March 18, 2022 Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of the social media platform Reddit and venture capital firm Seven Seven Six, has announced the launch of the 776 Foundation and its first campaign, a 10-year, $20 million fellowship program focused on climate action.
According to the foundation, an annual cohort of 20 fellows will receive two-year, $100,000 fellowships and access to the Seven Seven Six network of founders, investors, and partners. The foundation is accepting applications from individuals ages 18 to 23 who will dedicate two years to their climate-focused project or idea.
“The 776 Fellowship Program will bring together a class of solution seekers who have grown up in the shadow of climate change and are driven to create change,” said fellowship program director Lissie Garvin. “Through the program, we will provide our fellows with the ideal environment to foster their ideas—whether that be developing a new climate tech startup or growing their community to organize around issues impacting climate refugees. There is endless potential to explore, and we are excited to serve as a launch pad for the next great leaders in the climate space.”
“The 776 Foundation mission is to fund builders whose work will support marginalized people,” said Ohanian, who resigned from the Reddit board of directors in 2020 to encourage greater racial diversity in the company’s governance and is married to tennis great Serena Williams. “Today, this begins with our fellowship program to arm 20 motivated young people, every year for the next decade, from around the world with the tools (and capital) to tackle the single greatest threat to our future—one that disproportionately affects marginalized communities: climate change.”