Spark Fund Round II Request for Proposals Released
The Alliance is pleased to announce a request for proposals for the second round of the Spark Fund. We will be accepting applications until October 18, 2013.
The Spark Fund, launched in 2012, aims to invest a total of $2 million in grant capital annually in enterprises with scalable approaches that have the potential to transform the clean cooking sector through their success. The winners of the first round of the Spark Fund can be viewed here.
The Alliance is providing Spark grants of up to $500K per enterprise that target the specific capital and capacity development needs of enterprises across the value chain that have passed the proof of concept phase. In this round of Spark, the Alliance is prioritizing support of enterprises that demonstrate their commitment to cleaner and more efficient technologies that improve health and environmental outcomes, such the reduction of emissions of black carbon and short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs).
In order to reach more Alliance partners and to generate a pipeline of investable enterprises, the Spark Fund has been split into two windows, allowing enterprises in both the venture and growth stages to apply for funding. The Spark Fund venture window will fund enterprises that have passed the proof of concept phase and are ready to ramp up sales, or enterprises that have been in operation for some time but have yet to reach commercial viability. The Spark Fund growth window will fund enterprises that already have robust sales and are on track to break even. The support for each window will target growth and capacity needs at the organization’s specific stage of development.
To download the Spark Fund RPF, click here.
To apply for Round II of the Spark Fund please visit https://investment.cleancookstoves.org.