IU Environmental Resilience Institute

What IU Environmental Resilience Institute does

The Environmental Resilience Institute (ERI) is a non-profit research institute within Indiana University, established in 2017 as part of IU's Grand Challenges Program under the Prepared for Environmental Change initiative. ERI operates as a transdisciplinary hub that translates climate and environmental research into practical tools, technical assistance, and workforce development for Indiana and the Midwest, with primary headquarters in Bloomington, Indiana, and a 2025 expansion into a Park Avenue property. Its portfolio centers on three core programs — the McKinney Climate Fellows (a workforce pipeline placing IU students with Indiana-based organizations for 10-12 week paid fellowships at $6,400-$7,600 stipends), the Resilience Cohort (an annual peer-cohort model serving local governments at $3,700 membership per community), and the Indiana Resilience Funding Hub (jointly with IU Center for Rural Engagement to help rural communities access federal funding) — supported by data and decision-support tools including the Hoosier Resilience Index, Environmental Resilience Institute Toolkit, Indiana Green City Mapper, Hoosier Life Survey, Heat Vulnerability Index, and FutureWater hydrological models.

ERI serves six primary customer segments — local governments, businesses and nonprofits, educators, faculty and researchers, students, and Indiana residents — through a partnership-driven community engagement model rather than a commercial sales motion. The institute operates a multi-channel outreach stack anchored by the annual Indiana Sustainability and Resilience Conference (400+ attendees), two newsletters, the In This Climate podcast, and an XR/AI-powered Immersive Climate Stories initiative. Revenue mechanics are characteristic of a university-affiliated non-profit: foundation grants from McKinney Family Foundation, Herbert Simon Family Foundation, Energy Foundation, and Brabson Library and Educational Foundation constitute the largest funding base, supplemented by tiered corporate sponsorships ($1,000 to $100,000), annual conference sponsorships ($250 to $35,000), individual donations via the ERI Bedrock Society, and programmatic fees like the $3,700 Resilience Cohort membership. Cumulative programmatic output includes 302 McKinney fellowships, 100,000+ service hours, 49 local governments supported, 16+ climate action plans initiated, and 10 solar-friendly community designations achieved.

Name

IU Environmental Resilience Institute

Legal name

Environmental Resilience Institute

Website

https://eri.iu.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Environmental Resilience Institute is a non-profit research institute within Indiana University that translates climate research into tools, technical assistance, and workforce development for Indiana local governments, businesses, educators, and communities, anchored by the McKinney Climate Fellows, Resilience Cohort, and Indiana Resilience Funding Hub programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bloomington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants: Primary funding from private foundations including McKinney Family Foundation, Herbert Simon Family Foundation, Brabson Library and Educational Foundation, Energy Foundation, and others supporting research and programs.
2. Corporate Sponsorships: Business giving program with tiers: Visionaries ($100,000), Champions ($50,000), Stewards ($10,000), Advocates ($1,000). Includes sponsorship of specific programs and events.
3. Individual Donations: Donations from individuals and families, including ERI Bedrock Society (gifts of $1,000+ annually) and general fund contributions.
4. Conference Sponsorships: ISRC conference sponsorship tiers from $250 (Nonprofit Partner) to $35,000 (Presenting Supporter) with various recognition benefits.
5. Resilience Cohort Membership Fees: Communities pay $3,700 membership fee to offset costs of expert consultants and student scholarships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

ERI is a university-based research and outreach institute that delivers climate resilience programs, workforce development, and technical assistance to Indiana communities, local governments, businesses, nonprofits, and educators. Its core offerings include the McKinney Climate Fellows workforce program, the Resilience Cohort for local government climate planning, the Indiana Resilience Funding Hub for rural communities, and proprietary data tools (Hoosier Resilience Index, ERIT, Indiana Green City Mapper) that translate climate research into actionable tools.

Product overview

The Environmental Resilience Institute (ERI) at Indiana University is a research and outreach institute rather than a commercial product company. Its portfolio consists of interconnected programs, tools, and initiatives designed to advance climate resilience across Indiana and the Midwest. The core programs include the McKinney Climate Fellows workforce development program, the Resilience Cohort helping local governments with climate action planning, and the Indiana Resilience Funding Hub supporting rural communities in pursuing federal funding. These programs are supported by data and decision-support tools including the Hoosier Resilience Index (a climate vulnerability assessment tool), the Environmental Resilience Institute Toolkit (ERIT), and the Indiana Green City Mapper for urban green infrastructure analysis. ERI also operates public engagement initiatives including the In This Climate podcast, educational programs like Educating for Environmental Change for K-12 teachers, the Beat the Heat extreme heat preparedness program, and the annual Indiana Sustainability and Resilience Conference. The institute's research is anchored by the Indiana Climate Change Impacts Assessment and participation in the Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center, with emerging innovation through immersive climate storytelling using extended reality and AI technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• McKinney Climate Fellows

Quantifiable outcome

• 100,000+ hours served by McKinney Climate Fellows advancing sustainability in Indiana
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability9 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core, strategic and minor.

• Midwest Climate Adaptation Science CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 September 2021US Geological Survey-funded consortium of eight universities and natural resource organizations. ERI coordinates IU's participation, focusing on actionable climate science for the Midwest region.
• Davey Resource GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnical partner for urban tree canopy assessments and tree planting programs. Works with Resilience Cohort communities on tree planting and maintenance plans.
• ICLEI - Local Governments for SustainabilitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading nonprofit for local government sustainability. Provides training and technical assistance for greenhouse gas inventories and climate action planning.
• Geos InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClimate planning framework partner for Resilience Cohort's Climate Ready Communities program, providing vulnerability assessments and resilience planning methodology.
• Great Plains InstitutestrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners on renewable energy development resources and SolSmart program for Indiana communities pursuing solar-ready designation.
• Electrification CoalitionstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides expertise and resources for electric vehicle deployment programs in Indiana communities.
• US Department of EnergystrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners on energy benchmarking tools for water and wastewater treatment, EV planning resources, and Urban and Community Forestry Program funding.
• Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-developer of Beat the Heat program for community heat relief strategies. Jointly supports Indiana Resilience Funding Hub.
• IU Center for Rural EngagementcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJointly administers the Indiana Resilience Funding Hub to help rural Hoosier communities pursue federal climate and resilience funding.
• Hoosier Environmental CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides equity and environmental justice training and one-on-one coaching for Resilience Cohort participants.
• Midwest Heating and Cooling CollaborativeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on heat pump technology training summits for Resilience Cohort heat pump accelerator track.
• SolSmartminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational program recognizing local governments for solar-readiness. ERI supports Indiana communities pursuing designation.
• IU Advanced Visualization LabminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on extended reality and AI storytelling experiences exploring climate change impacts and solutions.
• IU Healthy Cities LabcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-developer of Beat the Heat program, providing heat mapping data and Heat Vulnerability Index tools.
• Integrated Program in the Environment (IPE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIU's hub for environmental academics, research, and activities. Co-administers McKinney Climate Fellows program with ERI.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Climate Central: Nonprofit that combines climate science research with public communication and tools for journalists, policymakers, and communities. Comparable to ERI in its research-to-action pipeline and emphasis on translating climate data for non-technical audiences.
• Drawdown Georgia: State-level climate action initiative housed at Georgia Tech focused on community climate planning, workforce development, and emissions reduction. Most direct structural peer to ERI's statewide institute model serving municipalities with research-backed tools.
• Geos Institute: Climate planning organization providing vulnerability assessment methodology and resilience planning frameworks. ERI's core partner in the Climate Ready Communities program powering the Resilience Cohort planning work.
• Great Plains Institute: Regional nonprofit working on energy, climate, and renewable deployment across the Midwest. ERI's strategic partner on SolSmart solar-friendly designations and renewable energy programming for Indiana communities.
• Resilient Cities Network: Global nonprofit network (formerly 100 Resilient Cities) that partners with cities on resilience strategy development. Operates a similar city-focused climate resilience consulting model with comparable tools and methodologies to ERI's Resilience Cohort.
• ICLEI USA: The US arm of Local Governments for Sustainability, providing greenhouse gas inventories, climate action planning, and sustainability training for municipalities. ERI lists ICLEI as a core strategic partner, and both serve the same local government customer base.
• The Trust for Public Land: National nonprofit working on urban green infrastructure, parks, and tree canopy expansion. Overlaps directly with ERI's urban green infrastructure Resilience Cohort track and tree planting/canopy planning programs.

Emerging players

• Second Nature: Climate education network focused on higher education institutions, including curriculum resources and climate commitments. Comparable educational mission to ERI's K-12 Educating for Environmental Change program and student fellowship workforce development.

Broad incumbents

• University of Michigan Center for Sustainable Systems: Academic research center at a peer Big Ten university producing sustainability research, data, and policy analysis. Operates with similar university-affiliated model and produces comparable tools and reports, though with a broader research scope.
• Carnegie Mellon University Scott Institute for Energy Innovation: University-affiliated energy and climate research institute producing research, policy analysis, and technology commercialization. Comparable academic model and climate/energy focus, though with a narrower energy technology orientation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@iuenvironmentalresilience
• Facebookfacebook.com/environmentalresilienceinstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/environmental-resilience-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about IU Environmental Resilience Institute