Tides
<p>via <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29"><i>wikipedia</i></a>:
"<b>Tides</b> is a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donor_advised_fund" title="Donor advised fund" class="mw-redirect">donor advised fund</a> that directs money to politically liberal causes. Founded in 1976 in San Francisco, Tides provides money to organizations working to advance progressive policy in the areas of the environment, health care, labor issues, immigrant rights, gay rights, women's rights and human rights.<sup id="cite_ref-rowan_1-1" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-rowan-1">[1]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-blumenthal_5-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-blumenthal-5">[5]</a></sup> Tides oversees the Tides Center, which serves as an incubator for fledgling progressive organizations.</p>
<p>
<b>History</b>
Tides was founded in 1976 by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drummond_Pike" title="Drummond Pike">Drummond Pike</a>. Jane Bagley Lehman, heir to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R.J.Reynolds_Tobacco_Company" title="R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company">R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company</a> fortune, was also involved with the founding of Tides.<sup id="cite_ref-wiley_6-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-wiley-6">[6]</a></sup> Tides was conceived as a nationally oriented community foundation, and founded out of Pike's frustration with established philanthropy's perceived neglect of progressive issues.<sup id="cite_ref-rowan_1-2" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-rowan-1">[1]</a></sup> Drummond founded a similar organization, Tides Canada, in 2000.<sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-7">[7]</a></sup>
Tides grew to become the most frequently used <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donor_advised_fund" title="Donor advised fund" class="mw-redirect">donor advised fund</a> for wealthy West Coast liberals who did not want to start their own family foundations. By 2009, Tides was responsible for allocating $75 million per year in donor money, most of which went to fund progressive political causes.<sup id="cite_ref-wiley_6-1" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-wiley-6">[6]</a></sup></p>
<h2 >Funding</h2>
<p >Organizations that began as projects of Tides include <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campaign_to_Defend_the_Constitution" title="Campaign to Defend the Constitution">Campaign to Defend the Constitution</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Education_Recruitment_Consortium" title="Higher Education Recruitment Consortium">Higher Education Recruitment Consortium</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People_for_the_American_Way" title="People for the American Way">People for the American Way</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pew_Research_Center" title="Pew Research Center">Pew Internet and American Life Project</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockridge_Institute" title="Rockridge Institute">Rockridge Institute</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Venture_Network" title="Social Venture Network">Social Venture Network</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urgent_Action_Fund" title="Urgent Action Fund" class="mw-redirect">Urgent Action Fund</a>, and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-Day%28movement%29" title="V-Day (movement)">V-Day</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-8">[8]</a></sup> The Tides website lists 130 current grantees.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-9">[9]</a></sup>
In 2000, Tides launched a program called "Bridging the Economic Divide." It focused on funding living wage campaigns and economic justice coalitions. Tides also launched the Tides Death Penalty Mobilization Fund, which supports the anti-death penalty movement. The Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence was founded with support from Tides.<sup id="cite_ref-routledge_4-1" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-routledge-4">[4]</a></sup>
In 2011, Tides received about $90 million in funding, and awarded about $96 million to various individuals and organizations.<sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-10">[10]</a></sup>
Tides has received at least $3.5 million from financier and political activist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Soros" title="George Soros">George Soros</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-11">[11]</a></sup>
From 2003 to 2012, Tides gave around $4.4 million to media advocacy organization <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_Matters_for_America" title="Media Matters for America">Media Matters for America</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-12">[12]</a></sup></p>
<h2 >The Advocacy Fund</h2>
<p >Tides is affiliated with the Advocacy Fund, a liberal lobbying group.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-13">[13]</a></sup> In the 2012 election cycle, the Advocacy Fund gave $11.5 million to 501(c)(4) organizations, including $2 million to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/League_of_Conservation_Voters" title="League of Conservation Voters">League of Conservation Voters</a>, $1.8 million to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America_Votes" title="America Votes">America Votes</a> and $1.3 million to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Center_for_Community_Change" title="Center for Community Change">Center for Community Change</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-blumenthal_5-1" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-blumenthal-5">[5]</a></sup> The Advocacy Fund has also supported the environmentally-focused groups <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bold_Nebraska" title="Bold Nebraska">Bold Nebraska</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Wildlife_Federation" title="National Wildlife Federation">National Wildlife Federation Action Fund</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_Resources_Defense_Council" title="Natural Resources Defense Council">NRDC Action Fund</a>, and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Club" title="Sierra Club">Sierra Club</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-14">[14]</a></sup>
In 2008, the Advocacy Fund contributed to campaigns opposing <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Amendment_46" title="Colorado Amendment 46">Colorado Amendment 46</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Amendment_47" title="Colorado Amendment 47">Colorado Amendment 47</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Amendment_49" title="Colorado Amendment 49">Colorado Amendment 49</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Amendment_54" title="Colorado Amendment 54">Colorado Amendment 54</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-15">[15]</a></sup> The Advocacy Fund distributed $11.8 million in grants in 2013 to groups promoting immigration reform, increased worker protections, chemical safety legal reform, and increased investment in the solar energy industry.<sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides%28organization%29#cite_note-16">[16]</a></sup> In the second quarter of 2013, the Advocacy Fund spent $2.1 million lobbying for comprehensive immigration reform.
[...]
In October 2011, Former Tides CEO Melissa L. Bradley stated in a blog post that Tides supports the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupy_Wall_Street" title="Occupy Wall Street">Occupy Wall Street</a> movement. She wrote that the movement "represents the best of American ideals and ingenuity."<sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tides_%28organization%29#cite_note-17">[17]</a></sup>"</p>
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<p class="bodytext">excerpt via <b><i>U.S. foundations against the oil sands</i></b> by Vivian Krause (Oct 14. 2010)
"[...]
Tides, and the U.S. foundations that fund it, have incredibly deep pockets. A large part of Tides’ funding comes from the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation, the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, the David & Lucile Packard Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. These are The Big Five. They give away about US$1.2-billion every year. If these foundations decide to undermine a foreign industry, they probably can.
These Big Five have poured at least US$190-million into Canada’s environmental movement over the last decade, but their American logos are nowhere to be seen. Instead, we see a pageant of Canadian icons: dogwood, herds of caribou, wild salmon, First Nations and loons. U.S. tax returns show that the David Suzuki Foundation has been paid at least US$10-million from American foundations. This hasn’t exactly been out in the open.
[...]
The Hewlett and Packard foundations in California were created by the founders of tech giant Hewlett-Packard. With assets of almost US$7-billion, Hewlett alone is one of the largest charitable foundations in the world. Since 2000, the separate Hewlett and Packard foundations have contributed US$71-million to conservation initiatives, including an effort to “reform” resource-based industries, and to fund First Nations in Canada. That included US$29-million towards the Great Bear Rainforest, US$22-million to reduce the development of fossil fuels in northern Canada, and US$14-million to support First Nations.
My research into the filings of U.S. charities active in funding activists against Canadian and Alberta energy development shows that the anti-oil sands movement is the product of American charities with unknown or certainly unclear motives. At least US$15-million has been paid by the Hewlett and other foundations since 2003, most of it in recent years, including US$3.7-million in U.S. grants paid to the Pembina Foundation, which funds the Pembina Institute of Calgary, a tar sands critic. The flow of money though the Tides group, in turn, is going to Greenpeace Canada and others.
The kayaks bobbing into Vancouver Harbour on Sunday are likely riding a sea of money from U.S. sources. If all this money isn’t enough to get Alberta to “rethink,” there’s plenty more where it came from, which means the Alberta oil industry is up against a billion-dollar gorilla. There’s nothing’s wrong with foreign funding for charitable purposes but charities should do charity and foreign funding should be out in the open."
source: <a href="http://business.financialpost.com/fp-comment/u-s-foundations-against-the-oil-sands">http://business.financialpost.com/fp-comment/u-s-foundations-against-the-oil-sands</a></p>