Sempra Foundation

Sempra Foundation

Sempra Foundation is the private 501(c)(3) philanthropic arm of Sempra, established in 2007 and headquartered in San Diego. While Sempra is a publicly traded energy infrastructure company, the foundation is a separate legal entity governed by its own board, chaired by Lisa Larroque Alexander, who also serves as Sempra's Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs. The foundation is not an endowed institution with an independent corpus; it relies on periodic funding from Sempra's corporate treasury. The foundation's deployment center of gravity sits at the intersection of corporate philanthropy and community reinvestment. Its grantmaking falls into four priority areas: climate action, economic prosperity, diversity and inclusion, and disaster relief. The geographic footprint mirrors Sempra's operational territory — California, Texas, and Mexico — with a particular responsiveness to natural disasters such as wildfires, hurricanes, and earthquakes. Rather than operating as an institutional investor, the Sempra Foundation functions as a pass-through grantmaker, disbursing funds to eligible 501(c)(3) organizations and matching employee contributions. The foundation has mobilized over $50 million in total giving since inception and engages Sempra's 20,000 employees through matching-gift and volunteer programs. Governance sits with a board led by senior Sempra executives, ensuring tight alignment with corporate citizenship strategy. Eugene Mitchell, President of the Sempra Foundation, concurrently serves as Vice President of State Government Affairs at San Diego Gas & Electric, a Sempra operating company. Chairman and CEO Jeffrey W. Martin oversees the parent company that ultimately funds the foundation's activities. Beyond direct grantmaking, the foundation participates in regional business coalitions — including the Greater Houston Partnership and the Southern California Leadership Council — that extend its philanthropic reach into economic recovery efforts, such as contributing to the Greater Houston COVID-19 Recovery Fund. No separate investment team or asset-management function exists within the foundation. The Sempra Foundation's structural distinctiveness lies in its identity as a corporate-directed philanthropic vehicle rather than an independent foundation with an investment portfolio. Its funding is non-endowment and discretionary, tied to the financial performance and strategic priorities of Sempra. For an institutional allocator, the foundation represents a case study in corporate philanthropy execution — consistent grantmaking aligned with a regulated utility's geographic and reputational interests — rather than a pool of institutional capital seeking external managers or co-investment partners.