RMI and CWR’s Alliance: The Best Philanthropic ROI To Create Industry-Changing Impact

I’ve been a Rocky Mountain Institute supporter for nearly 15 years. That’s because RMI’s impactful work on market-based energy solutions offers a great return on my philanthropic investment. We are closer than ever before to transforming the world to a low-carbon energy system. But the job at hand is still substantial and the challenge remains enormous. Which is why I am thrilled with the joining of Rocky Mountain Institute and Carbon War Room—two nonprofits working to change industries and transform global energy use. I believe this new alliance offers tremendous philanthropic ROI.

Whether for utility-scale and distributed renewable energy, shipping, trucking, industry, or energy efficiency in buildings, the business case to transform our energy system is improving. It is therefore time to ensure that a crucial vector of change—catalyzing business’s role in the transition to a low-carbon economy—is accelerated. Various tipping points for concerted action are near, but these changes need support if we are to realize a clean, prosperous, and secure energy future, and ultimately a zero-carbon sustainable economy for all.

I believe in clear metrics to improve the world’s environment, prosperity, health, and security. RMI’s e-Lab has brought together diverse players from the electricity sector to tackle complex challenges, help transform utilities’ business models, and accelerate the adoption of distributed resources such as rooftop solar. e-Lab is just one of the many projects I am excited about that can engage and lead the industry into the challenges and solutions ahead.

And now, RMI’s and CWR’s complementary impact models, when combined, can drive greater impact by scaling solutions faster. Together, they will drive business, industry by industry, to a tipping point where clean business decisions make the most business sense.

Amory Lovins first started Rocky Mountain Institute over 30 years ago to tackle some of the world’s toughest sustainability problems. Similarly, when Sir Richard Branson founded Carbon War Room in 2009, he set out to leverage the creativity and convening power of his fellow entrepreneurs, uniting the private sector to focus on those same intractable problems. Now, with the two organizations joining forces, I look forward to supporting an alliance that will move even faster to create a clean, prosperous, secure, and low-carbon world for everyone.