RELEASE: City of Indianapolis and IFF Announce Application Launch of Energy Efficiency Program for Nonprofits in Marion County

City of Indianapolis and IFF Announce Application Launch of Energy Efficiency Program for Nonprofits in Marion County

Thriving Nonprofits to provide local organizations with energy assessments of their facilities and matching grants to complete energy efficient building upgrades
 

IINDIANAPOLIS—Today, the Indianapolis Office of Sustainability and community development financial institution IFF announced the application launch for the second cohort of Thriving Nonprofits. This program is designed to help Marion County nonprofits improve the energy efficiency of their facilities and reduce operating costs. Funded by philanthropic dollars from the McKinney Family Foundation and The Indianapolis Foundation, Thriving Nonprofits will provide energy assessments and matching grants of up to $10,000 to as many as 15 mission-driven organizations for the 2026 cohort. IFF’s Real Estate Solutions team will conduct the energy assessments, and funds can be used to facilitate building upgrades that reduce energy usage and monthly utility bills.

“Nonprofits in Indianapolis work tirelessly each and every day to make our city a better place,” said Mayor Joe Hogsett. “The Thriving Nonprofits program helps set these organizations up for energy efficiency success that will meaningfully impact them and our environment for years to come. I am grateful for the support of the program’s philanthropic partners and the City’s own Office of Sustainability for supporting this effort.”

“Public-private partnerships like Thriving Nonprofits exemplify what’s possible when the Indianapolis community unites around common goals like energy efficiency,” said Mo McReynolds, director of the Indianapolis Office of Sustainability. “We are excited to build on the success of our inaugural cohort and continue supporting local nonprofits to invest in their facilities and strengthen their ability to serve our neighbors.”

Those eligible to apply for Thriving Nonprofits include nonprofits, schools, early childhood education centers, public libraries, medical facilities, and grocery stores in communities identified as food deserts. Applicants must own their facilities or have long-term lease agreements. Matching grants will cover building updates like HVAC replacements, wall or roof insulation, solar panel installation, and more. 

“By helping nonprofits reduce their overhead costs, Thriving Nonprofits is empowering them to invest more deeply in their programming and the people they serve, which benefits the broader communities where they work,” said Donna Sink, IFF’s acting director of Real Estate Solutions in Indiana. “Furthermore, the program’s cohort model creates a peer network that enables participants to share learnings and insights to accelerate their projects and cultivate the environmental resilience needed to ensure their facilities remain community anchors for years to come.”

To date, Thriving Nonprofits has produced a total investment of around $300,000 in energy efficiency and clean energy in Marion County. The 2025 cohort is projected to see an estimated annual savings of $36,550 in total utility costs. This translates to approximately 240,000 kWh in total energy savings and a reduction of about 150 metric tons in total CO2 emissions, which is equivalent to taking 46 gas-powered cars off the road for an entire year.

Thriving Nonprofits contributes to the broader sustainability efforts outlined in Thrive Indianapolis, a citywide sustainability and resilience action plan that seeks to mitigate the effects of extreme weather events and guide Indianapolis to carbon neutrality by 2050.

Eligible organizations are encouraged to submit an online application by May 29, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. An announcement of the organizations selected to participate in Thriving Nonprofits will be made this summer, at which point energy assessments of participants’ facilities will begin. Using the findings from the assessments, each nonprofit will:

  • Choose the building upgrades they plan to pursue;

  • Select contractors to complete building upgrades in partnership with IFF; and

  • Secure the sources of funding and financing needed to execute the projects.

In addition to the matching grants offered through Thriving Nonprofits, participating nonprofits will have access to flexible loans from IFF to supplement project budgets as needed. All energy efficiency upgrades are expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

“The McKinney Family Foundation is proud to partner with the Office of Sustainability and IFF through Thriving Nonprofits,” said Stephanie Goodrid Lawson, executive director of the McKinney Family Foundation. "This work helps mission-driven organizations build resilience and advances the Foundation’s commitment to fostering healthier, more prosperous, and more sustainable communities.”

To learn more about Thriving Nonprofits and access the application, visit https://www.indy.gov/activity/thriving-nonprofits.

Photos from the April 20 event where the application of the second cohort was first announced are available to view and download here.

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Press ReleaseMads GullionThriving Nonprofits, Energy Efficiency, Grants