Grant Guidelines
Climate Ride grants go to nonprofits that our participants choose and fundraise for. Whether you’re a rider with a favorite organization or a nonprofit that wants to join our grantee list, here’s how it works.
Two ways to be a grantee
- Listed Grantee: Your organization appears on our Grantee List and in registration for all grantee-eligible events, so any participant can choose you.
- Pending Grantee: Your organization isn’t on the list yet, but participants can still fundraise for you by selecting “Pending Grantee” when they register.
To move from Pending to Listed, your organization needs at least two participants registered and fundraising for you in a single season, on the same event or different ones. And your organization must actively agree to promote its grantee status to its network.
I’m a participant
- Register for an event with grantee selection (search events here).
- In registration, when you reach the nonprofit list, select “Pending Grantee,” then complete your registration.
- Ask your chosen organization to complete the Pending Grantee Application Form. This step is essential for us to be able to send funds to the organization.
- Optional, but it helps: set up a team and recruit a second participant. Two participants qualify the organization to become a Listed Grantee.
I’m from a nonprofit
- Recruit at least two supporters (board members, volunteers, donors) to register for a Climate Ride event.
- Ask them to select “Pending Grantee” during registration.
- Once they’ve registered, complete the Pending Grantee Application Form.
What happens next
Once we receive your application and confirm that at least two participants have registered for you, we’ll be in touch to add you as a Listed Grantee.
Who we approve
Climate Ride approves nonprofit organizations that:
- Are tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizations.
- Have a mission that aligns with Climate Ride’s goals in climate, clean energy, conservation, and active transportation.
- Actively promote the partnership to their network (we provide email templates and social media help).
- Can demonstrate readiness by having at least two participants prepared to register and fundraise for them.
Staying listed
We review our grantee list each year. To remain a Listed Grantee, we look for active promotion of Climate Ride events to your network and meaningful fundraising (at least $1,000 per year) from participants on your behalf. Organizations that come off the list can always return through the Pending Grantee steps above.
What grantees get
- No cost to you: No pre-bought spots and no fees.
- We handle the fundraising admin: We manage participant fundraising pages and coaching, and we cover all donation processing fees.
- New supporters: Listed grantees appear on our website and in registration for all eligible events, connecting you with new audiences.
- We run the events: Logistics, planning, participant support, and insurance, start to finish.
When grants arrive
- Green Fondo events: about two months after the event.
- All other events: fundraising for all events closes December 1, and grants are delivered in early December.
What your fundraising supports
When you register for a Climate Ride event, you’re doing more than exploring gorgeous places by bike or on foot, and more than making new friends who care about the same things you do. You’re making planet-saving moves.
Here’s how it works. Your fundraising first covers the event’s hard costs, which vary by event and length. After that, 80% goes as grants to the organizations you choose, and 20% supports Climate Ride. Grantees never pay any of the costs of running events. We run a tight ship and keep fundraising minimums low so more people can join in. Then we coach you to blow past your minimum. Once hard costs are covered, every extra dollar you raise means a bigger grant for the nonprofits you love. Learn more about how to fund or pay for your event.
Questions about becoming a grantee or nominating an organization? Contact us.
Since 2008, Climate Ride has granted millions of dollars to more than 380 organizations working on sustainability, bicycle advocacy, conservation, and climate change. Those organizations and their grant totals are listed below.
How it works
Organizations are only eligible for a Climate Ride grant if participants select them and raise funds on their behalf. Therefore, preference is given to organizations that set up a team or are nominated by participants.
In order to become a grantee, the organization must commit to doing outreach and engaging supporters to select them as a grantee of any Climate Ride event.
If your organization is interested in becoming a grantee or if you would like to nominate an organization, please read the steps above. Then feel free to contact us.
Since 2008, Climate Ride has granted millions of dollars to more than 380 organizations working on sustainability, bicycle advocacy, conservation, and climate change issues. Those organizations and their grant totals are listed below.
Grants, 2008 through 2024
| Name | Total Grant |
|---|---|
| Climate One | $972,172 |
| Glacier National Park Conservancy | $817,730 |
| SolarFest | $603,283 |
| Wild Tomorrow Fund | $461,000 |
| Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition | $437,834 |
| The Climate Center | $431,134 |
| 350.org | $357,552 |
| National Parks Conservation Association | $312,789 |
| Dear Tomorrow | $289,517 |
| San Francisco Bicycle Coalition | $278,045 |
| Marin County Bicycle Coalition | $262,633 |
| Rails-to-Trails Conservancy | $254,860 |
| Bike East Bay | $250,460 |
| Natural Resources Defense Council | $238,894 |
| Citizens Climate Lobby | $192,927 |
| Freecycles | $168,059 |
| Washington Area Bicyclist Association | $157,744 |
| Appalachian Mountain Club | $154,187 |
| TransForm | $148,556 |
| Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition | $137,778 |
| Ceres | $135,346 |
| Vote Solar | $133,961 |
| GRID Alternatives | $124,325 |
| 1% for the Planet | $113,326 |
| Focus the Nation | $112,616 |
| Clean Air - Cool Planet | $105,838 |
| Alliance for the Great Lakes | $103,610 |
| California Straw Building Association | $98,940 |
| Bike Santa Cruz County | $97,726 |
| The Nature Conservancy | $97,586 |
| WILD Foundation | $93,792 |
| Earthjustice | $90,643 |
| World Bicycle Relief | $89,095 |
| Transportation Alternatives | $87,312 |
| Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy | $87,267 |
| Environmental Defense Fund | $85,988 |
| Action for the Climate Emergency | $84,928 |
| B Lab | $83,926 |
| Sierra Club Connecticut | $83,136 |
| Greenbelt Alliance | $82,967 |
| Friends of Rye Nature Center | $82,616 |
| Green America | $76,494 |
| PODER | $76,000 |
| Sierra Club California | $75,353 |
| Climate Smart Missoula | $72,663 |
| Chesapeake Climate Action Network | $71,937 |
| Walk San Francisco | $69,332 |
| Acterra | $67,557 |
| Yosemite Conservancy | $67,191 |
| Boston Cyclists Union | $63,426 |
| I Challenge Myself | $62,879 |
| Marine Applied Research & Exploration (MARE) | $62,163 |
| Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition | $61,929 |
| Union of Concerned Scientists | $61,580 |
| Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment - UCLA School of Law | $59,800 |
| Sycamore Land Trust | $53,956 |
| West Michigan Environmental Action Council | $49,475 |
| California Bicycle Coalition | $47,774 |
| Active Transportation Alliance | $45,715 |
| SustainaFest | $44,398 |
| Sunrise Movement | $44,210 |
| Climate Equity Policy Center | $39,333 |
| Windustry | $37,915 |
| Food & Water Watch | $37,581 |
| Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition | $37,427 |
| Active San Gabriel Valley | $35,334 |
| Bikes Not Bombs | $35,270 |
| Rainforest Alliance | $35,189 |
| Rich City RIDES | $35,075 |
| Families for a Livable Climate | $34,481 |
| Spokeland | $34,095 |
| University of Washington School of Public Health | $34,077 |
| Adventure Cycling Association | $32,291 |
| African Wildlife Foundation | $31,852 |
| Experience Learning | $31,667 |
| American Solar Energy Society (ASES) | $31,058 |
| Environmental Working Group | $31,011 |
| Harlem Grown | $29,344 |
| American Forests | $29,291 |
| Intersectional Environmentalist | $29,145 |
| Greater Grand Rapids Bicycle Coalition | $28,391 |
| Streets For All | $27,983 |
| Albany Strollers & Rollers | $27,933 |
| Well House | $26,803 |
| 350 Colorado | $25,528 |
| Soil Cycle | $24,874 |
| Bike New York | $24,720 |
| East Coast Greenway Alliance | $24,476 |
| Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN) | $23,711 |
| League of American Bicyclists | $23,591 |
| Center for Climate Protection | $23,459 |
| Center for Biological Diversity | $23,322 |
| Greenagers | $23,110 |
| Climate Generation | $22,980 |
| National Park Foundation | $22,565 |
| Sustainable Westchester | $21,684 |
| Beyond Fistula | $21,232 |
| 350 Vermont | $20,802 |
| Climate Protection Campaign | $20,301 |
| Climate Counts | $19,579 |
| WRISE (Women of Renewable Industry and Sustainable Energy) | $19,333 |
| Young Voices on Climate Change | $18,926 |
| Prime Ability | $18,640 |
| Better Future Project | $18,501 |
| Bike San Gabriel Valley | $17,996 |
| Grist | $17,931 |
| The Nature Conservancy Forest Health Program | $17,883 |
| Architecture 2030 | $16,912 |
| GivePower | $16,608 |
| American Geophysical Union | $16,051 |
| Vida Verde Nature Education | $15,918 |
| Solar Living Institute | $15,624 |
| Napa Climate NOW! | $15,428 |
| Climate Solutions | $15,413 |
| 350 Bay Area | $15,328 |
| TreePeople | $15,281 |
| Black Girls Do Bike | $15,209 |
| Farming Hope | $15,003 |
| Institute for Sustainable Communities | $14,997 |
| CDI - Miles of Trees | $14,988 |
| Outward Bound California | $14,955 |
| Alliance for Biking and Walking | $14,905 |
| Eco.Logic | $14,665 |
| Chautauqua Institution | $14,649 |
| National Interscholastic Cycling Association | $14,524 |
| Bike Pittsburgh | $14,420 |
| Mothers Out Front | $14,258 |
| Sierra Club National | $14,114 |
| Interfaith Power and Light | $13,938 |
| National Geographic Society | $13,905 |
| Institute for Transportation and Development Policy | $13,895 |
| CommonWheels Bicycle Co-op | $13,861 |
| San Diego County Bicycle Coalition | $13,738 |
| Fossil Free California | $13,713 |
| GreenWave | $13,089 |
| Sonoma Land Trust | $12,991 |
| Saha Global | $12,782 |
| Women in Solar Energy (WISE) | $12,705 |
| CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) | $12,392 |
| Carbon War Room | $12,316 |
| Green Ninja Project | $12,269 |
| Trips for Kids-Denver | $11,957 |
| New Jersey Bike and Walk Coalition | $11,519 |
| Bike San Diego | $11,449 |
| Woods Hole Research Center | $11,270 |
| Citizens' Greener Evanston | $11,264 |
| Sivananda Yoga Ranch | $11,172 |
| Clean Energy Coalition | $10,898 |
| Ecology Center - Ann Arbor | $10,669 |
| Sequoia Riverlands Trust | $10,536 |
| International Green Industry Hall of Fame | $10,382 |
| Spoke Folks | $10,373 |
| National Park Trust | $10,230 |
| Outdoor Afro | $10,161 |
| Tailwinds Fund | $10,000 |
| Ceres Community Project | $9,899 |
| Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation | $9,832 |
| Sustainable Harvest International | $9,816 |
| Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Safe Routes to School | $9,775 |
| The Flyway Trail | $9,704 |
| Chautauqua Lake Association | $9,650 |
| Amazon Frontlines | $9,507 |
| Climate Foundation | $9,400 |
| Bikes for the World | $9,121 |
| Our Climate | $9,028 |
| The Ocean Cleanup | $9,007 |
| Chicago Fair Trade | $8,877 |
| Global Warming Mitigation Project | $8,847 |
| Front and Centered | $8,780 |
| Louisiana Bucket Brigade | $8,495 |
| League to Save Lake Tahoe (Keep Tahoe Blue) | $8,468 |
| Renewable Energy Long Island | $8,432 |
| Conservation International | $8,369 |
| Global Awareness Local Action (G.A.L.A.) | $8,242 |
| San Francisco Green Film Festival | $8,063 |
| US Green Building Council - Natl Capital Region | $7,867 |
| Triangle Land Trust | $7,856 |
| Illinois Green Alliance | $7,816 |
| The Earth Institute at Columbia University | $7,798 |
| Sage School | $7,624 |
| Bainbridge Island Land Trust | $7,415 |
| Sierra Club Illinois | $7,365 |
| Sustainable Ocean Alliance | $7,309 |
| Old Spokes Home | $7,244 |
| Coastside on Bikes | $7,140 |
| Mountain Bike Afghanistan | $7,116 |
| Okavango Community Aid | $7,095 |
| Michigan Climate Action Network | $6,953 |
| The Clean Energy Leadership Institute | $6,892 |
| Growing Up Wild | $6,805 |
| Vermont Green Building Network | $6,787 |
| School for Field Studies | $6,779 |
| Cascade Bicycle Club | $6,616 |
| WE ACT for Environmental Justice | $6,444 |
| Denver Food Rescue | $6,425 |
| Glacier Nordic Club | $6,222 |
| Southern Alliance for Clean Energy | $6,216 |
| Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation | $6,144 |
| Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates | $6,131 |
| Xerces Society | $6,089 |
| Maine Farmland Trust | $6,055 |
| Uplift | $6,040 |
| Climate Disobedience Center | $5,773 |
| Imagine H2O | $5,706 |
| Native Sun Community Power Development | $5,650 |
| Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust | $5,536 |
| Climate STARR | $5,496 |
| MN Interfaith Power and Light | $5,496 |
| Third Act | $5,496 |
| Forestry and Fire Recruitment Program | $5,450 |
| Green World Health Net | $5,420 |
| Iowa Bicycle Coalition | $5,334 |
| Copper River Watershed | $5,200 |
| Support and Feed | $5,160 |
| Integral Heart Foundation | $5,156 |
| Conservation Media Group | $5,088 |
| Triangle Land Conservancy | $5,081 |
| Sustainable Marin | $5,044 |
| Arts Earth Partnership | $5,009 |
| Bhutan Foundation | $5,000 |
| Black Gril Environmentalist | $5,000 |
| Brightline Defense Project | $5,000 |
| Cafeteria Culture | $5,000 |
| Centro del Obrero Fronterizo dba La Mujer Obrera | $5,000 |
| Honor the Earth | $5,000 |
| Native Seeds Search | $5,000 |
| People for Mobility Justice | $5,000 |
| Ride for Racial Justice | $5,000 |
| The Lenape Nation of Pa | $5,000 |
| Seamless Bay Area Alliance | $4,970 |
| Ecology Center Ann Arbor | $4,944 |
| Sonoma Ecology Center | $4,832 |
| Bike Cleveland | $4,772 |
| North American Association for Environmental Education | $4,770 |
| Save Our Snow Foundation | $4,760 |
| Alliance for Environmental Sustainability | $4,528 |
| Surf Rider Marin Chapter | $4,419 |
| Climate Cardinals | $4,414 |
| Salmon Protection and Watershed Network | $4,404 |
| Oil Change International | $4,391 |
| Earth Elders | $4,298 |
| League of Illinois Bicyclists | $4,292 |
| Stop Ecocide | $4,222 |
| Northern California Solar Energy Association | $4,186 |
| International Association for Human Values | $4,149 |
| Green For All | $3,968 |
| Friends of Acadia | $3,914 |
| Help Educate | $3,879 |
| The Solutions Project | $3,870 |
| Illinois Green Economy Network | $3,821 |
| Center for Resource Solutions | $3,691 |
| Friends of UNFPA | $3,684 |
| Adventure Scientists | $3,655 |
| Local First | $3,601 |
| SeaTrees | $3,445 |
| Solar Village Project | $3,432 |
| Environmental Advocates of New York | $3,384 |
| Boston Area Solar Energy Association | $3,333 |
| One Earth | $3,301 |
| Delta Bike Project | $3,260 |
| WALKSacramento | $3,151 |
| The Leatherback Project | $3,144 |
| Ecology Action Center | $3,124 |
| Strategic Energy Innovations | $3,009 |
| Sustainable Hudson Valley | $2,977 |
| PeopleForBikes Foundation | $2,967 |
| PATH (People for Active Transportation Hawaii) | $2,963 |
| Fibershed | $2,942 |
| Woodwell Climate Research Center | $2,927 |
| Pie Ranch | $2,891 |
| Protect Our Winters | $2,870 |
| Boulder Food Rescue | $2,754 |
| Natural Resources Council of Maine | $2,736 |
| Sierra Club Florida | $2,722 |
| Presidio Graduate School | $2,702 |
| Rochester People's Climate Coalition | $2,685 |
| University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Appalachian Lab | $2,680 |
| American Bird Conservancy | $2,660 |
| Clean Energy Leadership Institute | $2,630 |
| Maine Natural Resource Council | $2,613 |
| HEET (Home Energy Efficiency Team) | $2,577 |
| Solar Roots | $2,564 |
| Oceanites | $2,544 |
| Sustainable Saratoga | $2,536 |
| Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation | $2,490 |
| San Jose Parks Foundation | $2,470 |
| Project Adapt | $2,453 |
| The Street Trust | $2,364 |
| Gearin' Up Bicycles | $2,348 |
| Parks & Trails New York | $2,342 |
| Bomazeen Land Trust | $2,305 |
| Point Blue Conservation Science | $2,280 |
| Ice911 Research | $2,240 |
| Utah Dine Bikeyah – Protect Bears Ears | $2,200 |
| Save The Redwoods League | $2,126 |
| NAMI | $2,093 |
| The Original Scraper Bike Team | $2,092 |
| Sane Energy Project | $2,083 |
| League of Michigan Bicyclists | $2,072 |
| River Partners | $2,072 |
| LeedCo | $2,055 |
| Vermont Center for Ecostudies | $2,048 |
| IISD - United Nations Office | $1,822 |
| Center for Large Landscape Conservation | $1,821 |
| Re-Earth Initiative | $1,813 |
| Plant Chicago | $1,798 |
| Turtle Island Restoration Network | $1,721 |
| Greenbelt Alliance - Sonoma Marin | $1,630 |
| CUCSD | $1,590 |
| Bike Maryland | $1,579 |
| Greenhouse Gas Management Institute | $1,562 |
| All Hands Volunteers | $1,513 |
| Flint Rising | $1,476 |
| SeaLegacy | $1,471 |
| Kentuckians for the Commonwealth | $1,454 |
| Local First Chicago | $1,451 |
| Cycles of Change | $1,425 |
| National Center for Appropriate Technology | $1,416 |
| Bike Palo Alto | $1,413 |
| International Living Future Institute | $1,406 |
| Bikemore | $1,405 |
| Sierra Club DC Chapter | $1,388 |
| Earth League International | $1,384 |
| Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage | $1,353 |
| American Foundation for Suicide Prevention | $1,342 |
| Bike Walk Montana | $1,340 |
| Project Drawdown | $1,340 |
| Antioch University New England's Community Garden Connections | $1,328 |
| Fairfax Alliance for Better Bicycling (FABB) | $1,325 |
| Connecticut Citizen Research Group | $1,313 |
| Marin School of Environmental Leadership | $1,306 |
| Florida International University Foundation - Sea Level Solutions Center | $1,280 |
| Whitefish Legacy Partners | $1,280 |
| Solar Action Alliance | $1,254 |
| Ohio Environmental Council | $1,213 |
| Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota | $1,203 |
| Ride Richmond | $1,200 |
| Corporate Accountability International | $1,160 |
| Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility | $1,129 |
| Farm to Pantry | $1,124 |
| ReCYCLEry NC | $1,085 |
| Openlands | $1,055 |
| We Deliver Wheels | $1,040 |
| Sustainable Travel International | $1,028 |
| Climate Basecamp | $1,021 |
| Sonoma Resource Conservation District | $977 |
| Rails-to-Trails Conservancy Ohio Chapter | $968 |
| One Up Action | $949 |
| Plastic Pollution Coalition | $940 |
| World Ride | $925 |
| American Conservation Coalition | $885 |
| Cool the Earth | $872 |
| Russian Riverkeepers | $832 |
| Bangor Land Trust | $828 |
| Bicycle Coalition of Maine | $828 |
| Climate Smart Glacier Country | $768 |
| Bicycle Works | $761 |
| AFSP | $751 |
| Berkeley Law Ctr for Law Energy & the Env | $747 |
| Pacific Environment | $747 |
| Whitefish Community Emergency Response Fund | $742 |
| RETREET | $738 |
| Saving Our Sharks | $724 |
| Land Paths | $720 |
| Center for EcoTechnology | $718 |
| David Susuki Foundation | $718 |
| Beautiful PB | $690 |
| Community Cycles | $647 |
| Daily Acts Organization | $646 |
| Local First of West Michigan | $568 |
| NextGen Climate America | $539 |
| Sea Trees | $539 |
| SRIC | $526 |
| Bike Austin | $502 |
| Climate Cycle | $494 |
| The Green Journey | $452 |
| New England Grassroots Environment Fund | $434 |
| Cool Davis | $413 |
| Everybody Solar | $384 |
| GObike Buffalo | $373 |
| San Luis Obispo County Bicycle Coalition | $349 |
| Fins Attached Marine Research and Conservation | $334 |
| University of Washington College of the Environment | $300 |
| Non-GMO Project | $273 |
| Contra Costa County Climate Leaders | $268 |
| Change is Simple | $267 |
| Breathe California - Golden Gate Public Health Partnership | $256 |
| Earth Law Center | $240 |
| Wenatchee River Institute | $240 |
| Sustainable Princeton | $224 |
| Cultural Conservancy | $120 |
| EarthSEED | $120 |
| Ohio City Bicycle Co-op | $65 |
| Bob Marshall WF | $56 |
| FAMB | $56 |
| MT Conservation Corps | $56 |
