The International Philanthropy Commitment on Climate Change is hosted by WINGS. WINGS is a network of philanthropy development and support organisations committed to ensuring philanthropy reaches its fullest potential as a catalyst for social progress.

Going forward, WINGS will continue to work closely with these national, regional and thematic foundation networks and philanthropy support organisations as “regional champions” to support foundations in implementing the pillars of the Commitment in different parts of the world. European signatories to the Commitment are warmly invited to join the European Philanthropy Coalition for Climate. We hope that we can soon link up signatories from outside Europe with regional climate champions in their respective regions.

The text of the International Philanthropy Commitment on Climate Change was developed in a participatory drafting and feedback process with the members of the WINGS Climate Task Force. The Task Force made up of over 40 foundation networks and philanthropy support organisations from 21 countries around the world and representing around 22.500 funders. The Task Force endorsed the final text of the Commitment at two (virtual) meetings in early June 2021.

We invite all philanthropic organisations from around the world to sign the Commitment, including for example community foundations and private and corporate foundations. We recognise the diversity of the foundation sector across countries and regions and would like the Commitment to be accessible to different types of foundations and philanthropic vehicles. We might, however, ask potential signatories to prove their foundation status, for example through an active membership in a national or thematic foundation/ funder association or by providing additional documentation. If in doubt, please refer to this definition of foundation/ philanthropic organisation.

The Commitment is not open for signature by individual philanthropists, public funders and corporations.

The vast majority of foundations do not currently work on climate-related causes. However, given the drastic consequences of climate change which we are already experiencing, no organisation can claim to be unaffected by this crisis, irrespective of their field of activity. All foundations and philanthropic organisations have a stake and a responsibility to act, as well as resources (both financial and non-financial) that they can use to create a positive climate impact.  We explicitly invite foundations that are new to climate change and/or are primarily working in other fields of philanthropic activity to sign the Commitment and take steps towards climate action under the pillars of the Commitment.

We believe that there are many levers for climate action open to foundations and the pillars of the Commitment reflect this multifaceted approach. The text has been drafted with different kinds of foundations in mind, and in principle, we strongly encourage signatories to take action under all pillars of the Commitment. We realise, however, that not all pillars are applicable to every philanthropic organisation. In these instances, we would ask signatories to explain in writing why they cannot take action under certain pillars of the Commitment.

Wherever possible, we expect signatories to take action under all pillars of the Commitment over time. However, given the fact that many foundations and philanthropy organisations are new to the climate journey, we realise that this might seem overwhelming at first and that change doesn’t happen overnight. To get you started, we therefore suggest that you prioritise certain pillars during the first year (you decide which ones are best suited to your organisation) and focus on integrating climate considerations into your activities under your chosen pillars. After one year, we will ask you to report on the progress you have made under these pillars. At that point we will also ask you to explain how you plan to address the remaining pillars in the following year (“plan of action”).

If you are considering signing the Commitment on behalf of your organisation, please ensure that:

• You have thoroughly familiarised yourself with the Commitment text and have shared and discussed it with your Board and team members.
• The person signing the Commitment has the authority to do so on behalf of the foundation/ philanthropic organisation.
• Your organisation meets this definition of foundation/ philanthropic organisation.

Here is a step-by-step outline of the sign-up process:

Step 1: Register your interest

Please fill in the contact form on the website. You will receive an email from us with additional information on the sign-up process and a link to the application form (survey monkey). The application form consists mainly of multiple choice questions and takes less than 20 minutes to complete.

Step 2: Fill in the application form

Please submit the application form which will ask you to provide information about your organisation, your motivation for signing the Commitment and how you plan to implement it. We will also ask whether your organisation is a member in a national or regional foundation network and – if yes – for your permission to contact them regarding your application. If your organisation is based in Europe, we would like to connect you with the Philanthropy Coalition for Climate and will ask for your permission to do so.

Step 3: Let us review your application

The WINGS team will review your application. Occasionally, we might ask for additional information and/ or evidence of foundation status.

Step 4: Receive approval

You will receive a response from us within 4-6 weeks. If your application is approved, the name of your organisation will appear on our website shortly after.

As part of the application process we will be asking whether your foundation/ philanthropic organisation is a member of a national, regional or thematic foundation/ funder association and whether you consent to us contacting them regarding your application. There are two reasons for this:

1. Membership in a national, regional or thematic foundation/ funder association can serve as evidence of your organisation’s foundation status – one of the eligibility criteria for signing the Commitment.
2. WINGS is strongly committed to strengthening the philanthropy ecosystem worldwide. Foundation associations can play an important role in providing tailored support to their members in taking action on climate change and many are already doing so today. As part of the activities around the International Philanthropy Commitment we will work with foundation associations as “climate philanthropy champions” that can support foundation signatories in learning and acting in line with the International Commitment.

Signing the Commitment is only the first step on the journey towards climate action and being part of a broader, global Philanthropy for Climate movement. We invite foundations and philanthropic organisations to join a fast-growing community of signatories from around the world and share learnings, resources and experiences with their peers. We are currently in the process of building a network of regional champions around the world that will provide active support to foundation signatories on a regional level.

Foundation signatories from Europe are warmly invited to join the European Philanthropy Coalition for Climate. We hope that we can soon link up signatories from outside Europe with regional climate champions in their respective regions.

We will be developing a reporting framework for foundation signatories in time for 2022. We aim to keep the reporting process as simple and manageable as possible, especially for small and less well-resourced foundations. The primary objective of the reporting process is to facilitate learning, share good practices and allow signatories to identify areas for self-improvement.

The Commitment requires signatories to report on an annual basis and we will have regular reporting cycles. All organisations that sign the Commitment in 2021, will be asked to report on their progress (probably through a survey) at the end of 2022.

It is free for foundations and philanthropy organisations to sign the Commitment and we want to create accessible support structures to support implementation by the signatories (with a focus on providing free resources). Implementing the pillars of the Commitment might – depending on where the foundation is starting out – involve committing additional resources into climate actions.

The International Philanthropy Commitment and the national climate commitments are part of one global Philanthropy for Climate movement. Philanthropic organisations that are based within a country that has a national commitment may wish to sign their national commitment. Initiatives are also underway to develop national commitments in several other countries around the world.

We want to make the Commitment widely accessible to foundations of all sizes from around the world and proactively support them in taking action on climate change. For this, we need financial support. If you are interested in funding activities associated with the Commitment and would like to learn more about the funding opportunities available, please reach out to climatecommitment@wingsweb.org. We look forward to hearing from you!