Why was the Global Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) created?

Spearheaded by anchor partners, The Rockefeller Foundation, IKEA Foundation, the Bezos Earth Fund, and a committed coalition  of investment and upstream partners, GEAPP is on a mission to accelerate inclusive energy transitions that create meaningful opportunities for change for both people and planet.

Global climate efforts must be a pathway for progress for the 3.6 billion people around the world who lack access to reliable, affordable, sustainable energy.

Yet much of the discussion, and investment today focuses on wealthier countries, and while rich countries are responsible for the vast majority of global emissions, by 2050, 81 energy-poor countries, which collectively contribute only 8% of today’s emissions, will produce more than 75% if business continues as usual.

Today, the new frontiers of energy technology allow us to achieve an inclusive energy transition that also dramatically expands access to energy and opportunity for people and communities that have long been excluded. An accelerated energy transition is in reach – not only for high-income countries for whom carbon reduction is critical, but also for the developing and emerging world where it can expand inclusive economic opportunities, powering job creation, enabling access to education and healthcare, and supporting livelihoods for people everywhere.

What are GEAPP’s key objectives?

We will deliver programs to accelerate and scale an equitable energy transition in developing and emerging economies with three key targets:

• Together our alliance will help avoid or avert over 4 billion tons of greenhouse gasses
• Extend sustainable, reliable, productive-use energy to 1 billion underserved people
• Enable 150 million green jobs that generate inclusive economic growth

What does GEAPP do?

GEAPP works hand-in-hand with countries to bring best-in-class solutions and ideas that address the fragmentation of the renewable energy sector in emerging economies. By playing this coordination role, we’re well placed to drive the adoption and scale of data, technology, and financial innovation that accelerate energy transformations. We also pledge to use our voice to amplify global advocacy efforts that increase the pace of equitable energy transitions. We focus on three key issues:

1. Carbon: Developing and emerging nations face unique challenges when it comes to galvanizing an equitable energy transition. Despite representing 48% of the world’s population and the highest rates of population growth, they receive only 20% of the world’s clean energy finance. Without large-scale, ambitious support, these countries are projected to add significant fossil fuel energy sources as they develop, and many will struggle to provide sufficient access to power to end energy poverty, drive economic growth, and create clean jobs.
2. Energy Access: 3.5 billion people still lack reliable, affordable, and consistent access to electricity in one form or another and are therefore constrained in their economic uplift. This figure accounts for people in developing and emerging economies who either i) do not have access to electricity whatsoever, ii) have unreliable / unstable access to electricity, or iii) are underserved
3. Jobs & Livelihoods: Living in a community with unreliable power supply reduces the probability of employment by 35%, and self-employment by up to 47%.

Where in the world will GEAPP have projects?

Our mission is to support developing and emerging economies where we can have the most impact on carbon, access, and livelihoods. We’re already working with a number of country governments around the world on truly moving the needle on our shared clean energy ambitions, ensuring they provide inclusive and equitable opportunities for all their people – creating green jobs and expanding energy access to those without.

What type of renewable energy projects is GEAPP working on?

We focus on three types of energy projects:

1. Fossil Fuel Transitioning: We develop innovative mechanisms to accelerate and incentivize utilities to decommission or repurpose aging coal plants before the end of their economic lives, as well as large installed diesel / heavy fuel oil (HFO) assets. We also support facilities and advance innovative pilots to take bold action on decommissioning plants and retraining workers in the supply chain. These will create lighthouse cases that can enable scale. Using our voice and collaborative relationship with countries to advocate for national-level policy solutions is very important to us too.
2. Grid-based renewables: Both in the context of replacing fossil fuels and in building up net-new generation capacity, we help countries develop and deploy large renewable power plants, and associated transmission and distribution schemes. We focus on serving communities in energy deficit contexts with high CO2-intensity and growing demand for electricity. We also target auxiliary grid-connected distributed renewable generation and storage to diversify the energy mix of larger utilities, while improving reliability and coverage.
3. Distributed renewable energy (DRE): We support the widespread rollout of standalone decentralized renewable power systems, large-scale aggregated mini-grid programs and rooftop solutions that provide reliable power to underserved communities, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and local institutions in rural, peri-urban, and urban settings.

These pillars are intrinsically connected and mutually reinforcing. For example, the decommissioning of fossil fuel plants creates the need for replacement capacity and increases appetite for public and private participation in funding grid-based and distributed renewable generation and storage. Conversely, the strong deployment and lower cost of renewable assets emboldens countries to take more decisive action in phasing out high-emitting fossil fuel plants. What’s more, we look to lock in the economic benefits of equitable energy transition projects across all three pillars by investing in energy consumption and livelihoods at project sites and creating jobs up and down the energy value chain.

How is GEAPP funded and how does it raise capital?

GEAPP launched at COP26 with aligned investments of $10B+. Including a commitment of up to $1.5 billion from our 3 anchor partners: IKEA Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation and the Bezos Earth Fund, as well as nearly $9 billion in aligned investments from our eight investment partners, the African Development Bank Group, the Asian Development Bank, the European Investment Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the International Finance Corporation, the British International Investment, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, and the World Bank.

To help the world achieve a more rapid and equitable transition we will continue raising capital and growing funds together with mission aligned donors, development finance institutions (DFIs) , multilateral development banks (MDBs) and commercial channels, and through greater commercial capital flows, including the removal of cost and regulatory barriers, and the activation of carbon markets.

What is the Call for Country Partnerships (CCP) and what is Expression of Vision (EV)?

GEAPP’s first Call for Country Partnerships, which closed on 15 March 2022, served as a mean to identify country partners (specifically national governments) that demonstrate vision, commitment, and leadership at the highest levels for advancing country programs that will result in a robust pipeline of scalable and investable projects across our three pillars. The EV was the initial step for countries to participate in the CCP.

Country respondents registered their EVs through our website, which included a vision for the proposed country programs; a description of the work already done, and major interventions for which it seeks support, and a commitment to political support at the highest level and other pre-requisites.

Who is part of GEAPP and what are the different types of partnerships?

The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) is an alliance of preeminent philanthropic, government, donor, multilateral development banks, development finance institutions and private sector partners working to improve people’s lives through an inclusive and just transition to renewable energy for all. It is made up of anchor partners, investment partners, and delivery partners, as well as the country partners we work with.

• Anchor Partners: The Rockefeller Foundation, IKEA Foundation, and the Bezos Earth Fund;
• Investment Partners: African Development Bank Group, Asian Development Bank, European Investment Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, International Finance Corporation, British International Investment, U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, and World Bank;
• Upstream Partners: The COP26 Energy Transition Council, Sustainable Energy for All, International Solar Alliance, USAID, Power Africa, RMI, and IRENA.

Our anchor partners are the philanthropic partners and donors that set our strategic vision, provide risk-tolerant grant capital, and ensure we have capacity to deliver results on a sustained basis; our investment partners provide blended finance facilities that we de-risk in order to allow them to finance a greater number of projects more quickly and to adopt a greater risk profile; and our delivery partners are the organizations around the world that have expertise in bringing both policy and technical and project development to fruition, at the same time as ensuring our goals are met.

GEAPP proactively fosters coordination between delivery partners, investment partners, and county partners along the full continuum of support needed to create successful programs. Through our operating model, and by incentivizing partners with our distinctive capital, we bring together stakeholders that would otherwise remain fragmented, and enable transformational programs to flourish.

Who can apply for funding from GEAPP?

Country Partnerships are at the core of our model. We launched our Call for Country Partnerships (CCP) at COP26, which connects countries with direct funding and a portfolio of best-in-class technical solutions. The 2022 CCP is now closed, and we will soon be announcing the national governments that demonstrate vision, commitment, and leadership at the highest levels to advance programs that result in a robust pipeline of scalable and investable projects. These projects will help countries make significant strides towards existing national goals and plans (e.g., Nationally Determined Contributions, Energy Compacts, Integrated Electrification Plans) and attract a range of financing, including from development finance institutions and private capital.

What has GEAPP achieved since its launch?

Read about our latest announcements here.