Bellona’s sources of income 

The Foundation has over many years developed several different income streams and revenue models that together finance our activities. Our revenues come mainly from philanthropy, project funding, the cooperation programme with the business sector, and a modest share of public operating grants. 

Project support and grants 

Bellona has for many years worked closely with major international philanthropic organisations, such as the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) and the ClimateWorks Foundation. We also receive project funding from European and Norwegian actors, such as the European Climate Foundation (ECF), the EU’s Horizon programme, the Research Council of Norway and the Norwegian Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority. 

The funds go to defined objectives and outputs and are mostly multi-year. This form of income constitutes all revenues for Bellona Europa, Bellona Deutschland and ETC. It also covers a significant part of costs in Oslo.  

Project support and grant support make up approx. 63% of our total revenue (figures for 2021). 

Read more about our philanthropic supporters and institutional donors here

Cooperation programme with the business sector 

Bellona’s cooperation programme was established in 1998 to develop, demonstrate and implement climate and environmental solutions through dialogue and cooperation between business and civil society. The cooperation programme includes more than 30 partners who contribute financial support, ideas and data, as well as experience with which instruments, regulations and mechanisms that work or not. The partners also contribute project resources for Bellona’s work and agreements can be either bilateral or multi-lateral. The programme is managed by Bellona’s Oslo office.  

Revenues from the cooperation program constitute approx. 25% of our total revenues (2021 figures) and all revenues today go to the work in Oslo.  

Read more about our cooperation programme and partners here

Smaller revenue streams 

Government support 

Bellona receives support through the national scheme for operating grants to “voluntary environmental organisations and charitable environmental foundations”. Most environmental organisations in Norway receive operating grants through this scheme, which is allocated by the Parliament and managed by the Ministry of Climate and Environment.  

Revenues from the basic support constitute approx. 3% of our total revenue (2021 figures) and goes to administrative operations at the office in Oslo. 

VAT compensation scheme 

Bellona receives funds through the Norwegian VAT compensation scheme. The scheme is managed by the Norwegian Gaming and Foundation Authority. The scheme is intended to partially reimburse NGOs which are outside the VAT scheme, for VAT-related costs. The purpose of the programme is to “promote voluntary activity by compensating for VAT costs incurred by NGOs in connection with the purchase of goods and services”   

Revenue from the VAT compensation scheme accounts for approx. 3% of our total revenue (2021 figures) 

Logo advertising 

Bellona’s history of logo advertising started in the 1990s when Bellona financed its operations largely through publishing its own environmental magazine “Bellona Magasin”. Revenue was generated by offering businesses to purchase logo adverts in the magazine as a way of supporting the foundation’s work. When the magazine stopped publishing in 1999, the same revenue model was continued on Bellona Norway’s website.  

Logo advertising is based on single-year agreements, and the amounts usually vary between NOK 5,000 and 100,000. Apart from logo exposure on www.bellona.no, there are no benefits associated with these advertisements and no requirements on the Bellona Foundation. There are normally 75 advertising partners on a yearly basis.  

Revenue through supporting ads accounts for approximately 3% of our total revenue (2021 figures).   

Support membership 

Since the organisation’s inception, Bellona has received support from individuals who want to contribute to Bellona’s work. In addition, throughout the year we receive gifts and contributions to support our work from individuals. This income is a modest, but very valuable contribution to the work we do which is difficult to fund through grants and partnerships, such as anti-shipbreaking, preserving the Arctic and the fight to end fossil fuels.    

The income from support members and gifts makes up about 3% of our total revenue (2021 figures).