The Clean Fight and Rockefeller Foundation Bring Clean Energy Solutions to Communities Across America
New $1million grant will support The Clean Fight’s National Deployment Grant Fund to unlock the adoption of proven solutions that lower energy bills, improve health, and create local jobs.
[New York | April 22, 2026] — The Clean Fight today announced a $1 million investment from The Rockefeller Foundation to expand its National Deployment Grant Fund — an initiative that leverages targeted grants of $50,000 to $250,000 to prove out models of adoption for high-impact clean energy solutions in homes, schools, and communities across America, prioritizing vulnerable and underserved communities. The Fund is backed by anchor partners Builders Vision, Breakthrough Energy, and Turner Construction.
“This is the moment to make sure that solutions that can genuinely change people’s lives and make communities more resilient – economically and environmentally – don’t sit on the sidelines. The right first project doesn’t just benefit one community; it creates a powerful slipstream for everyone who comes after. That’s exactly what this Fund is built to do. And does so using the disproportionate impact that strategically placed grant funding can have,” said Kate Frucher, CEO, The Clean Fight.
The solutions we need to make our homes healthier, our energy bills lower, and our communities more resilient already exist. Yet, too often, high upfront costs, unfamiliar technologies, and complex financing mean that too many communities, especially those that could benefit most from clean energy solutions, aren’t able to adopt them. The Deployment Grant Fund addresses this directly, funding the “first” project that makes “the many” possible without ongoing subsidy. Each grant tests a replicable approach — a novel financing model, real-world performance data, or a loan loss reserve to crowd in private capital. Historically, every dollar of grant funding has attracted five dollars in private capital.
Clean energy solutions are not only about future climate impacts, but they are also about improving the quality of people’s lives today. They deliver immediate, tangible benefits: modern heating means families in affordable housing stay warm and breathe cleaner air; upgraded cooling systems mean students learn in quieter, healthier classrooms; executing on building retrofits means local contractors gain jobs that can’t be outsourced. That combination — community benefit today, climate and economic resilience for decades to come — is central to how The Clean Fight selects the projects it funds.
The Rockefeller Foundation’s support will not only provide critical funding to launch projects — it will also help ensure the learnings from each are widely shared through open-source reference designs, implementation guides, and national convenings, extending the public good well beyond any single community.
“Too many clean energy solutions that could materially improve lives stall in the early stages of market adoption. The Clean Fight’s National Deployment Grant Fund uses strategic grantmaking to break through that barrier,” said Slav Gatchev, Vice President of Innovative Finance at The Rockefeller Foundation. “This funding builds on The Rockefeller Foundation’s belief that catalytic capital can derisk investment in early-stage technologies and drive the adoption of clean energy solutions in the communities that need them most—delivering immediate benefits today while building longterm resilience for the future.”
The Deployment Grant Fund is already making meaningful impact. An initial grant for $125,000 leveraging a 4x customer match is helping Kelvin, a smart heating company, electrify an affordable housing complex by using a novel revenue-sharing model that offsets systems cost through participation in utility rewards— a financing structure that could unlock clean heating for affordable housing providers nationwide. To date, The Clean Fight has supported 70 companies, and 22 deployment projects with $5.4 million in catalytic grants in New York, generating over 5,000 follow-on deployments statewide, and nearly 1,000 jobs created. The Deployment Grant Fund takes this proven model national.
To learn more about the Deployment Grant Fund, and opportunities to join as a funder visit thecleanfight.com/programs/deployment-grant-fund or contact heather@thecleanfight.com.
About The Clean Fight
The Clean Fight is a not-for-profit dedicated to accelerating the adoption of climate solutions for 100% of the population - moving them into communities faster, more affordably, and at scale. Through catalytic grants, deployment programs, and prize competitions, The Clean Fight designs and delivers adoption models that turn one-off projects into first-of-many. The Clean Fight is supported by NYSERDA, the U.S. Economic Development Administration, and leading philanthropic partners. Learn more at thecleanfight.com.
About The Rockefeller Foundation
Investing $30 billion over the last 113 years to promote the well-being of humanity, The Rockefeller Foundation is a pioneering philanthropy built on unlikely partnerships and innovative solutions that deliver measurable results for people in the United States and around the world. The Foundation leverages scientific breakthroughs, artificial intelligence, and new technologies to make big bets across energy, food, health, and finance. For more information, sign up for the newsletter at www.rockefellerfoundation.org/subscribe and follow @RockefellerFdn on X, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn.