Green Opportunities Fund

About the fund

Our £2.4m Green Opportunities Fund is a partnership between the Co-op Foundation and Co-op which will fund organisations across the UK that are supporting young people to consider green careers.  

We’re proud to partner with Co-op to strengthen our mission to build sustainable communities with equal access to opportunity. 

The Fund is informed by research. In 2023, our Gen Z(ero) report found that young people are keen to learn more about the transition to a sustainable economy, including what green job opportunities there were for them. This, along with the green skills gap in the UK, inspired us to consider a new fund that supported young people into green skills and jobs. Learn more about our research here. 

We worked with a group of eight young people (the ‘Environmental Collective’) who have acted as advisors to the fund development and will continue to support key decision making until the completion of this funding programme. 

Round one

The first round launched in 2026, funding seven organisations across the UK. You can find out more about the work we’ll be supporting through round one here.

Match Funders

We’ve partnered with two match funders for our Green Opportunities Fund.

In the event that a grant is awarded within the Buckinghamshire region, fifty percent of the cost of the grant will be contributed by the Heart of Bucks Community Foundation.

Additionally, in the event that a project aimed at influencing young people to consider careers in low-carbon heating* (such as heat pumps) is awarded, the MCS Foundation will contribute fifty percent of the cost of the grant.

For more about our match funder agreements, head to our fund guidelines.

What’s next?

In 2027 we will be launching the second round of our Green Opportunities Fund.

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