What Pisces Foundation does

Pisces Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation established in 2013 by Randi and Bob Fisher and headquartered at One Maritime Plaza in San Francisco, California. It deploys grant capital from its founders toward environmental and climate causes, operating three core program areas — Environment and Climate (focused on abating super pollutants such as methane, HFCs, and black carbon), Water (supporting integrated "One Water" urban management), and Environmental Education (building movement infrastructure for equitable outdoor learning) — and in 2026 expanded into a new San Francisco Initiative targeting high-impact collaboration in its home city. The foundation distinguishes itself through movement-building and field infrastructure investments rather than traditional project-by-project grantmaking; it directs over 40% of its U.S. climate funding to BIPOC-led organizations, has deployed over $6M in One Water grants across 21 cities since 2014, and uses open Requests for Proposals, participatory grantmaking with external advisory councils, and co-funding partnerships (e.g., JPB Foundation 2018 1:1 match; Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation 2022 collaborations) to reach grantees.

Its core "products" are grant programs delivered through a Salesforce.org-powered Grants Portal that supports invited applicant submissions and ongoing grantee reporting, supplemented by a Perspectives blog, community newsletter letters, public 990-PF disclosures, and a public-facing RFP pipeline. The foundation was a founding participant in Mosaic, a multi-funder national field infrastructure initiative providing shared communications, leadership development, data, and backbone services to the environmental movement, and was an inaugural signatory to the Climate Funders' Justice Pledge.

The business model is purely philanthropic: the foundation generates no commercial revenue, charges no fees, and does not sell products or services. All capital originates from founders Randi and Bob Fisher and is deployed as grants, capacity-building support, convenings, and shared infrastructure investments to nonprofit partners. The foundation is governed by an independent board of trustees and led by President David Beckman alongside climate, water, and program staff; it is not an investable commercial entity but a private philanthropic vehicle.

Name

Pisces Foundation

Legal name

Pisces Foundation

Website

https://piscesfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Pisces Foundation is a San Francisco-based private philanthropic foundation founded in 2013 that deploys founder-funded grants to nonprofit organizations advancing climate super pollutant mitigation, One Water urban management, and environmental education across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Grantmaking Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

Keywords

• Philanthropic grantmaking
• Environmental education funding
• Climate change advocacy
• Integrated water management
• Nonprofit foundation grants

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Grantmaking: Pisces Foundation operates as a private foundation funded by its founders, Randi and Bob Fisher. The foundation generates no commercial revenue; its sole revenue stream is philanthropic capital deployed as grants to partner organizations advancing environment, climate, water, environmental education, and San Francisco community initiatives.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Pisces Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation that deploys grant capital to nonprofit organizations, movement-builders, and frontline communities advancing environment, climate, water management, environmental education, and San Francisco community initiatives. Access to its grantmaking is facilitated through an invitation-only Salesforce.org grants portal, public RFPs, and direct staff engagement with prospective grantees.

Product overview

The Pisces Foundation is a philanthropic organization offering grantmaking programs rather than a commercial product platform. Its core offering consists of grant programs across three main areas: Environment + Climate (focused on super pollutant mitigation), Water Resources (supporting One Water integrated management), and Environmental Education (building movement infrastructure for outdoor learning). The Foundation also launched a San Francisco Initiative in 2026. Access to the grantmaking process is facilitated through a Grants Portal built on Salesforce.org, through which invited applicants submit proposals and grantees share updates. The Foundation does not offer a public API or commercial software products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Grants Portal An online portal (built on Salesforce.org) for invited applicants to submit grant proposals and for existing grantees to submit updates and reports to Pisces Foundation.
• Environment + Climate Program Grantmaking initiative focused on mitigating climate super pollutants (methane, HFCs, black carbon), supporting climate advocacy, movement infrastructure, and frontline community leadership on environmental and climate challenges.
• San Francisco Initiative A multi-year initiative launching in 2026 to help San Francisco thrive by investing in high-impact collaboration throughout the city, addressing urban challenges and supporting vibrant communities.
• Water Program (One Water) Grantmaking program supporting integrated and equitable water management (One Water) in urban areas, including policy advocacy, stormwater management, and community-centered water planning across U.S. cities. Has invested over $6 million in 21 cities since 2014.
• Environmental Education Program Grantmaking program supporting environmental and outdoor learning movement infrastructure, equitable access to nature, and field-building for environmental education organizations across the United States.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 40% of U.S. climate funding directed to BIPOC-led organizations (up from 17% at pledge signing)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• 2022 Urban Water RFP Advisory CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023An external advisory council of diverse water field leaders (Steve Fleischli/NRDC, Mami Hara/US Water Alliance, Monica Lewis-Patrick/We the People of Detroit, Yasmin Zaerpoor/PolicyLink) provided input, reduced bias, and checked assumptions in the 2022 Urban Water RFP grantmaking process. The advisory council informed grant recommendations to Pisces' board.
• Climate Funders' Justice Pledge (CFJP) / Donors of Color NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Pisces Foundation was one of the inaugural signatories to the Climate Funders' Justice Pledge, committing to greater funding transparency by publicly sharing funding percentages to BIPOC-led groups, and to giving at least 30% of U.S. climate funding to BIPOC-led climate groups within two years. The foundation also supported the Donors of Color Network to encourage more foundations to join the pledge.
• Mosaic MomentumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Pisces Foundation played a founding role in Mosaic, a multi-funder national initiative focused on strengthening movement infrastructure for the environmental field. Mosaic provides shared tools including communications, leadership development, data, training, and backbone services. Its governance assembly includes NGO and grassroots leaders working with funders to make grant decisions transparently via RFPs. Pisces President David Beckman serves on the Mosaic governance assembly.
• Methane Partners CampaigncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA coalition of environmental, health, and labor organizations (co-led by Earthworks and GreenLatinos) advocating for federal methane regulation. Pisces Foundation funds this coalition as part of its super pollutant mitigation strategy.
• People vs. Fossil Fuels CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMany of Pisces Foundation's grassroots grantee partners (Pueblo Action Alliance, Carrizo Comecrudo Tribe of Texas, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, and others) are key members of this national coalition, extending their impact beyond their individual regions.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• JPB Foundation: Major private foundation that has co-funded Pisces water programs (1:1 match in 2018 Urban Water RFP). Comparable as a peer private foundation with environmental health, urban, and policy advocacy grantmaking.
• Kresge Foundation: Private foundation with major climate, water, and urban resilience grantmaking programs. Directly comparable to Pisces on One Water / urban water infrastructure funding, equity-centered grantmaking, and foundation-led convenings.
• ClimateWorks Foundation: A major global climate grantmaking foundation that funds super-pollutant mitigation, climate policy, and clean energy deployment. Directly comparable to Pisces in mission, scale, and emphasis on collaborative climate philanthropy and BIPOC-led grantee networks.
• Grantham Foundation: Private foundation focused exclusively on climate change and environmental grantmaking, with emphasis on super-pollutants, climate science, and clean energy. Closely comparable in mission focus on climate super-pollutant mitigation.
• Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation: Texas-based private foundation funding climate, water, and land stewardship. Active co-funder of Pisces water RFPs; directly comparable as a private foundation funding integrated water management and environmental education at similar scale.

Broad incumbents

• The Rockefeller Foundation: Large private foundation with climate, energy, and equity-centered grantmaking. Comparable on global climate strategy, environmental justice focus, and BIPOC-led grantee empowerment.
• Hewlett Foundation (William and Flora): Large private foundation with significant climate and environment grantmaking portfolios including super-pollutants, energy, and conservation. Comparable as a peer private foundation funding policy advocacy and field-building with similar program structures.
• Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation: Large private foundation funding climate, environmental, and conservation initiatives through collaborative, field-building approaches. Comparable on movement infrastructure investment and Bay Area environmental grantmaking footprint.
• Bloomberg Philanthropies: Large multi-issue philanthropy with major climate (Beyond Carbon, super-pollutants) and environmental justice programs. Comparable on climate super-pollutant strategy and equity-centered grantmaking, though broader in scope.
• MacArthur Foundation: Major private foundation with significant climate solutions grantmaking. Comparable on climate philanthropy scale, big-bet grantmaking, and commitment to funding movement infrastructure and policy change.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PiscesFdn
• Facebookfacebook.com/piscesfoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/piscesfoundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Pisces Foundation