Role of Cisco Foundation in the funding ecosystem
The Cisco Foundation is a corporate foundation created in 1997 to advance connected, resilient, and thriving communities across the globe. Operating alongside Cisco’s Social Impact Investments team, it deploys philanthropic and catalytic capital to organizations that use technology to address critical social and environmental challenges. Its portfolio spans crisis response and critical human needs, education, economic empowerment, and climate resilience and regeneration, with a strong emphasis on underserved populations.
The Foundation combines cash grants, in-kind donations of Cisco technology, and impact investments to help partners design, validate, replicate, and scale digital solutions. According to recent impact reporting, it supports more than 100 organizations in over 100 countries, has committed a 10‑year US$100 million climate initiative, and regularly catalyzes substantial follow-on funding for its grantees and investees.
Funding instruments and main programs
- Global Impact Cash Grants: Competitive grants to nonprofits and NGOs that use technology to deliver programs for underserved communities. The program has clear eligibility rules (for example, public‑charity status or overseas equivalents, at least 65% economically underserved beneficiaries, overhead caps) and a structured process based on a Letter of Inquiry, full proposal, and performance reporting.
- Regional Solutions Grants: Regionally targeted grants that support local technology‑enabled solutions in the Foundation’s priority sectors, complementing the global grant portfolio.
- Climate grants and impact investments: Under its US$100M climate commitment, the Foundation funds nonprofit climate solutions and backs early‑stage climate venture funds and start‑ups through the Regenerative Future Fund, focusing on clean energy, regenerative agriculture, carbon solutions, adaptation and resilience technologies, and climate finance.
- Technology Grant Program (TGP): A donation program that awards Cisco networking and collaboration technologies to qualifying nonprofits, enabling them to improve productivity, security, and service reach. Larger, complex requests are managed directly by Cisco, while smaller donations are handled via the TechSoup network.
General evaluation and selection criteria
Across its programs, the Cisco Foundation seeks organizations that are proximate to the communities they serve and can scale tech‑enabled solutions. Selection criteria highlighted on the Social Impact Investments and Global Impact Cash Grants pages include fit with the four priority sectors, innovative use of technology to close digital and data gaps, replicability beyond the initial geography, potential for large‑scale reach, and rigorous impact measurement. Applicants are expected to define SMART indicators, participate in ongoing performance tracking, and demonstrate prospects for financial viability and ecosystem‑level influence.
Supported audiences and global impact
The Foundation primarily supports nonprofit organizations and, for climate work, also invests in early‑stage for‑profit ventures and climate funds that benefit vulnerable communities. Its grants and investments back initiatives such as emergency communications during disasters, digital skills and STEM education, financial inclusion and entrepreneurship, and climate‑smart agriculture and conservation. Impact reports emphasize that a high share of beneficiaries are economically underserved and that many funded solutions are replicated across countries, reaching millions of people each year.
Partnerships, guidance, and accountability
Beyond funding, the Cisco Foundation leverages Cisco’s global employee base to provide strategic and technical advisory services, from solution design and security to organizational strategy and marketing. Detailed grant‑giving policies govern eligibility, prohibited uses, and compliance. All grantees must sign written agreements and report on progress via Cisco’s online grant platform, supporting transparency, governance, and continuous learning across the Foundation’s global portfolio.
