To tackle COVID-19, Tides is harnessing the power of philanthropic giving and collective action to catalyze support where it’s needed most. From the Stronger Together Fund to new philanthropic partnerships including Project N95 and #StopTheSpread, we’re approaching this pandemic the most impactful way: together. Please join us and consider supporting our efforts to ensure we can save and protect as many lives as possible during these unprecedented times. Read more here »

Climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our time, and investing in the health of our planet has never been more important. At Tides, we’re proud to have mobilized $11M in impact investments focused on the environment, and we don’t intend to stop there. Read more from Tides’ Director of Investments, Dhaval Patel, and Philanthropic Advisor, Georgie Rubens, about how Tides is working to promote a sustainable tomorrow, one investment at a time.

We’re excited to announce Tides’s WE LEAD campaign kicking off this month — and on the 50th anniversary of Earth Day! WE LEAD, or the Women’s Environmental Leadership Fund, focuses on frontline women leaders in the fight against climate change. The campaign prioritizes investments in women who are heading up the effective, transformative fight to stabilize our planet and who are, historically, most overlooked by philanthropy. Learn more about our approach to ensuring that these voices are heard and that their impact is felt.

Tides is proud to partner with Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees (GCIR) to host their California Immigrant Resilience Fund. GCIR seeks to raise $50M to provide direct cash assistance to undocumented immigrant Californians affected by the COVID-19 pandemic who are excluded from federal relief and who are ineligible for state safety-net programs. The Fund is part of a public-private partnership with Governor Newsom, who launched the nation's first $75M state-financed immigrant relief fund for a combined $125M in support. 

More than two million Californians are undocumented. They and their families are among the most vulnerable to harm due to the coronavirus — in particular while thousands of these migrants combat the crisis as essential frontline workers in healthcare, food and grocery supply chains, and sanitation roles. This Fund will provide both short-term individual support and long-term infrastructure rebuilding to ensure an equitable future for all migrants.

Tides is grateful for the opportunity to move these critical resources to the undocumented Californians hit hardest. Learn more about the Fund and donate now.

As the impact of COVID-19 on the entire social change sector sets in, one thing is becoming painfully clear: the sector is ill-equipped to handle a disruption of this nature and scale. Particularly, many nonprofits are not prepared to leverage technology to enable remote working, secure their data and continue to deliver their vital services in communities across the globe. In the past two years, our partner Okta, through the Okta for Good Fund at Tides, has been addressing this very issue head-on, supporting ecosystem players who are making the digital transformation of the nonprofit sector a reality. We are thrilled to share the landmark announcement at Oktane20 about Okta’s $10 million commitment to invest in nonprofits working at the intersection of social good and technology.

Tides’ Real Estate Team is excited to welcome back The Nonprofit Center Network (NCN) as a fiscally-sponsored partner. NCN is a community of 150+ members who operate mission-driven shared spaces and shared services throughout North America. As Tides operates two collaborative workspaces, one in San Francisco and another in New York, this new partnership is a great opportunity to collaborate on growing the network and building the capacity of nonprofit centers.

In response to COVID-19, NCN has launched a series of webinars focused on supporting nonprofit center operators as well as their communities as they weather the pandemic. Topics include managing expenses while buildings sit empty, working with nonprofit tenants that are financially impacted and supporting tenant communities through virtual connection.

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI’s) provide financing for communities left behind by the mainstream financial system. With more than 1,000 CDFI’s in all 50 states managing $185 billion in loans and investments, these institutions provide a powerful safety net. Tides, along with Pacific Community Ventures and 15 other financial organizations, are asking supporters of CDFI’s to adopt key practices to be good partners with communities most at risk right now. Read the letter to find out more and to learn what you can do.

While a crisis brings out the best of humanity, it can also bring out fear and hate. This is why Tides stands alongside 365 groups and individuals in the philanthropic sector against anti-Asian violence happening during the pandemic. Tides urges donors and grantmakers to include Asian Americans in providing responsive funds that are equitable for institutions, and to speak out when prejudice is directed against Asian Americans. If you’re a Tides partner, consider reaching out to your advisor to learn what you can do to take action and get involved.

As COVID-19 has spread across the country, only 15 states have been compelled to postpone primaries. This has compounded the impact of the virus on Black and Brown communities. For instance, Kira Lerner reported in The Appeal in early April: “Wisconsin’s Black residents, who are already disproportionately impacted by the state’s suppressive voter ID law and voter purges, have also been hit harder by the coronavirus. The state is 6.7 percent Black, but 40 percent of the people who have died from COVID-19 in Wisconsin have been Black residents of Milwaukee.”

We must ensure that exercising our right to vote is a fair, just, and inclusive process. Since January 2020, Tides’ Healthy Democracy Fund and related Tides strategies have facilitated nearly $5M for non-partisan voter registration and voter protection strategies. If you’re interested in how you can help fund voter outreach efforts and increase civic engagement, please contact [email protected].

• The effects of COVID-19 -- as well as pollution -- have a greater impact on minorities. A town in Texas once known as the “cancer belt”, is a poignant example of how pollution plus COVID-19 is a toxic mix and is trapping some minority communities in an impossible corner.
• As organizations are moving quickly to respond to the COVID-19 public health crisis, Lori Villarosa, Founder & Executive Director of Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity, a Tides partner, reminds us that paying attention to racial justice is even more important. Villarosa gives practical examples of what to consider to avoid furthering institutionalized and systemic racial biases and racism in our collective COVID-19 response.
• A recent New York Times opinion piece writes that over 2 million prisoners and 400,000 corrections officers are living and working in close quarters every day, during a time when social distancing is the norm. Learn what’s happening in jails across America and how you can support through Tides’ partner Community Justice Exchange’s National Bail Fund Network.
• “As we knew then, and know today, a virus does not discriminate against an ethnic group or region of the world, and neither should we” says John Cunningham, Executive Director of Tides partner National AIDS Memorial Grove, in his San Francisco Chronicle opinion article. Cunningham reminds us that the AIDS epidemic had its first confirmed case in San Francisco 39 years ago this month and relays his experience during that difficult time to share the hopes, fears and questions that we are facing today as well as lessons learned.
• Larry Brilliant is the Board Chair of Tides partner, Ending Pandemics. An epidemiologist who worked on eradicating smallpox in the 1970s, he shares insight into the COVID-19 pandemic. Read his article in Wired magazine.