panel/audience was a nice microcosm of the types of support networks we need to be actively building. Big thanks again to C'pher, Faith, Scott and Bill, as well as the whole DC Startup + Tech Week team. Til next year!

51

3 Comments

A bit of a belated post, but I'm delighted to see SmartRaise featured in the latest Higher Ground Labs political tech landscape report! The report's fundraising section clearly signals a critical challenge: donor fatigue from oversaturated texts and emails (over a billion texts sent in Oct 2024 alone!). Donors are feeling overwhelmed, leading to disengagement. (Add to this Scam PACs and it's a grim picture). I hope this pushes campaigners towards smarter, more targeted engagement. Our tools have always prioritised long-term relationships. We're now seeing a rise in platforms offering smarter automation for donor retention and targeted outreach, alongside advancements in AI-driven tools and relational fundraising. These innovations collectively highlight a vital shift from sheer volume tactics to more thoughtful, strategic engagement. I believe European tools are also a key part of this picture, providing crucial independent diversification from big, centralised platforms. We need systems that build long-term trust and sustained relationships. Without this robust foundation, even the most innovative outreach risks falling flat. Read the full report in the link below.

17

3 Comments

A valuable contribution to the challenges many of us are navigating in practice, particularly in understanding the different forms of collective action and how they work together to deliver impact at scale.

3

AI + WEB3 FOR BLACK BUSINESS GROWTH The Center for Nonprofit and Community Development presents AI + Web3 for Black Business Growth, a hands-on workshop led by CEO Michael Randolph teaching Black entrepreneurs how to use powerful AI tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, and Claude to automate operations, generate marketing content, and drive sales — while leveraging Web3 technologies like smart contracts and decentralized finance to create new revenue streams, build digital ownership, and unlock greater access to capital. 🎙️ New to streaming or looking to level up? Check out StreamYard and get $10 discount! 😍 https://lnkd.in/eMy7sGes

3

I'm happy to announce that Founder Institute is bringing on Paul O'Brien as our first Head of Public Affairs. Paul joins FI with decades of experience tackling the systemic reasons startups and local ecosystems fail due to misaligned policy, underperforming startup programs, or institutional neglect of the realities of launching endurable businesses in today's economy. From Austin to Silicon Valley and beyond, Paul has championed the idea that education is infrastructure, and that cities should treat entrepreneurial development as essential as roads, broadband, and water. At FI we couldn't agree more, and as AI transforms our economy I believe the future of our society will be found at the convergence of how we teach, how we govern, and how we serve entrepreneurs. Unfortunately, I speak to government and economic development officials every week that are completely neglecting the education and development of new entrepreneurs in their regions. In his new role, Paul will help us push FI's mission to empower communities of entrepreneurs forward through Policy Engagement, University and Civic Integration, and Ecosystem Accountability. If your city, university, or organization is ready to integrate structured entrepreneurial incubation and acceleration with policy and capital strategy, now’s the time to connect! 🔗 Read the full announcement - https://lnkd.in/eenwHujW (and welcome on board, Paul! 👏 )

127

32 Comments

There is such a temptation to jump to quick fixes when you're in startup mode. This is great advice for founders.

4

What does it look like when lived experience meets deep technical expertise? You get founders like David Gory Jr, M.S., MBA., Richard Mariita, MSc., Ph.D., MBA Candidate and Ejike K - Opurum, Ph.D.. David and his co-founder Richard Mariita, MSc., Ph.D., MBA Candidate were both among the 2.3 billion people globally who lack access to clean water. That experience didn't just motivate them - it shaped how they think about infrastructure. At Airbuild Inc, they're not just treating wastewater. They're rethinking what infrastructure should do. Their Biopods use algae to: → Treat polluted water to EPA standards → Sequester carbon permanently as biochar → Boost solar panel efficiency by 12% One modular system. Triple impact. In two weeks, their first full deployment goes live in Green River, Utah!!! They've already secured: • $3.2M carbon offtake agreement • $37.5M in municipal letters of intent • 6 cities ready to deploy But here's what excites me most: David understands something many founders miss. Cities aren't looking for "sustainability" as an add-on. They need solutions that work better AND cost less. They need infrastructure that pays for itself. Airbuild Inc delivers that. And cities are lining up because of it! Doing well by doing good! This is what climate infrastructure looks like when it's built by people who've lived the problem. Proud to support David, Ejike, John William Bucur, Richard Mariita, MSc., Ph.D., MBA Candidate and the Air Build team. If you're working on water, climate, or infrastructure solutions — follow their journey. #ClimateInfrastructure #ImpactInvesting #CleanTech

14

3 Comments