The Audacious Project

We were thrilled to introduce the newest Audacious grantee cohort on the big stage at #TED2026 in Vancouver — ten bold ideas and extraordinary teams, all taking on some of the world's most pressing challenges. This is just the beginning. Stay tuned for more coming from TED2026.  Arc Institute, Braven, Imagine Worldwide, Ipas, Plastic Solutions Fund, Pure Earth, Destination: Home’s Right at Home USA, Solutions for Our Climate (SFOC), The Ocean Cleanup, Tiko #AudaciousProject #TED

Collaborative philanthropy is reshaping how global development gets funded — moving from short-term grants to long-term, scalable solutions. At a recent Devex event with The Audacious Project, leaders shared how pooled, flexible funding is helping organizations move beyond pilots — and scale impact across countries and systems. From expanding access to contraception and HIV prevention to tackling gender-based violence and overlooked threats such as lead pollution, the model is proving one thing: Scale requires more than innovation — it requires sustained investment and strong public systems. With billions mobilized since 2018 — and 4.6 billion people still lacking access to health care — the question is no longer whether solutions exist, but how to fund them at scale. Read more: https://dvx.cm/40el5x Speakers: Drew McCartor (Pure Earth), Lisha McCormick (Last Mile Health), Serah Joy Malaba, BSc, GeMBA, MPH, PhD (c) (Tiko), Dr. Anu Kumar (Ipas), Anna Verghese & Tanvi Monga (The Audacious Project), and Raj Kumar (Devex) #AudaciousProject #GlobalDevelopment #Philanthropy #SocialImpact

Over 80% of the world’s trade moves by ship, but each vessel leaves a path of pollution in its wake. Solutions for Our Climate (SFOC), led by Joojin Kim, will mobilize finance, policy and public pressure in East Asia, driving decarbonization across this highly polluting industry. By harnessing the power of their networks in media, law, diplomatic circles and the public and private sectors to affect change throughout the maritime industry, SFOC will cut up to 2.2 billion metric tons of carbon annually by 2032 and drive global decarbonization across sectors. Learn more and watch the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/eaAtAm6u  #AudaciousProject #SolutionsForOurClimate 

Dear colleagues in impact - excited to share my and co-author Claire McGuinness's latest SSIR blog below on big bet giving ($10M+ social change gifts). Much has been written on the 'before' (how to get one) and 'during' (how to deploy one), but little on the 'after' (how to sustain impact following one). We name four main funding pathways big bet recipients like One Acre Fund, Last Mile Health, Youth Villages, VisionSpring, and Lambda Legal are using - alongside outstanding funding partners like The Audacious Project, Blue Meridian Partners, and Bloomberg Philanthropies - to continue their impact journeys. We hope to spark a dialogue on this important topic - please leave us comments, questions, critiques, etc. at the article link below, and find me at the 2026 Skoll World Forum for further discussion!

Each year, the world produces 460 million metric tons of plastic. In partnership with the #BreakFreeFromPlastic movement, the Plastic Solutions Fund (PSF), led by Nicky Davies, works to cap plastic production, phase out single-use plastics and accelerate a just transition to reuse systems. Building on previous wins, from advancing the Global Plastics Treaty to piloting reuse systems around the globe, PSF and its partners will help the world reach a peak in plastic production by 2030 — and eliminate 70% of single-use plastic by 2040. Learn more and watch the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/eADb9sS7 #AudaciousProject #PlasticSolutionsFund #BreakFreeFromPlastic

Check out recent highlights, current wins and where we’re headed in the newest issue of The Audacious Project’s newsletter. #TED2026

Complex diseases like cancer and heart disease are notoriously hard to study. By creating the world's first AI-powered virtual cell, Arc Institute, led by Silvana Konermann, will revolutionize how scientists understand these intractable diseases — and accelerate the development of new, life-saving drugs. By 2029, Arc’s model will be accurate enough for scientists to replace slow, needle-in-a-haystack lab experiments with instant AI predictions, accelerating the discovery of new drug candidates for complex diseases. Learn more and watch the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/eqYXQumq #AudaciousProject #ArcInstitute

Lead poisoning harms more than 1 billion children globally, and causes more deaths than HIV and malaria combined. By helping low- and middle-income countries implement proven approaches to prevent exposure and reduce health risks, Pure Earth, led by Drew McCartor, is breaking the cycle of childhood lead poisoning. By focusing on 22 high-burden countries, areas that are home to more than half of the 1 billion children poisoned by lead globally— by 2033, Pure Earth will help protect 550 million children across Africa, Asia and Latin America. Learn more and watch the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/e-z2SZ7Q #AudaciousProject #PureEarth

Just 1% of the world’s rivers carry 80% of the plastic that reaches oceans annually. By targeting the world’s most polluting waterways, The Ocean Cleanup, led by Boyan Slat, is closing the tap on plastic emissions and working toward ridding the oceans of plastic. By expanding its interceptor technology to 30 cities, primarily in the Global South, The Ocean Cleanup’s 30 Cities Program will stop a third of all plastic flowing from the world’s rivers into the oceans by 2030. Learn more and watch the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/dS6RXBRM #AudaciousProject #TheOceanCleanup

There’s a growing disconnect between what students learn in college — and what employers expect. Working shoulder-to-shoulder with higher education institutions and employers, Braven, led by  Aimée Eubanks Davis, ensures that all students are prepared, especially those who are first-gen and from low-income backgrounds. By 2030, Braven will help 50,000 students secure strong first jobs, unlocking over $8 billion in additional lifetime earnings, while shaping the policies and practices to make career preparation the norm for hundreds of thousands more students in college. Learn more and watch the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/eXgz68jJ #AudaciousProject #Braven