Oceankind

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OVERVIEW: Oceankind makes grants to support those working in marine conservation, preservation, and restoration worldwide. It was founded by Lucinda Southworth, wife of Google-founder, Larry Page.

IP TAKE: Oceankind is a major ally of global marine conservation work. Despite not accepting unsolicited funding requests, this is still a fairly transparent funder. And despite the big names behind Oceankind, it does provide a method of contact for groups looking for more information. Lucinda Southworth’s involvement with this funder was a closely guarded secret until relatively recently, so perhaps this may signal a move toward more of a public presence, including, possibly in the future, establishing a method of applying for funding. It is unclear how much money Oceankind has available, but grantmaking may evolve quickly here.

PROFILE: Established in 2018, Oceankind, founded by Lucinda Southworth, is an LLC which works to preserve and restore ocean ecosystems worldwide. Southworth is a research geneticist who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Oxford, before earning her Ph.D. in Biomedical Informatics at Stanford University. She is married to Larry Page, co-founder of Google.

Oceankind seeks to “improve the health of global ocean ecosystems while supporting the livelihoods of people who rely on them” and “advance the policy, science, and technology necessary to reverse the growing threats facing our oceans.” Its grantmaking focuses on marine conservation, crosscutting, and the intersection between oceans and climate.

Grants for Marine Conservation, Climate Change, and Science Research

Oceankind prioritizes support for “strategic organizations, exceptional leaders, and promising initiatives that seek to improve the health of the marine environment.” It particularly emphasizes organizations and projects that focus on the intersection between climate change, overfishing, habitat loss, and pollution. Its approach to those it supports is two-fold: it backs groups seeking to apply proven methods of marine conservation, and it funds research into new and innovative ways to advance marine technology.

Oceankind’s grantmaking programs are not clearly defined, at least in a way that benefits grantseekers, and there is some overlap with its grant focus areas, which are broad and expansive. Currently it lists Conservation, Crosscutting, and Oceans and Climate as its funding programs.

  • The Conservation program “is centered around efforts to reduce overfishing, establish protected areas and other habitat safeguards, and reduce pollution.”

  • The Oceans and Climate program works to reduce emissions related to maritime shipping and other industries, enhance sequestration, and improve marine and coastal ecosystem health.

  • The Crosscutting program supports Oceankind’s Labs Initiative, which “supports several technologies with potentially broad applications across [its] programmatic focus areas.”

Additionally, Oceankind prioritizes equity and inclusivity in its grantmaking. It recognizes “the importance of historically under-invested communities in creating durable conservation impacts in marine and coastal environments, and will continue to look for ways to learn from diverse perspectives in [its] work.”

Oceankind has given $4 million to Blue Ventures, almost $6 million to Natural Resources Defense Council, and at least $6.4 million to Ocean Conservancy. It has also given over $7 million to Global Fishing Watch and $8.6 million to The Nature Conservancy for conservation of habitat and fisheries, and for pollution mitigation and cleanup. ClimateWorks has also received over $18 million in program support for decarbonizing shipping and the marine economy, and advancing responsible offshore wind.

Grantseekers can see even more previous grant recipients by using Oceankind’s searchable Grants Database.

Important Grant Details:

Oceankind has dispersed over $121 million to diverse protection and restoration projects across the globe. Grant amounts range from $10,000 to almost $20 million; however, the most common grant amount is probably closer to $25,000.

It does not accept unsolicited proposals or requests for funding but invites those with general questions to reach out at info@oceankind.org.

PEOPLE:

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