Lara Pierpoint Talks Trellis Climate and Catalytic Funding on the Zenergy Podcast
Lara Pierpoint, Managing Director of Trellis Climate, joined Karan Takhar on the Zenergy Podcast to discuss Trellis Climate and how entrepreneurs and philanthropists are adapting to the evolving political and funding landscape.
The conversation began with Karan asking Lara about the origins of Trellis Climate. Lara explained that she and Sarah Kearney, Executive Director of Prime Coalition, first connected through the MIT ecosystem, where they bonded over their shared passion for climate solutions. Over the years, they developed a strong foundation of mutual respect, trust, and aligned vision, which ultimately led them to realize they could create a greater impact by merging their respective nonprofits. In 2023, Actuate Climate, where Lara served as Co-CEO and Founding Member, officially merged with Prime Coalition to form Trellis Climate. Originally called Early Climate Infrastructure (ECI), this impact-first catalytic program was established within Prime Coalition to enable novel climate infrastructure solutions to achieve commercial scale at speed.
Lara discussed the commercialization capital gap many climate-tech companies encounter and explained how Trellis Climate provides flexible catalytic capital to early-stage technologies often overlooked by traditional investors. She provided examples of the types of companies assessed by Trellis and outlined the three main criteria used by Prime’s programs, including Trellis, to evaluate opportunities: Impact, Additionality, and Bridge to Somewhere.
The conversation also explored how Trellis fits into the broader financial ecosystem and supports entrepreneurs navigating today’s increasingly uncertain political and funding landscape. With federal support becoming more unpredictable, Lara highlighted the resourcefulness of founders in diversifying their capital stacks and the evolving role of philanthropy in helping address critical funding gaps.
To hear the full conversation, head over to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube.
