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Elemental Impact
Elemental Impact operates as a 501(c)3 nonprofit investor headquartered in Honolulu, focused on climate technologies with deep community impact.
Elemental Impact
Elemental Impact operates as a 501(c)3 nonprofit investor headquartered in Honolulu, focused on climate technologies with deep community impact. Founded and led by CEO Dawn Lippert, the firm has spent 17 years addressing market failures for first-of-a-kind and early commercial projects. Its model targets gaps that traditional venture capital and project finance overlook, providing catalytic capital alongside specialized coaching. The firm is funded by more than 40 philanthropic and government partners, with a team that spans four offices and over a dozen US states. Elemental invests across energy, industry, food and agriculture, nature, water, and transportation. Its deployment strategy blends flexible, gap-filling capital with tailored support — policy engagement, workforce development, and capital coaching that has made its portfolio companies nearly 2.5x more likely to survive from early to late commercial stages. Confirmed portfolio companies include Fervo Energy, a geothermal developer, Nth Cycle, a critical-minerals recycler, Glacier, an AI-driven recycling firm, and Capture6, a carbon-removal and water-production venture. In 2021, the firm launched Earthshot Ventures, a $94M venture fund designed to deliver market-rate returns alongside climate impact, extending its reach beyond its nonprofit core. The nonprofit deploys capital primarily in the United States, with a geographic emphasis on community-embedded projects. In 2026, Elemental launched the Data Center Innovation Initiative alongside Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft to accelerate deployment of sustainable infrastructure technologies. The firm’s portfolio has attracted $11.8B in follow-on funding, a 110x multiple on its direct investments. Elemental does not disclose total assets under management or a dedicated deployment target, consistent with its hybrid philanthropic-operating structure. Elemental’s architecture blends a nonprofit investment platform with a conventional venture fund, a structure that separates catalytic, below-market capital from return-seeking vehicles. The nonprofit arm absorbs early-stage technology risk; Earthshot Ventures enables participation by limited partners seeking market-rate returns. This dual-track design — philanthropic platform plus commercial fund — allows Elemental to bridge the gap between grant-funded pilots and institutional-scale infrastructure without diluting its community-impact mandate.
General information
Firm type
Private Equity
Year founded
—
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Honolulu
Corporate office
Honolulu, HI, United States
Principals
Dawn Lippert
Founder and CEO
Danya Hakeem
Chief Operating Officer
Mike Curtis
Chief Financial Officer
Mitch Rubin
Managing Director, Portfolio & Investments
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Elemental Impact?
Investment decisions are led by Managing Director Mitch Rubin, who oversees the portfolio and investments team, alongside Founder and CEO Dawn Lippert. The senior investment group includes Gabriel Scheer, Senior Director of Investments & Innovation, and Sabin Ray, Director of Investments & Innovation, supported by a cadre of senior investment managers.
How does Elemental Impact source its deal flow?
Elemental runs an open application process through its website and cultivates partnerships with local entities — schools, farmers, homeowners, government agencies, and workforce providers — to identify entrepreneurs. Its four-pronged approach embeds deal sourcing in community relationships, while its investor-mobilization network surfaces later-stage referrals from co-investors and project funders.
Is Elemental Impact a venture capital firm or something else?
Elemental is a 501(c)3 nonprofit investor, not a traditional venture capital firm. It deploys catalytic capital — flexible, often sub-market funding designed to de-risk early commercial projects. It also launched Earthshot Ventures, a $94M venture fund, in 2021 to pursue market-rate returns within the same climate-technology domain.
Does Elemental Impact take equity or just provide grants?
Elemental provides flexible funding that can include equity, but the specific instrument depends on the investee's stage and capital stack. The model emphasizes filling gaps that would otherwise stall first-of-a-kind projects, paired with project expertise and connections to follow-on funders. Public filings do not specify a standardized equity-grant mix.
Which sectors does Elemental Impact explicitly target?
Elemental invests across energy, industry, food and agriculture, nature, water, and transportation. Its portfolio includes geothermal (Fervo Energy), critical-minerals recycling (Nth Cycle), AI-powered recycling (Glacier), and carbon removal with freshwater production (Capture6). It recently expanded into data center infrastructure through an initiative with major hyperscalers.
How is Earthshot Ventures related to Elemental Impact?
Earthshot Ventures is a $94M venture fund launched by Elemental Impact in 2021. It operates as a for-profit vehicle designed to deliver market-leading returns while making a significant climate impact, while the nonprofit Elemental platform continues to provide catalytic capital and project support. The two entities share thematic focus but deploy capital on different return profiles.
Does Elemental Impact maintain a philanthropic structure separate from its investments?
Yes, Elemental Impact is organized as a 501(c)3 nonprofit supported by more than 40 philanthropic and government funders. Donations support its operations and catalytic capital deployments. Earthshot Ventures sits outside the nonprofit structure, allowing donors and limited partners to participate according to their respective return and impact mandates.
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