The Tides Approach

Challenging the Status Quo

Our Vision
A world of shared prosperity and social justice, founded on equality and human rights, a sustainable environment, healthy individuals and communities, and quality education.

Our Mission
Tides accelerates the pace of social change, working with innovative partners to solve society's toughest problems.

Our Approach
We believe that to achieve shared prosperity and social justice, we must take a collaborative, bold approach to the work.

We cross boundaries and link sectors, communities and cultures

We are silo-busters. Long-lasting social change requires systemic thinking, joint investment in outcomes, and cross-sector approaches.

We act with empathy and respect

We are realistic about what we don't know, and always open to new points of view. Respectful dialogue can lead to new innovations.

We engage with those whose lives are most affected

Community voices are at the core of our work. Marginalized communities and those closest to the problems we aim to fix are key partners in finding and implementing solutions.

We embrace risk

We're not afraid of the untested. We take smart risks as we adapt to a constantly changing world and rise to the increasingly complex challenges of today.

We prioritize ideas that scale

Tides has decades of insight, which we leverage in order to find, fund and support ideas with the most potential for substantial positive impact.

We take a comprehensive approach toward investing for impact.

Today’s challenges require diverse models and tools to drive change.

Philanthropy, entrepreneurship, impact investing, and advocacy cannot be siloed if we are to actually solve today’s challenges. We push the boundaries with every dollar and idea, looking for ways to compound impact using every tool at our disposal. For decades, we’ve been innovating in how we invest for impact, looking across sectors, asset classes, and investment types for social and environmental impact.

Tides made 3600 grants in the US and globally in 2017, representing

$235.5M for social change

Grant totals in 2017 by issue area:

$51M Equality and Human Rights
$50.5M Quality Education
$19M Economic Development
$97M Healthy Individuals and Communities
$18M Sustainable Environment

Explore our global grants

In 2017, Tides received and managed

$150M+ for support of 150+ social ventures

Explore our social ventures

Tides maintains a 100% impact portfolio, with

$300M+ in impact investments and socially responsible portfolios

Our impact investing approach

Read about our collaborations

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Center for Care Innovations

Our partnership with CCI has encouraged us to push the boundaries of what’s possible, both within our own organization and within the community healthcare field as a whole.

FRIDA Young Feminist Fund

Working side-by-side with Tides, FRIDA can trust that its collective action fund and grantmaking are in the best possible hands, allowing its team to focus on identifying and amplifying the most promising voices in young feminist organizing.

Californians for Safety and Justice

With Tides as a partner and fiscal sponsor, Californians for Safety and Justice built a powerful coalition focused on reforming mass incarceration practices across the state.

Pledge 1%

Pledge 1% demonstrates the depth and breadth of Tides’ commitment to corporate philanthropy. The expanding network of companies that dedicate their time and assets in service of social impact is transforming a trend into a movement, and Tides is deeply invested in the effort.

Tikva Grassroots Empowerment Fund

With Tides’ efficient systems and dedicated staff at the ready, Tikva can function with the vision and reach of a full-fledged foundation without the accompanying administrative burden.

Equality Without Borders Fund

EWB came together to advance LGBTI equality, including relationship recognition, decriminalization, and gender identity protections.

Working with Tides allows us to keep our attention where it should be — on the long-term moving of hearts, minds, and policy for lasting change and greater opportunity — and gives us the support to take bold steps forward, whether into a new and larger office or through an ambitious new strategy we want to explore. Their support and advice is crucial to our efficiency and effectiveness.
Jessica Wells-Hasan Director of Development, The Opportunity Agenda

For Corporate Partners

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For Social Change Leaders

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For Foundations

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