Climate Change AI Innovation Grants

As part of our mission to catalyze impactful work at the intersection of climate change and machine learning, Climate Change AI awards seed grants supporting research, deployment, and the creation of datasets and tools.

This Innovation Grants program enables the creation of key partnerships that accelerate the research-to-deployment cycle, creating synergies between academic researchers, non-profits, startups and other companies, and governmental or intergovernmental organizations.

The Innovation Grants program closed the application period for its 2024 call for proposals on September 15, 2024. Please visit the 2024 Innovation Grants page for more information about program and the awards notification timeline.

If you are interested in partnering with Climate Change AI and supporting the Innovation Grants program, please get in touch with us via partnerships@climatechange.ai.

Overview

The Climate Change AI Innovation Grants program supports projects that address research and deployment challenges in climate change mitigation, adaptation, and climate science by leveraging AI and machine learning, while also creating publicly available datasets and tools to catalyze further work. The program allocates grants typically of up to $150K for projects of one year in duration. So far, over our past grant calls, we have funded 23 projects over a broad range of application areas, with investigators from 62 institutions across 22 countries on 6 continents.

A list of our accepted projects can be seen below, with links for more information.

Funded Projects

Grant Cycle

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Subject Areas

The CityLearn Challenge 2023

Innovation Grants 2023 Cities & Urban Planning Buildings Reinforcement Learning

The eye of a hurricane, a calm center surrounded by swirling clouds and intense storm activity, viewed from above

EMPIRIC_AI: AI-enabled ensemble projections of cyclone risk for health infrastructure in Pacific Island Countries and Territories

Innovation Grants 2023 Climate Science & Modeling Societal Adaptation & Resilience Climate Justice Extreme Weather

A close-up image sea urchins, showcasing spines

Developing machine learning tools to rapidly assess the catastrophic impact of a range-extending sea urchin in a global warming hotspot

Innovation Grants 2023 Oceans & Marine Systems Interpretable ML

A plant specimen of the vulnerable species Ophiorrhiza subumbellata, collected by Captain James Cook in 1774 in Tahiti, and identified as such in 1975.

Data Extraction and Modelling from Plant Trait Literature

Innovation Grants 2023 Ecosystems & Biodiversity Climate Science & Modeling Data Mining Natural Language Processing

A pile of logs resulting from illegal logging activities, highlighting the environmental impact of deforestation and timber extraction.

Curbing Illegal Logging Patterns using Sound-Based Detection Techniques

Innovation Grants 2023 Carbon Capture & Sequestration Computer Vision & Remote Sensing

L2 suspension tower, part of an electrical transmission system, featuring cables suspended between tall pylons.

From Observing Power to Improving Power: Loss Localization in the Distribution Grid through Topology

Innovation Grants 2023 Power & Energy Societal Adaptation & Resilience Unsupervised & Semi-Supervised Learning

Researchers reviewing a draft flood map and discussing colonias in Cameron County that experienced flooding, as part of a workshop involving community partners.

Flood Justice and Adaptation in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas with AI and satellite imagery

Innovation Grants 2023 Societal Adaptation & Resilience Climate Justice Computer Vision & Remote Sensing Disaster Management and Relief

A river winding through a landscape of palm trees

Artificial Intelligence for water management in the Red River Delta to meet the water demand and control saline intrusion in a changing climate

Innovation Grants 2023 Hybrid Physical Models Agriculture & Food Climate Science & Modeling Disaster Management and Relief

An extensive rice field stretching into the distance with flooded paddies, ready for cultivation

Mapping Rice Water Management and Methane Emissions in Ghana

Innovation Grants 2023 Agriculture & Food Computer Vision & Remote Sensing

Smoke billows from a towering smokestack at a steel plant in Inner Mongolia, contributing to air pollution

Accelerating Material Discovery for High-Performance Chemical Separation using AI

Innovation Grants 2022 Chemistry & Materials Carbon Capture & Sequestration

Flooded croplands in Ba, Fiji, following a storm event in February 2017, showing submerged fields and waterlogged vegetation

Detecting Flooding in Fiji's Croplands

Innovation Grants 2022 Disaster Management and Relief Agriculture & Food Earth Observation & Monitoring Extreme Weather Computer Vision & Remote Sensing

Visualization depicting features learned through the species mapping approach, showcasing data patterns and insights

Mitigating Climate Change Impacts on Biodiversity via Machine Learning Powered Assessment

Innovation Grants 2022 Ecosystems & Biodiversity

Electric transmission towers in a cleared forest area, indicating human infrastructure amidst deforestation

Machine Learning-based Dynamic Climate Projections for Power System Planning Datasets

Innovation Grants 2022 Power & Energy Climate Science & Modeling

Mangrove forest in Indonesia, featuring dense vegetation and tangled roots along a coastal area.

Using Machine Learning and Earth Observation Data to Identify Aquaculture Sites with High Potential for Production Intensification and Mangrove Restoration in Southeast Asia

Innovation Grants 2022 Agriculture & Food Carbon Capture & Sequestration Oceans & Marine Systems Ecosystems & Biodiversity Climate Finance & Economics Computer Vision & Remote Sensing