Free solar? Alex Honnold’s other mission

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Many people will know American climber Alex Honnold from the documentary. Free solo, in which he completed a ropeless ascent of 1,000-meter El Capitan in Yosemite. You’re probably less known as an environmentalist whose nonprofit foundation donates more than $2 million to help people access solar energy around the world.

Honnold has always been concerned about the environment. When he was 20, while living in his van between climbing expeditions, he pored over books about the environment and also read about communities living in the most vulnerable areas of the world. “I realized there’s no point in protecting the environment if it doesn’t also improve living standards,” says Honnold, now 38. “No one cares about the environment unless its basic needs are met.”

Founded in 2012, the Honold Foundation addresses energy poverty, climate change and social inequalities by supporting community-led solar technology projects, ranging from providing lanterns in East Africa to a solar microgrid, the first of its kind in Puerto Rico. It describes solar energy as “an elegant win-win solution”: 770 million people around the world lack electricity, and with solar energy set to surpass other energy sources by 2027, the foundation’s work has been visionary. to attract more sustainableeconomic, affordable and resilient power for the most marginalized.

It feels good to show that other ways can work.

Since the Oscar-winning success of Free solo, Honnold’s profile has skyrocketed, and with it, the impact of his foundation. Over the past three years, he has supported 48 partners in more than 20 countries and territories. In 2022, his grant giving doubled thanks to a global community of corporate and individual supporters. Last October, he launched Levine Impact Lab, an organization that invests in grassroots environmental and social impact organizations, including South side flowers, which repurposes land in Chicago as solar flower farms and employs disadvantaged youth in sustainable agriculture. The foundation is “using its platform to build a bridge between the wealthiest philanthropic class and brave grassroots leaders,” says Quilen Blackwell, founder of Southside Blooms.

In March of this year, the foundation’s largest project was launched in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico: the island’s first cooperatively managed solar microgrid, powering 14 small businesses with 10 days of backup outage. Hurricanes frequently devastate the current “super unreliable and super expensive” grid powered by diesel imported from the United States. Honnold says, “It feels good to help show that these other ways can work.”

Honnold donates about 33 percent of his income to the foundation. “As a climber, I always have relatively clear goals and priorities, and I don’t need material things to do those things,” he says. Professional climbing companion and The dawn wall Star Tommy Caldwell says of Honnold: “Despite his pragmatic approach to life, or possibly because of it, Alex is the most charitable person I know.”

Honnold also invests money earned from public appearances and sponsorships in the foundation. “None of those things make you a better climber; they take away from your climbing time,” he says. “But I can do fun things and still feel decent about doing something positive with them.”

Much like his approach to climbing, Honnold brings a guiding principle to the foundation that is extremely comfortable with risk. His attitude is unusual in the nonprofit world: “We accept the fact that things will fail from time to time. “You cannot finance interesting and innovative projects with a guarantee of success.”

The foundation now attracts more than 2,500 applications for project partnerships from more than 150 countries, representing an investment of $150 million, up from a current portfolio of $2 million. Honnold is determined to keep his impact growing: “I want to feel that we are on the right side of history, that we have done more good than bad.

“The scale of global energy poverty problems seems overwhelming, but if you break it down into pieces, work on each segment, you will eventually end up doing much more than you expect,” he concludes. “If the main lesson of climbing is ‘trying hard’ that inspires you, simply taking off is the crux.”

honnoldfoundation.org/donate