The Schmidt Family Foundation

Quick Stats

Annual Giving: $137,557,862 (2023)
Success Rate: N/A (invitation-only grantmaking)
Decision Time: Not publicly disclosed
Grant Range: $500 - $8,480,000
Median Grant: $102,000
Total Assets: $1.8+ billion
Geographic Focus: Global, with emphasis on California, New York, District of Columbia, and international locations including Africa, Indonesia, Tanzania

Contact Details

The Schmidt Family Foundation

Location: Palo Alto, CA
Phone: (650) 376-7100
Email: info@tsffoundation.org
11th Hour Project Website: https://11thhourproject.org
Schmidt Marine Technology Partners: https://schmidtmarine.org

Overview

The Schmidt Family Foundation was established in 2006 by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and his wife, Wendy Schmidt, as a 501(c)(3) exempt private foundation. With over $1.8 billion in assets, the foundation awarded $137.6 million through 546 grants in 2023. The foundation's mission is to advance an intelligent relationship between human activity and the use of the world's natural resources, supporting organizations working on environmental justice, clean energy, sustainable food systems, and ocean health. The foundation operates primarily through two grant-making programs: the 11th Hour Project (founded 2006) and Schmidt Marine Technology Partners (founded 2015). The Schmidts are notable for their insistence that scientific advancements they fund be shared widely for the planet's protection. In 2019, they announced a $1 billion philanthropic commitment to identify and support talent across disciplines globally.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

11th Hour Project (Invitation-Only)

Focus: Climate change, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, human rights, and marine conservation
Grant Range: Varies significantly; recent grants from $500 to $8.5 million
Approach: Multi-year grants that are sizable, collaborative, and highly specific in aims and expected outcomes
Application: Does not accept unsolicited proposals; all funding by invitation only

Schmidt Marine Technology Partners (Open Application Portal)

Focus: Ocean conservation technologies at Technology Readiness Levels 2-7
Grant History: $42+ million awarded to 85+ projects in 15 countries since 2015
Application: Online portal (note: portal closed for 2025, reopening early 2026)
Support: Provides both funding and technical assistance including business model design, intellectual property planning, and data infrastructure development

Priority Areas

11th Hour Project:

Climate change and renewable energy transition
Sustainable agriculture and regenerative food systems
Human rights (global scope with emphasis on Africa and Haiti)
Indigenous communities and environmental justice
Mining practice reform
Climate journalism and civic engagement
Data science for social good

Schmidt Marine Technology Partners:

Reducing bycatch and ghost gear
Surveying fish populations
Seafood supply-chain transparency
Marine protected area monitoring and enforcement
Restoration and protection of seaweed, seagrass, shellfish, and coral
Sustainable wild-caught fisheries technologies

What They Don't Fund

Individual funding (only organizations)
Unsolicited proposals to 11th Hour Project
Projects outside their core focus areas of environmental sustainability, human rights, and ocean conservation
Program Related Investments are restricted to organizations "highly aligned with our mission and funding principles"

Governance and Leadership

Foundation Directors:

Wendy Schmidt - President and Director of both The Schmidt Family Foundation and 11th Hour Project
Eric Schmidt - Director (former Google CEO)
Sophie Schmidt - Director

11th Hour Project Leadership Team:

Joseph Sciortino - Executive Director; board member of Regeneration Project
Amy Rao - Executive Vice President; board member of Human Rights Watch and Fund for Global Human Rights
Sarah Bell - Program Director; board member of Pie Ranch and Environmental Grantmakers Association
Negeen Darani - Director of Emerging Strategies; former executive director of Harvard Humanitarian Initiative
Jamie Dean - Director of Impact Investing; former program officer at David and Lucile Packard Foundation
Maria Koulouris - Program Director; former director of Africa division at American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative

Key Quote from Wendy Schmidt: "As always, it's our job as philanthropists to take risks -- to do what governments and industry often won't do anyway. You can't do everything, but you can do a lot. Particularly when it comes to climate and climate science."

"I think change is driven in small increments before anything ever 'scales.' The very notion of 'scaling' things is problematic because it ignores the reality that solutions are always local."

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

11th Hour Project: This program does not have a public application process. According to their FAQ: "we generally do not respond to unsolicited proposals and requests." All grantmaking is strictly by invitation only. The foundation's sizable team proactively identifies and invites organizations they feel are the right fit for their strategic priorities.

Schmidt Marine Technology Partners: Accepts proposals via online application portal at schmidtmarine.org. The portal accepts submissions periodically (was closed for 2025, reopening early 2026). Applicants should propose technologies centered on ocean conservation at Technology Readiness Levels 2-6, addressing areas such as sustainable fisheries, marine habitat restoration, or ocean ecosystem protection.

Getting on Their Radar (11th Hour Project)

The 11th Hour Project uses an "Accompaniment Program" where staff spend time in the field building and deepening relationships with grantees and potential partners. Specific strategies for getting noticed:

Network with current grantees: Warm referrals from organizations featured on their website as past recipients can be valuable entry points
Attend environmental justice and climate conferences: Where their team members are known to scout for aligned organizations
Build relationships with staff: The foundation has program directors for specific areas (agriculture, energy, human rights, indigenous communities, minerals, impact investing) who identify grantees through their networks
Demonstrate alignment with their values: Organizations advancing frameworks that value healthy ecosystems, active civic engagement, and social equity, particularly those addressing structural inequality and systemic racism in relation to climate crisis

Decision Timeline

Decision timelines are not publicly disclosed. The foundation does not provide specific information about how long decisions take from initial contact to funding award.

Success Rates

Success rates are not publicly available due to the invitation-only nature of most grantmaking. In 2023, 546 grants were awarded.

Reapplication Policy

Not applicable for 11th Hour Project (invitation-only). For Schmidt Marine Technology Partners, organizations can reapply when the portal reopens, but specific reapplication policies are not publicly documented.

Application Success Factors

For 11th Hour Project (Invitation-Only):

Strategic Alignment is Critical: The foundation looks for organizations "strategically aligned with our program areas" including agriculture, energy, human rights, indigenous communities, minerals, and impact investing.

Values Intersectionality and Innovation: The 11th Hour Project prioritizes "intersectionality, innovation, and working strategically with new technologies." Small organizations are well represented among grantees, demonstrating openness to grassroots efforts.

Focus on Underfunded Approaches: 11th Hour has set itself apart in climate philanthropy by "backing underfunded local efforts to halt new fossil fuel infrastructure," showing they value bold, upstream interventions.

Systemic Change Orientation: The foundation believes "the climate crisis is deeply rooted in a global extractivist economy, structural inequality and systemic racism" - organizations that address root causes rather than symptoms align with this worldview.

Recent Grant Examples:

Human Rights Watch Inc: $8.5M for protecting human rights in Africa and capacity building for partners
Ellen MacArthur Foundation: $5.0M for advancing sustainable materials
Rudolf Steiner Foundation: $3.9M for protecting human rights in Africa
Climate Central Inc: $3.5M for capacity building for partners
Wild Oyster Project (San Francisco), Zanzibar Seaweed Cluster Initiative (Tanzania), Coral Gardeners (Bali, Indonesia)

For Schmidt Marine Technology Partners:

Technology Stage Matters: They typically fund projects between Technology Readiness Levels 2-7, from basic concept formulation through prototype scaling and piloting.

Innovation Over Proven Solutions: Schmidt Marine is "always looking for new, future-focused ideas" and seeks "innovative ocean technologies" rather than incremental improvements.

Scalability Potential: They seek technologies that can achieve "economic sustainability and global impact" and address ocean conservation challenges at scale.

Beyond Funding: Successful applicants should be prepared to leverage non-financial support including business model design, intellectual property planning, and data infrastructure development.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

For 11th Hour Project, relationship-building is essential - this is not a responsive grantmaker. Network with current grantees, attend relevant conferences, and seek warm introductions to program staff.
Schmidt Marine Technology Partners offers the only open application route - if your work involves ocean technology innovation at TRL 2-7, this is your access point to the foundation.
Think systemically, not incrementally - Wendy Schmidt's emphasis that "solutions are always local" and skepticism about scaling suggests they value context-specific, community-rooted interventions over one-size-fits-all approaches.
Address root causes - The foundation explicitly connects climate crisis to extractivist economy, structural inequality, and systemic racism. Proposals should demonstrate understanding of these interconnections.
Small organizations are welcome - Don't be intimidated by the foundation's size. They actively fund grassroots efforts and value working with smaller organizations on the frontlines.
Scientific rigor and open sharing matter - The Schmidts insist that funded scientific advancements be "shared widely" for planetary protection, not kept proprietary.
Multi-year, collaborative grants are the norm - Expect significant, sustained relationships rather than one-off project grants if invited into the 11th Hour portfolio.

References

Research compiled December 2025