Nature-based climate solutions operate at landscape scale. They involve multiple actors—governments, Indigenous communities, private sector, civil society—and require sustained, coordinated funding over time. No single funder can achieve these outcomes alone. Co-investment is not a preference; it is a functional necessity.
The good news is that there are already a large number of strong initiatives going in the right direction—and a growing ecosystem of credible intermediaries and funding vehicles. The problem is not an absence of things worth funding. It is that catalytic capital has not been deployed in ways that match the scale and complexity of the work.
Too much catalytic funding has been absorbed by efforts to make carbon markets work, rather than by the landscape initiatives themselves. Project-by-project funding fragments what should be coordinated. And outcome-based models designed to be catalytic—meant to attract follow-on funders—have often proven too complicated, too slow, and too narrowly focused on credit generation to actually serve that purpose.
The result: strong initiatives are starved of funding, while the funding architecture around them grows increasingly elaborate and expensive.
The COIN framework provides the architecture for channeling multiple funding sources into large-scale initiatives, with accountability and transparency.
Platforms and windows. Platforms aggregate knowledge, set quality standards, and provide the enabling environment for co-investment. Funding windows channel capital to specific categories of initiative—such as Indigenous territorial management or jurisdictional programs—through accredited intermediaries with deep contextual expertise.
Dual validation. Co-investment flows to initiatives that meet two tests: the finance vehicle is trusted and well-governed, and the underlying initiative is credible and delivering results. This dual validation—of the vehicle and the work—is what gives funders confidence without requiring every funder to conduct their own due diligence.
Co-investment agreements. Framework agreements govern performance expectations, measurement requirements, and claims discipline. They sit alongside standard funding agreements, providing a consistent accountability layer across diverse funding types and legal structures.
The governance model is designed around modularity—linked but not bundled components, each with appropriate governance, aligned around shared outcomes.
Initiative-level governance ensures that rights holders and program managers are accountable for results.
Accredited intermediaries serve as capital stewards, ensuring funds are used as promised. A registry provides public transparency.
And platforms provide the knowledge and quality infrastructure that holds the system together.
Note: The full COIN framework architecture, including the contribution stack, modularity principles, and detailed governance design, is available for deeper technical conversations.
Platform and window design. We develop the platforms and funding windows that make co-investment operational—designing governance structures, quality standards, and the mechanisms that channel capital from funders to initiatives.
Funder engagement. We work with philanthropic, public, and corporate funders to integrate co-investment into their portfolios—identifying the right vehicles, structuring contributions, and establishing claims discipline.
