Ambitious climate action is not just for governments. Private companies and nonprofit entities in many sectors are finding a role to play in projects aimed at providing the infrastructure needed to curtail and adapt to climate change. And because climate change is an international priority, some of these projects are eligible for support through the financial institutions of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

The Parties to the UNFCCC created its financial mechanisms to harness billions of dollars in public climate funding to finance projects that serve the UNFCCC’s aim of mitigating climate change and of addressing its negative impacts. These projects are increasing in number, scale and ambition, creating opportunities for responsible companies and nonprofits with appropriate expertise to access reliable finance. Even now, when the COVID-19 response has forced the postponement of several workstreams under the UNFCCC, climate financing remains a key focus for the parties to the convention, and particularly developing country parties, where many internationally financed climate projects are implemented.