Built Environment

Africa Go Green Fund is a climate-focused investment initiative supporting renewable energy, energy efficiency, and low-carbon infrastructure projects across Africa. Established by KfW on behalf of the German government, the fund helps accelerate private sector investment into sustainable energy solutions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and expand climate resilience throughout the continent. The fund provides debt financing, mezzanine capital, guarantees, and technical assistance to companies, financial institutions, and infrastructure projects advancing Africa’s clean energy transition.

AlphaLab is a nationally recognized startup accelerator based in Pittsburgh, supporting early-stage companies across software, hardware, life sciences, and robotics. Founded in 2008 and powered by Innovation Works, AlphaLab provides founders with capital, mentorship, and a structured program to accelerate growth. The platform operates multiple specialized tracks, including AlphaLab (software), AlphaLab Gear (hardware), AlphaLab Health (life sciences), and Robotics Factory, offering tailored support depending on the company’s sector. AlphaLab has played a key role in building Pittsburgh into a leading innovation hub, helping startups move from idea to scalable venture.

Ashoka is one of the world’s leading organizations supporting social entrepreneurs. Founded in 1980, Ashoka pioneered the concept of social entrepreneurship and has built a global network of changemakers working to solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Through its flagship Ashoka Fellows program, the organization identifies and supports high-impact entrepreneurs with funding, mentorship, and a powerful global network. Ashoka’s broader mission is to create a world where everyone is a changemaker, embedding social innovation across education, business, and civil society.

Bloomberg Philanthropies is the philanthropic organization of Michael Bloomberg, focused on improving lives at scale across the globe. The foundation works across more than 150 countries, supporting initiatives in public health, climate, education, government innovation, and the arts. Its approach combines data-driven decision-making with deep partnerships across governments, nonprofits, and institutions. Bloomberg Philanthropies is known for backing large-scale, measurable programs that aim to deliver systemic change and improve outcomes for millions of people worldwide.

Circular Valley is a Germany-based innovation ecosystem and startup accelerator dedicated to accelerating the global transition to a circular economy. Often described as the "Silicon Valley of the Circular Economy," the organization brings together startups, corporations, research institutions, governments, and investors to commercialize circular innovations across manufacturing, materials, construction, energy, mobility, textiles, packaging, food systems, and industrial technologies. Through its Circular Economy Accelerator, Circular Valley provides mentorship, corporate partnerships, pilot opportunities, investor access, and a global network to help early-stage companies scale technologies that reduce waste, improve resource efficiency, and enable circular value chains. Since launching its accelerator, the organization has supported 178 startups from 45 countries that have collectively raised more than €350 million in follow-on funding.

Circulate Capital is a leading impact investment firm dedicated to accelerating the circular economy in high-growth markets. The firm invests in companies building resilient circular supply chains, with an initial focus on plastics and expanding into broader circular economy solutions. By partnering with multinational corporations, institutional investors, development finance institutions, and entrepreneurs, Circulate Capital finances businesses that reduce waste, increase recycling infrastructure, improve resource efficiency, and generate measurable environmental and social outcomes alongside competitive financial returns.

Climentum Capital is a European venture capital firm investing in early-stage climate hard tech companies driving the sustainable reindustrialization of Europe. The firm backs B2B technologies addressing emissions and resource constraints across energy, industry, infrastructure, and supply chains. Climentum focuses on companies moving from early commercialization toward industrial scale, providing capital and operational support for hardware, deep tech, and first-of-a-kind deployments. Its portfolio spans seven European countries and includes companies working across industrial decarbonization, energy systems, resilient supply chains, and climate infrastructure.

Energy Impact Partners is a global investment platform that brings together entrepreneurs, institutional investors, and leading energy, industrial, and infrastructure companies to accelerate the transition toward a cleaner, more resilient economy. The firm invests in innovative companies developing technologies across energy, climate, electrification, infrastructure, cybersecurity, mobility, and industrial transformation. Energy Impact Partners leverages its extensive network of strategic corporate partners to help portfolio companies scale faster, secure customers, validate products, and drive real-world deployment of transformative technologies.

Finance Earth is a UK-based impact investment firm and FCA-regulated fund manager focused on unlocking private capital for conservation, climate solutions, and community development. The organization designs and manages innovative environmental finance vehicles that help scale projects delivering measurable benefits for nature, climate, and people. Founded on the belief that philanthropy and public funding alone cannot address global environmental challenges, Finance Earth develops blended finance structures that attract institutional, philanthropic, and private investors into high-impact environmental projects. The organization works across fund management, advisory services, and accelerator programs to create investment opportunities that support biodiversity restoration, sustainable land use, natural capital, climate resilience, and community prosperity. Through its specialist expertise in environmental markets and impact investing, Finance Earth helps governments, nonprofits, businesses, and investors build financing models that generate both environmental outcomes and sustainable financial returns.

The Kresge Foundation is a national philanthropic organization based in metro Detroit that has been promoting human progress since 1924. The foundation works to expand opportunity in America's cities through strategic grantmaking and social investing, with a focus on advancing equity and dismantling barriers to justice. Kresge deploys over $160 million annually through grants, loans, and innovative financial tools to strengthen communities. The foundation operates across multiple program areas including American Cities, Arts & Culture, Detroit, Education, Environment, Health, and Human Services. Central to their approach is diversity, equity and inclusion, which they center in all their operations and funding decisions to create more equitable opportunities in urban communities.