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Sunpower Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Sunpower Foundation

Its FY2023 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$172k
Granted FY2023
3
Grants FY2023
3
States reached
$100k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2023.

Philanthropy$659kEnvironment$354kEducation$103kEmployment$23kFood & Nutrition$20kArts & Culture$15kInternational$15kPublic Safety & Disaster$5kOther$0
02FY2023 · 3 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2023

  • $10k–50k2 grants · $72k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $100k
$41,250
Median grant
3
States reached
$171k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
THRIVE SCHOLARS$100,000
SOLAR ONE$41,250
GOOD SUN SOLAR$30,965
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–23) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 97% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%BRIGHTEN HAITI: $5k → 11%THRIVE SCHOLARS: $100k → 16%FOOTPRINT PROJECT: $5k → 6%CHILDRENS DISCOVERY MUSUEM OF SAN JOSE: $3k → 8%FOOD BANK OF CONTRA COSTA & SOLANO: $5k → 9%INTERSECTIONAL ENVIRONMENTALIST: $8k → 10%WE CARE SOLAR: $53k → 10%BRIGHT FUNDS FOUNDATION: $183k → 10%GOOD SUN SOLAR: $47k → 11%FRIENDS OF THE RIVER FOUNDATION: $1k → 12%SECOND HARVEST OF SILICON VALLEY: $5k → 13%SOLAR ONE: $41k → 13%CENTRAL TEXAS FOOD BANK INC: $5k → 10%BRIGHTEN HAITI: $5k → 8%SOLAR ENERGY INTERNATIONAL: $50k → 15%THE TECH MUSEUM OF INNOVATION: $15k → 8%GRID ALTERNATIVES: $68k → 10%BRIGHT FUNDS FOUNDATION: $86k → 10%GOOD SUN SOLAR: $31k → 11%WE CARE SOLAR: $25k → 10%RISING SUN CENTER FOR OPPORTUNITY: $12k → 10%WE CARE SOLAR: $25k → 10%GRID ALTERNATIVES: $500 → 10%WOMEN'S EARTH ALLIANCE: $5k → 10%RISING SUN CENTER FOR OPPORTUNITY: $12k → 10%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

MN
NY
MA
OR
CA
CO
AZ
TX
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

78%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$931k · 5 repeat orgs$265k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +36% since the first grant, against +25% for those funded once.

5 repeat relationships: 1 still active in FY2023, 4 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

5
15

Total granted

$931k
$124k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+36%
+25%

Still filing today

60%
80%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 18% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $141k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23
EnvironmentFood & NutritionRecreation & SportsPhilanthropyHealthArts & CultureOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • BF
    BRIGHT FUNDS FOUNDATION
    6× · 2017–2022 · $659k · revenue +8%
  • WC
    WE CARE SOLAR
    3× · 2017–2022 · $103k · revenue +129%
  • RS
    Rising Sun Center for Opportunity fka RISING SUN ENERGY CENTER
    2× · 2021–2022 · $23k · revenue +36%

Funded once

  • SE
    SOLAR ENERGY INTERNATIONAL
    one grant, 2022 · $50k · revenue +0%
  • TT
    THE TECH INTERACTIVE
    one grant, 2017 · $15k · revenue -21%
  • IE
    INTERSECTIONAL ENVIRONMENTALISTgraduated
    one grant, 2021 · $8k · revenue +70%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Food Forward Inc

Food forward fights hunger and prevents food waste by rescuing fresh surplus produce, connecting this abundance with people experiencing food insecurity, and inspiring others to do the same.

Food & Nutrition
2
Friends of the Earth

Friends of the earth strives for a more healthy and just world by defendng the environment and human health while advancing social and economic justice by conducting research and education, transforming the economy so it protects the…

Environment
3
Extrafood

Food Rescue - The Organization rescues excess fresh food from Bay Area businesses, schools and non-profits and immediately delivers the food to safety net partners - such as senior housing centers, after-school programs, and homeless…

Food & Nutrition
4
Solar Energy Industries Association

Seia is the driving force behind solar energy and storage, building a stronger solar industry to power america through advocacy and education. representing organizations that promote, manufacture, install and support the development of…

—
5
Fresh Energy

Shape and drive bold policy solutions to achieve equitable carbon-neutral economies.

Environment
6
Brightline Defense Project

Brightline is a policy advocacy non-profit that works to promote sustainability in otherwise vulnerable communities.

Civil Rights
7
Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Foundation

To engage and catalyze global seafood supply chains in rebuilding depleted fish stocks and reducing the environmental impacts of fishing and fish farming.

Animals
8
The Union of Concerned Scientists Inc

The union of concerned scientists puts rigorous, independent science into action, developing solutions and advocating for a healthy, safe, and just future.

International
9
The Global FoodBanking Network

To nourish the world's hungry through uniting and advancing food banks.

International
10
CalCef Innovations

Optimizing the clean energy transition - 100%+ clean energy economy for the 100%.

Environment
11
Solar Electric Light Fund

Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF) provides solar power and wireless communications to the fifth of the world's population living in energy poverty to meet global challenges of food and water scarcity, basic healthcare and poverty. SELF is…

Environment
12
Climate Access Fund Corporation

The Climate Access Fund develops and finances community solar products that serve low to moderate income households

Environment
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Cec Stuyvesant Cove Inc; the most unlike its peers is East Bay Bicycle Coalition Dba Bike East Bay. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

18 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 18 of the 22 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
17/18
Grantees still filing
12/18
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

BRIGHT FUNDS FOUNDATION: $658,859 · PhilanthropyBRIGHT FUNDS FOUNDATIONGood Sun: $77,680 · EnvironmentGood SunSOLAR ENERGY INTERNATIONAL: $50,000 · EnvironmentSOLAR ENERGY INTE…CEC STUYVESANT COVE INC: $41,250 · EnvironmentCEC STUYVESANT CO…INTERSECTIONAL ENVIRONMENTALIST: $8,000 · Environment+2 more: $10,000 · Environment+2 moreWE CARE SOLAR: $102,500 · HealthWE CARE S…THRIVE SCHOLARS: $100,000 · EducationTHRIVE SC…GRID ALTERNATIVES: $68,500 · OtherGRID ALTER…RISE AGAINST HUNGER: $5,000 · OtherBRIGHTEN HAITI: $5,000 · OtherALAMEDA COUNTY COMMUNITY FOOD BANK: $5,000 · OtherFOOD BANK OF CONTRA COSTA AND SOLANO: $5,000 · OtherCentral Texas Food Bank Inc: $5,000 · OtherSECOND HARVEST OF SILICON VALLEY: $5,000 · OtherFOOTPRINT PROJECT: $5,000 · Other+2 more: $4,500 · OtherRising Sun Center for Opportunity fka RISING SUN ENERGY CENTER: $23,000 · Recreation & SportsFRIENDS OF THE RIVER FOUNDATION: $1,250 · Recreation & SportsTHE TECH INTERACTIVE: $15,000 · Arts & Culture
Philanthropy$658,859Environment$186,930Health$102,500Education$100,000Other$108,000Recreation & Sports$24,250Arts & Culture$15,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetBRIGHT FUNDS FOUNDATION: $658,859 over 6y, 0.8% of budgetWE CARE SOLAR: $102,500 over 3y, 0.9% of budgetTHRIVE SCHOLARS: $100,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetSOLAR ENERGY INTERNATIONAL: $50,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetCEC STUYVESANT COVE INC: $41,250 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetRising Sun Center for Opportunity fka RISING SUN ENERGY CENTER: $23,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTHE TECH INTERACTIVE: $15,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetINTERSECTIONAL ENVIRONMENTALIST: $8,000 over 1y, 2.7% of budgetFOOD BANK OF CONTRA COSTA AND SOLANO: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCentral Texas Food Bank Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFOOTPRINT PROJECT: $5,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetEarth Island Institute Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetALAMEDA COUNTY COMMUNITY FOOD BANK: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSECOND HARVEST OF SILICON VALLEY: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetEast Bay Bicycle Coalition DBA Bike East Bay: $2,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE RIVER FOUNDATION: $1,250 over 1y, 0.2% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

ImpactassetsincMarin Community Found…Vanguard Charitable E…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Donor Advised Charita…Amazonsmile Foundation
ImpactassetsincMD14.1× affinity5 shared granteesties to 6 of 6Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Impactassetsinc · Marin Community Foundation · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Amazonsmile Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization Sunpower Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Sunpower Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%4%8%11%15%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–15%
    typical government reliance, FY20–25
    How this is measured
    Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
    05Through Plinth

    Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

    How do I get to Sunpower Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Sunpower Foundation through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

    Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

    On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 22 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

    How this is measured
    Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

    Generated from the IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Sunpower’s filings →

    More from the funding graph

    The unnamed billions
    grants reported with no recipient in the public record
    The regranting layer
    51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
    The DAF merry-go-round
    $9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
    The endowment market
    who holds foundation money, and what just moved
    The camps
    funders cluster by geography, not ideology
    By state
    where grant money is based, and what stays home