By Shiva Patel, Managing Director, Capital Strategy & Market Development
In the Southwest, a Tribal-owned utility had a clean energy microgrid ready to build and a federal grant covering most of the cost, but still needed bridge financing to close the gap. Also in the Southwest, a Native-owned company was working on something more fundamental: bringing reliable electricity to Native households for the first time.
In both cases, the project was sound. What was missing was the right capital at the right time. We see that pattern across the country. Native communities are developing clean energy projects that lower utility bills, create local jobs, build energy independence, and strengthen resilience, but too many of them stall because conventional capital often isn’t built to reach them.
The need is real. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, an estimated 17,000 Tribal homes have no electricity, affecting at least 54,000 people, and Tribal households carry an energy burden 28% above the national average. At the same time, Tribal lands hold enormous untapped renewable energy potential, and Native communities are developing projects that reflect their priorities, resources, and long-term goals.
Justice Climate Fund (JCF) is working to bridge those gaps, and we don’t do it alone. Much of this work is done in partnership with Mission Driven Finance, Oweesta Corporation, and a growing group of Native community development financial institutions (CDFIs), with support from philanthropic funders, mission-driven investors, and a national network of technical assistance providers.
We lend alongside Native-led lenders who bring relationships, perspective, and a track record of financing projects Native communities have chosen to pursue. Native communities set the priorities. Our role is to work alongside them and help bring the capital and resources needed to move those priorities forward.
We are working to do two things at once: get projects financed now and build the collective financing capacity of Native lenders and their partners so that work can keep growing long after any one deal closes. That means stronger co-lending relationships, greater lending capacity for Native lenders, and a track record that makes it easier to attract additional investment.
Catalytic Capital at Work
We started with a single $5 million philanthropic grant. In less than a year, that funding has helped support nine transactions representing roughly $96 million in total project costs, or nearly $20 in project costs for every grant dollar. We use direct loans, grants, and credit enhancements because different projects face different financing gaps.
The impact goes beyond leverage. A small pool of flexible capital can help move significantly more investment when it is targeted to the specific challenges blocking individual projects: a bridge loan until a tax credit arrives, a first check that anchors a syndicate, or a reserve that helps a smaller lender say yes.
Here are examples of what that looks like:
- A clean energy microgrid for a Tribal utility. On a Southwestern reservation, a third of homes have no electricity. The Tribal utility is building a solar-and-storage microgrid and transmission line to serve about 900 households and generate revenue for additional clean energy infrastructure and other community priorities. A federal grant covers nearly two-thirds of the total project cost, and JCF is closing the gap with a bridge loan, working alongside a group of mission-aligned lenders.
- First-time electricity for Native households. A bridge loan is financing solar equipment a Native-owned company purchased just before the July 4, 2026, federal tax credit deadline for about 1,000 residential solar and battery storage projects in Arizona and New Mexico. Purchasing the equipment before the deadline locked in tax credits that make clean power affordable for families who have never had reliable electricity.
- Hempcrete homes built by a Tribal nonprofit. A capacity-building grant is helping a Tribal-led nonprofit in the Upper Midwest build energy-efficient homes from hempcrete, a hemp-and-lime material for healthier, lower-carbon housing. Its pipeline totals 74 units, including 44 new homes and 30 retrofits, and the work supports 15 jobs plus three newly created roles. The grant builds the financial and administrative capacity it needs to deploy about $2.6 million in additional funding.
- A loan to a Native lender after a disaster. A below-market-rate loan is supporting a Native Hawaiian CDFI’s fund for families whose homes were damaged in the March 2026 storms. The financing supports roof and structural repairs, energy-efficient improvements, and other critical work that can help families remain in their homes. Requests to the fund were more than five times the capital available. By lending directly to the CDFI at a low rate, JCF helps make affordable financing available to families repairing their homes.
What’s Ahead
The first year showed what is possible. The pipeline shows the scale. We are tracking more than 70 investment opportunities across 22 states, representing more than $609 million in total project costs, including $92 million in near-term capital requests. These are community-led projects, many of them ready to move forward. What they need is capital structured to reach them and a financing market durable enough to support continued investment.
That is where philanthropic and mission-driven capital can do what other capital often cannot. It takes the first-loss position that brings in more traditional investors. It pays for the underwriting and technical assistance that turn a promising project into a bankable one. And it can move at the speed a construction schedule requires. The pipeline is there. The projects are ready. The opportunity now is to bring more catalytic capital to the table.
To learn more about how JCF plans to deploy capital in its next phase of work in Native communities or to explore opportunities to partner with us, contact Shiva Patel at SPatel@JusticeClimateFund.org.
This material is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy securities. This communication has not been reviewed or approved by any regulatory authority. Recipients should conduct their own due diligence and consult with their financial, legal, and tax advisers before making any investment decision. Justice Climate Fund does not provide investment advice or act as an investment adviser to any recipient of this communication.