NRMA Insurance has doled out its first batch of $100,000 Help Fund grants to DNA Energy, FloodMapp, GeoNadir, Rainstick, and VALAI.
The initiative, developed with climate-tech network Climate Salad, is part of a broader $1 million first-year commitment. Also in the program are includes leadership scholarships and support for community-led resilience projects.
NRMA Insurance CEO Julie Batch said supporting climate startups made sense given the intensification of extreme weather events in Australia.
“As a nation we must collaborate and innovate to build climate resilience and protect communities,” she said.
“Emerging technology is proving to be a powerful tool in this effort. Australia is home to world-class talent at the forefront of climate innovation. Through our Help Fund, we’re proud to support these five inspiring changemakers as they work to safeguard our future.”
The grants target pilots that can scale from local deployments to having national effects.
Climate Salad CEO Mick Liubinskas said Australia’s exposure to the effects of climate change was extreme.
“This has led to the development of unique insights into resilience and has been the catalyst for the development of world leading technology in this country,” he said.
“Despite this, we have underinvested in the implementation of these technologies to help communities adapt, withstand and recover from extreme weather.
Help Fund is launching while Australia’s first National Climate Risk Assessment warns of escalating threats over coming decades.
More intense heatwaves, worsening droughts, greater coastal flooding risk — just general climate doom, really.
Those findings underline the push for adaptation alongside emissions cuts. And private capital naturally plays a role.
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