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Other Scientific Research Areas

Open Philanthropy takes an opportunistic approach to its science giving. We support the most promising projects we find, including those that do not fit clearly into our other thematic areas within science. We also support scientific research that furthers other Open Philanthropy focuses, such as farm animal welfare. It is possible some of these miscellaneous grants will grow into their own thematic areas over time.

Other Scientific Research Areas is one of six thematic areas within Scientific Research.

Our Work

Press 4/2019
Behold the Beefless ‘Impossible Whopper’
from The New York Times

Burger King is introducing a Whopper made with a vegetarian patty from the start-up Impossible Foods, which Open Philanthropy has invested in. The deal is a big step toward the mainstream for start-ups trying to mimic and replace meat.

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Grant 6/2020
Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research — Plant Protein Optimization Research
$250,000

Open Philanthropy recommended a grant over three years to the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR) to support research on optimizing plant protein for use in plant-based meat.

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Grant 4/2020
Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research — Research on Drought-Tolerant Rice
$97,500

Open Philanthropy recommended a grant over three years to support work on CRISPR modifications to increase drought tolerance in Indian rice, a project led by Professor Brian Staskawicz at UC Berkeley.

Grant 5/2020
Penn State University — Research on Emergency Food Resilience (Charles Anderson) (2020)
$3,064,660

Open Philanthropy recommended a grant to Penn State University to support research led by Professor Charles T. Anderson and colleagues on the production of food from unconventional sources following a global catastrophe, such as an all-out nuclear war, large asteroid strike, or supervolcano eruption.

Grant 6/2019
Penn State University — Emergency Food Research (Charles Anderson)
$109,063

The Open Philanthropy Project recommended this grant to Penn State University to support Professor Charles Anderson’s research on production of food from unconventional sources in a situation of low global insolation.

Grant 10/2018
UC Berkeley — Research on Drought-Tolerant Rice (Brian Staskawicz)
$200,000

The Open Philanthropy Project recommended a grant of $200,000 over three years to UC Berkeley to support Professor Brian Staskawicz’s work on CRISPR modifications to increase drought tolerance in Indian rice.

Press 5/2018
This startup wants to help the planet with meatless burgers
from CNN

A California startup is trying to persuade consumers to bite into burger patties that don’t contain any meat. The Impossible Burger is made with ingredients including wheat, potatoes and coconut oil. Open Philanthropy has invested in the company.

Grant 12/2016
UC Berkeley — Plant Pathology Workshop (Brian Staskawicz)
$63,000

The workshop was intended to identify and discuss specific research topics in plant pathology related to increasing crop disease tolerance and/or resistance, with the goal of improving the welfare of small farmers in the developing world.

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