For William Blair client Michael Cushing, philanthropy didn’t begin with a formal strategy; it began with an experience and personal interest.
“My first trip out of college was to the Amazon rainforest on an environmental expedition,” Cushing said. “I always had a pull toward the Amazon, and it resulted in my very first donation to the Amazon Research & Conservation Collaborative.”
That early experience stayed with him, and over time, it evolved into a broader approach to giving—one shaped by a long career in business and, more recently, time spent in venture capital.
Balancing Infrastructure Needs With Environmental Impact
For more than two decades, Cushing built his career in industrial development, where sustainability considerations were part of everyday decision-making.
A carbon footprint is the amount of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide and methane, released into the atmosphere. Using raw materials, shipping, and construction contribute to the global carbon footprint.
Leading teams in that industry meant balancing development needs with environmental considerations. Cushing explained that his company implemented methods to reduce its footprint, including state-of-the-art conservation methods in architecture and engineering.
“We established several environmental standards in companies I led, from low-emission diesel equipment to incorporating solar design to low-water-consumption landscape design,” Cushing said.
Venturing Into Promising Technologies
That practical, forward-looking mindset shapes how Cushing approaches philanthropy. While championing near-term goals remains important, he’s become increasingly focused on opportunities that generate new ideas to improve current technologies.
Of particular interest is venture philanthropy, which applies venture capital principles—high engagement, long-term funding, and strategic capacity building—to social causes, prioritizing social impact over financial return. It acts as a partnership between donor and nonprofit, often focusing on organizational capacity and scalability to achieve sustainable, systemic social change.
Supporting an organization like Evergreen helps kick-start companies developing emerging technologies to meet future climate needs.
MICHAEL CUSHING, William Blair Client
Connecting innovators with capital, investors, and corporate partners, Evergreen Climate Innovations plays a key role in bringing new climate technology ideas to market. Examples of technologies supported by Evergreen include the world’s first on-demand, tankless water heaters; removal of heavy metals from wastewater; development of low-cost, non-toxic energy storage; and more.
Over the last decade, it has catalyzed more than $561 million in follow-on funding, creating nearly 950 jobs, and backed a diverse group of founders, with almost 60% identifying as female or minority.
For Cushing, that investment model is an example of a different thought process regarding how philanthropic capital can potentially be used to see dramatic benefits.
“A partnership where philanthropic money is used to seed for-profit companies is unique,” Cushing said.
What resonated most to him is the ability to fund innovation at an early stage, before many of these ideas have access to capital.
"Supporting an organization like Evergreen helps kick-start companies developing emerging technologies to meet future climate needs,” Cushing said.
To him, this approach is complementary to, rather than a replacement for, more traditional philanthropy. His family foundation continues to support causes that focus on more emergent issues, but with an emphasis on identifying opportunities that can scale.
Balancing Near-Term Support With Long-Term Solutions
That framework, pairing near-term support with longer-term investments, is central to how Cushing is thinking about his family foundation.
We’re still seeing emissions from fossil fuels continue to break records. This necessitates further research for undiscovered technologies…
MICHAEL CUSHING, William Blair Client
His growing involvement in venture capital has also shaped that perspective, giving him a firsthand look at how quickly new ideas can take shape with the right support.
“We’re still seeing emissions from fossil fuels continue to break records,” Cushing said. “This necessitates further research for undiscovered technologies that are additive to the growing area of the cleaner energy production methods we currently use.”
That tension reinforces his belief in continued investment in innovation, as well as the importance of using different types of capital to sponsor it.
In his view, both nonprofit and for-profit models have a role to play.
“Some of the greatest ideas come from people who aren’t primarily motivated by capital but can work more effectively when they have the right resources behind them,” Cushing said.
At the same time, he emphasized the continuing importance of the private sector.
“There’s often more breakthroughs that can happen in the for-profit world because market incentives help drive progress,” Cushing said.
Creating a Long-Term Approach to Impact
Bridging those two worlds—philanthropic capital and market-driven innovation—is an approach Cushing plans to continue building on. Under a venture philanthropy model, any returns generated through venture investments are directed back into the charity supported, or, in the future, into his family foundation for humanitarian- and climate-related efforts.
As the foundation evolves, Cushing’s goal is to maintain that mindset: respond to near-term demands while also financing ideas that could have potential impact over time.
He also credited William Blair’s Steve Jesanis, partner and wealth advisor, and Laura Coy, partner and head of philanthropy and sustainability, with helping him create an innovative and values-driven approach to connect his family foundation with aligned organizations.
That plan helps capture what Cushing is trying to build through his family foundation’s work—not just a giving program, but a more deliberate, long-term approach to impact.