Passport Foundation

The Passport Foundation operates as a strategic, invitation-only grantmaker built around a singular mission: eliminating toxic chemical pollution from supply chains, consumer products, and the built environment. Founded by hedge fund manager John H. Burbank III and his wife Alison Carlson — and linked to Burbank's Passport Capital investment firm — the organization brings financial discipline and long-term thinking to environmental health philanthropy. Since launching its Science Innovation Fund in 2009, the foundation has deployed over $25 million across 1,000+ grants.

The giving philosophy centers on catalytic, systems-change funding. Passport does not support direct service delivery, community clinics, or single-site remediation projects. Instead, it backs organizations that connect scientific evidence to regulatory action, engage corporate supply chains to adopt safer chemical alternatives, and mobilize national advocacy campaigns. The four formal program areas — Regulatory Advocacy, Supply Chain Disruption & Safer Alternatives, Research for Policy Change, and Public Engagement for Systemic Reform — reflect a deliberate theory of change: science informs policy, policy reshapes supply chains, and supply chain change drives measurable public health outcomes.

The relationship progression is atypical for a foundation of this size. There is no open RFP cycle, no application portal, and no formal submission process. All grantmaking flows through direct invitation. The foundation operates strictly by invitation only and does not accept unsolicited proposals. Multi-year relationships dominate the portfolio: Toxic-Free Future has received 11 grants totaling $1.44 million; Healthy Building Network has received 10 grants totaling $802,016; Breast Cancer Prevention Partners has received 7 grants totaling $460,000. These are not transactional project grants — they are sustained institutional relationships averaging four to eight years, with general operating support featuring prominently.

First-time prospective partners must understand this reality: the foundation cannot be applied to in the conventional sense. The pathway runs through peer organizations already in the portfolio, funder affinity groups like HEFN, and convenings like the foundation's own Solutions Summit (next edition: December 2-3, 2026, San Francisco). Organizations should demonstrate institutional credibility through published scientific research, regulatory wins, or documented corporate supply chain commitments. With Executive Director William Walsh now heading day-to-day operations, the foundation has a senior staff contact point — though all major funding decisions remain with the board, led by President John H. Burbank III.

The Passport Foundation's financial profile reflects a well-capitalized, steadily growing private foundation. Total assets reached $62.65 million in FY2024, up from $39.6 million in FY2020 — a 58% increase over four years driven by strong investment performance and, most recently, $13.7 million in contributions received in FY2024 alone. Annual giving has ranged from $3.57 million (2019) to $5.88 million (2022), with FY2024 charitable disbursements approximately $3.07 million based on available filing data.

Grant size analysis from the grantee dataset (215 grants totaling $10.48 million) reveals the following structure: - Average grant: $48,763 - Foundation-reported median: $30,000 - Reported single-grant range: $100 to $250,000 - Cumulative multi-year relationships: up to $1,440,000 (Toxic-Free Future, 11 grants)

The largest individual grant relationships demonstrate the foundation's willingness to make long-term commitments: Toxic-Free Future ($1.44M, 11 grants), Healthy Building Network ($802,016, 10 grants), Miraclefeet ($750,000, 3 grants — an outlier reflecting personal philanthropic interest in global health), Earthjustice ($615,000, 6 grants), and NRDC ($580,500, 4 grants). Smaller tactical grants of $50,000–$100,000 fund specialized research projects, coalition convenings, and emerging campaigns.

Geographic distribution strongly reflects the foundation's strategic logic: California dominates with 82 grants (advocacy-forward consumer product regulation), Washington D.C. follows with 35 grants (federal regulatory arena), New York receives 29 grants (financial sector supply chain influence), and Washington state accounts for 11 grants. Vermont (9 grants) reflects targeted state-level chemical regulation work.

By program area, analysis of grantee purposes indicates approximately 65–70% of strategic funding addresses chemical regulation and advocacy campaigns, 15% targets plastics and PFAS specifically, 10% supports environmental justice and community health intersections, and 5% funds academic and scientific research. An employee matching gift program generates smaller grants ($1,000–$21,000) to sports teams and community organizations — these are not strategic entry points.

Giving trends show a consistent upward trajectory: $3.57M (2019) → $3.99M (2020) → $4.57M (2021) → $5.88M (2022) → $5.72M (2023). With assets now at $62.65M, annual giving capacity likely approaches or exceeds $6 million in 2025–2026.

The foundations listed as asset-comparable peers all hold endowments in the $62–63 million range, but serve markedly different missions from the Passport Foundation. This comparison helps calibrate grant size expectations and relative funding accessibility.

Passport's ~$5.7M in annual giving (FY2023) represents a payout ratio of approximately 11% of assets — well above the 5% legal minimum for private foundations and a meaningful signal of active deployment intent. Its sharp thematic focus on toxic chemicals distinguishes it categorically from the broadly classified peers in this asset cohort.

For environmental health organizations, the more relevant peer comparison is with mission-aligned funders: the Marisla Foundation (California-based, marine environment and toxics focus), the Forsythia Foundation (co-founded by Alison Carlson, Passport's co-founder, with overlapping chemical safety grantees), and other HEFN member foundations. Within this mission-adjacent universe, Passport sits at the mid-to-large end for single-issue chemical safety funders — larger than most family foundations in this space but smaller than the environmental program divisions of major institutions like the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation or MacArthur Foundation.

The most substantive documented development is the foundation's remarkable FY2024 financial growth: total assets climbed from $51.5M (FY2023) to $62.65M (FY2024) — a 21.7% increase in a single year — driven by $13.7M in contributions received and $15.7M in total revenue. This is the highest revenue year in the available dataset by a significant margin and suggests a substantial capital infusion from founders, likely positioning the organization for increased grant activity through 2025–2026.

A Solutions Summit 2026 is confirmed for December 2-3 in San Francisco. This convening brings together current grantees, allied researchers, and environmental health practitioners. The summit is not a grant application mechanism, but it represents the foundation's primary public engagement vehicle and the most accessible opportunity for non-grantee organizations to establish direct visibility with foundation leadership.

Executive Director William Walsh is recorded in the FY2024 Form 990-PF filing with $106,970 in compensation — the first confirmed salaried leadership role in available records spanning FY2012 through FY2023, all of which show zero officer compensation. This transition from all-volunteer board governance to a staffed model suggests the foundation is professionalizing its operations and building sustained grantmaking infrastructure.

No public press releases or new program announcements were found for 2025–2026 beyond the Solutions Summit notice. The foundation deliberately maintains a low public profile and does not issue press releases about individual grants awarded. The recently refreshed website presents a mission-centered narrative anchored by PFAS and plastics statistics but provides no grant portal or application information.

Given Passport Foundation's strictly invitation-only model, conventional grant-seeking tactics are ineffective. The path to funding runs through deliberate relationship cultivation within the environmental health funding and advocacy ecosystem.

Build credibility within HEFN first. The Health & Environmental Funders Network is the primary affinity group where Passport Foundation is a recognized member. Attending HEFN's annual meeting and establishing relationships with peer member foundations creates proximity to Passport's leadership. Many Passport grantees — Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, Coming Clean, Defend Our Health, Center for Environmental Health — are also HEFN participants, and warm referrals from current grantees carry significant weight.

Align explicitly to one of four program pillars. Generic environmental or public health framing will not resonate. Organizations must demonstrate clear linkage to: (1) regulatory advocacy advancing stronger chemical safety protections, (2) supply chain disruption enabling corporations to adopt safer alternatives, (3) research that directly supports policy change rulemaking, or (4) public engagement campaigns building political will for systemic chemical reform. Language around "tackling toxic pollution" and "eliminating harmful chemicals from supply chains" should appear naturally in organizational materials.

Target the right chemicals and sectors. The grantee record demonstrates concentrated interest in PFAS/forever chemicals, food packaging safety, beauty and personal care products, building materials, plastics and microplastics, and agricultural pesticides. Organizations linking chemical exposures to cancer, reproductive harm, or neurodevelopmental damage align most tightly with the scientific rationale underlying the portfolio.

Demonstrate systems-change orientation. The foundation funds campaigns, coalitions, litigation, and regulatory advocacy — not direct service. Single-city nonprofits focused on cleanup or community health delivery are unlikely fits. Organizations with national or international reach, active policy engagement, and capacity to influence corporate supply chains are the target profile.

Pursue sub-grants through current grantees. Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (Plastic Solutions Fund, $400,000 from Passport), Coming Clean, and Virginia Organizing function as re-granting intermediaries within the portfolio. These represent legitimate entry points for smaller or newer organizations without direct foundation access.

Timing and format. No formal grant cycle exists. Funding decisions appear to be rolling, with multi-year general operating commitments to core partners. When invited to submit, prepare a concise narrative proposal emphasizing systems impact, policy reach, and coalition infrastructure. Include a clear budget and recent 990 — no complex application form has been published.