The Global Climate and Energy Project (GCEP) and its sponsors have worked together to create a project selection process that ensures funded projects are in line with the goals of GCEP as an academic research institution at Stanford University.

First, GCEP performs a technical assessment of a research area and then releases a Request For Proposals (RFP) to selected institutions. This happens at a rate of about two RFPs per year. Eligible institutions include Stanford University and external institutions that have been identified by GCEP staff as having particular expertise and capability in a specific area. Unsolicited proposals will not be considered for funding.

Proposals received in response to an RFP go through the three-step selection process illustrated in the following figure:

At the initial stage of the selection process, GCEP distributes the proposals to an independent panel of technical experts for a first-round review. For each proposal three to four peer reviewers are selected by the GCEP staff from a list that includes qualified experts provided by the proposals' Principal Investigators. The reviewers are asked to evaluate the scientific quality of the proposed research and its relevance with respect to GCEP's objectives.

The proposals and the reviews from the first panel are then simultaneously forwarded to two distinct expert groups for the second stage of the selection process.

One group is a second independent panel, which is comprised of several distinguished experts in overall energy technologies and climate change. This panel is asked to evaluate each proposal and to assess the potential impact of the proposed research projects on the mitigation of greenhouse effects in the atmosphere. Members of this second expert panel are chosen by GCEP staff. Reviewers of both independent panels cannot be affiliated with Stanford University or the sponsor companies.

In parallel, GCEP takes advantage of the expertise of the Research and Development teams of the sponsor companies by having a group of technical experts from the sponsor companies review the proposals.

The reviews performed by the three expert groups described above are finally collected and studied by GCEP staff. On the basis of these reviews and the conclusions of its technical assessment, GCEP formulates a set of funding recommendations which is then submitted to the sponsor management committee for approval.