Unlocking Finance

Nature deserves outcomes-driven policy and stronger financial investment.

How We Work

We drive policies that help build innovative private and public sector investment in positive environmental outcomes, while expanding the pace and scale of that investment. 

By showcasing how public and private financing can deliver outcomes quickly and cost-effectively, we are advancing conditions that attract private sector investment in public environmental projects and infrastructure. We connect tribes, municipalities,  and governmental agencies to funding resources and innovative financing models to scale and streamline their programs. This approach accelerates green infrastructure, biodiversity, clean water, resilience, and adaptation projects when and where they’re needed most.

Why It Matters 

The vast majority of funding to support nature-based projects comes from public sources, and it’s falling tens of billions of dollars short of the annual global need. A resilient future relies on economically-sustainable solutions. To get there faster, we need to deploy strategic and reliable funding and financing models where traditional philanthropy or government funds may not suffice. 

  • A consensus figure for comprehensive environmental restoration, including climate and biodiversity efforts, is around $700 billion per year. 

  • Fulfilling global commitments for land restoration alone is estimated to cost between $311 billion and $2.1 trillion over a decade. 

  • Predicted land restoration investments are significantly outweighed by the estimated $6.3 trillion annual loss from degraded ecosystems and lost ecosystem services. 

  • Historically, only  7.1% of drinking water systems and 5.5% of wastewater systems benefited from State Revolving Funds, which offer below-market interest rates and availability in all 50 states and U.S. territories. 

  • Despite broad public acceptance of green infrastructure solutions, adoption of those solutions lag behind. 

What’s New

Featured
Forbes Announces Jessie Mahr as Global Sustainability Leader!
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Four Ways to Help Ensure Your Restoration Project is Investment-Ready: Insights from Maycomb Capital

Discover how small environmental restoration firms can scale their impact and earn revenue through outcomes-based funding like Pay for Success (PFS) contracts. In our latest feature, we talk with Maycomb Capital—a women-owned impact investing firm—about how they use flexible, mission-aligned financing to support projects that deliver measurable results for underserved communities. Learn what funders look for and how to secure the capital you need to launch your next high-impact initiative.

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Trellis: Why Norfolk Southern restored a 1,500-foot stretch of Virginia shoreline
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Comments on NAICS Revisions for 2027 - Proposing New Codes for the Ecological Restoration Industry

Comments on “2022 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) - Revisions for 2027” (Docket ID USBC-2024-0032)

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Four Ways Philanthropy Can Accelerate Nature-Based Solutions
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Green Finance Institute: Revenues for nature announces global effort to unlock private sector finance for nature restoration and conservation
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Some Myths and Misunderstandings in Biodiversity Credit Markets

Biodiversity credit markets are new and unfamiliar to most of us, and misconceptions abound. Because carbon credit markets have attracted so much attention - good, bad, and ugly, there is a (mostly) false impression that carbon markets are, or should be the single model for a biodiversity market, and that couldn’t be farther from the truth. I spoke recently as part of an excellent series on biodiversity credits hosted by the Environmental Leadership Training Initiative, and below I’ve adapted my comments from that event to address some of the myths and doubts often posed by both advocates and skeptics. If others come to mind, go ahead and throw them in the comments below.

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The Next 55 Earth Days
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An Abundance of Nature

EPIC champions a bold approach to environmental restoration, aligning with the Abundance mindset by streamlining wetland restoration, leveraging technology, and using pay-for-success models. By focusing on outcomes over process, EPIC aims to make nature restoration faster, scalable, and impactful—ensuring clean air, water, and ecosystems are abundant and accessible.

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Turning Pay for Success Theory into Practice: Imagining the Future in Milwaukee
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Addressing GSI Challenges and Opening Up Opportunities with a Pay for Success Model
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