Dates for Momentum 2011 will be determined in fall 2010. Please check back at that time for more information.

Tides has put on the Momentum Conference four times since 2005, and we look forward to bringing activists and donors together again for this inspiring event.

“As Founder and CEO, Drummond leaves a legacy of innovation and capacity to a sector that had historically been fragmented and overlooked,” said Melissa Bradley Burns, Tides Board Chair. “As one of the first ‘social entrepreneurs,’ Drummond has evolved Tides from a great idea to one of the top 100 social sector organizations in the United States.

Bradley continues, “The board is pleased that Drummond remains committed to leading Tides until a new CEO is retained, and the board is also excited about this new opportunity for change and looks forward to working with the senior staff to ensure a successful transition. We expect the change to provide extraordinary opportunities for the organization to reach new levels of excellence.”

While ideas and structural innovations are part of Pike’s legacy, the deep commitment to mission and purpose will most likely be the lasting element to which future leaders of Tides will turn. After his successor is named, the Tides Board hopes that Drummond will agree to a continuing role supporting the organization.

To hear more from Drummond on his transition, read his blog.

Fair response, of course, but also a fair question.  In fact one could see the influence of the TED aesthetic at play at the Momentum conference-- especially in the theatrical staging of presentations, and the relatively sophisticated use of multimedia enhancements... and indeed, even in the clean visual branding of the conference itself.

But this was no cheap TED imitation.

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/10/notes-on-how-to-design-a-conference

photo: wader/ BY-NC-SA

Prom Night in Mississippi was screened on Tuesday at the Momentum Conference in San Francisco. It’s a good movie because it is so thought-provoking. After you see it, you and your friends will definitely still be talking about it.

The documentary focused on the town of Charleston, Mississippi. In 1954 Charleston High School was asked to desegregate, but school officials didn't take immediate action. Instead, it took the school another 16 years to open its doors to black students. Years later, there was still one tradition they weren’t willing to change-- prom. The school continued to hold two separate proms, one for black students and another for white students.

Read more at http://www.youthradio.org/news/prom-night-in-mississippi

Paula Goldman

In the past several decades, we have seen a tide-shift in the way we think about social change. It is a shift towards recognizing the interconnectedness of issues; a paradigm in which words 'resistance' and 'domination' are being trumped by words like 'effectiveness' and 'results.' It is a shift away from seeing any one individual or group as 'the enemy,' and towards seeing every single individual and group as part of the solution -- a critical part of the solution at that.

Read more at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paula-goldman/sustainability-there-is-n_b_280931.html

Watched President Obama's speech with a progressive all-star team of foundations, funders and activist at the Tides Foundation's "Momentum '09" conference in San Francisco. Yeah, this was the home team. Bottom line: They gave The O a standing O at the end. With some reservations.

This crew wants a single-payer health plan. So when Obama essentially took that off the table two minutes into his speech by saying it "would represent a radical shift that would disrupt the health care most people currently have," the Tidesters shifted in their seats.

Read more at http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?blogid=14&entry_id=47237#ixzz0RI7lqkUY

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/10/crowdsourced-journalism

Fact: There are roughly 20 million slaves in the world today.

Fact: The estimated cost of finally wiping slavery off the face of the earth: 10.8 billion dollars, the equivalent of Intel's 4th quarter profits.

http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/09/snippet-kevin-bales-on-the-cost-of-ending-modern-slavery

There was lots of buzz about the Van Jones resignation yesterday at the Tides Foundation Momentum Conference, but one speaker took the issue head on, and that was Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, Jones' successor at Green for All, the organization he founded to promote quality training and green jobs at the grassroots level. Ellis-Lamkins had a lot to say, and she is not shy.

Read more at http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/142516/the_buzz_on_the_van_jones_resignation_at_momentum/

If there is any one person whose journey is representative of these kinds of shifts, it may well be Adam Werbach, who I had a chance to chat with today before he gave a talk in the Carbon Plenary here at the Momentum Conference.

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/08/emblematic-of-the-tide-shift

The most important words that I want to focus on are those that change-agents identify with: those words that define who you are.  If somebody asks you at a cocktail party "what do you do?", what title do you answer with?  Am I an activist or a social entrepreneur?  Identity is one of the principal motivators behind people in general and especially in civil society, philanthropy and volunteerism so this is not just a matter of semantics. Understanding the decline of the title 'activist' and the rise of the 'social entrepreneur' unearths what is happening around us today and gives us a glimpse of what the social-change arena will look like tomorrow.

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/08/the-fog-of-activism

Anthony Wright (ED of Health Access California), Crystal Hayling (ED of Blue Shield of California Foundation) and Roger Hickey (Co-director of Campaign for America's Future) bravely started Tuesday off at 8am by explaining the heathcare policy on the table and being debated in Congress today.

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/08/healthcare-reform-whats-the-policy-proposed-today

(1) It's not about Healthcare reform; it's about the government's role in our lives. 

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/08/4-points-on-healthcare

From: Allison Fine, author, consultant to the non-profit and social change world, and evangelist of social media. 

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/07/snippet-alison-fine-on-networking-social-change

I have to admit, there’s a part of me that’s reluctant to leave behind all the barbeques and picnics to go to a conference of all things.

But this isn’t any old conference.  This is Momentum.

Read more at http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/the-edge/archive/2009/09/07/welcome-to-momentum

Here’s a quick snapshot from the Tides Momentum 2009 conference in San Francisco. Alexis McGill Johnson led a conversation between Rep. Donna Edwards & Ben Jealous of the NAACP.

It was an interesting chat. Johnson did a great job introducing tough subjects with a touch of humor.

Read more at http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2009/09/black-leaders-at-tides-momentum/

Our country and our still new president are facing a political crisis moment. Stacked against us are fundamental issues – health care, climate change, war, and a still-floundering economy. How each and all of these issues are resolved (or not) may well determine the success of Obama's presidency.

With health reform and the so-called “public option” reportedly on life support (although some activists strongly disagree with that prognosis), and the increasingly unpopular Afghanistan war on the verge of yet another escalation, many progressives and Democrats are frustrated, angry, or simply scratching their heads in disbelief. The Obama they thought they elected is not meeting their expectations.

Read the full article on Alternet.

“I am honored to be recognized alongside Artemio and Salvador, two individuals I work with and respect,” stated Ms. Salas. “I am an immigrant from Mexico with immigrant parents. Having lived in this country without documents and then having a chance to legalize my status, I know that lives can be transformed for the better with a serious overhaul to our immigration laws.”

Tides' JBL Awards honor policy activists and advocates by recognizing work that demonstrates innovative approaches to social change and a deep commitment to the public interest. The honorees will be present for the Tides.' Momentum 2009 Leadership Conference at the W Hotel in San Francisco on September 7. Each of them will receive a cash award of $7,500 for their personal use.
 

Ms. Salas will donate her monetary award to CHIRLA’s student programs. “I am donating those funds to CHIRLA’s Wise Up! project to help provide scholarships for immigrant students so that they can finish high school and go to college. We are also starting up the California DREAM Scholarship and I hope others will be encouraged to go to our website and contribute to the future of California and this nation.”

In addition to being CHIRLA’s executive director, Angelica Salas is a founding member of the Fair Immigrant Rights Movement and a member of the management team with the Reform Immigration for America Campaign. She has played a leadership role in the formation of statewide and local multi-sector coalitions working on immigration issues and workers rights. She is the daughter of immigrant parents of Mexican origin.

José Artemio Arreola is a community leader and labor activist in Chicago Illinois. He is the founder of the Federation of Michoacan’s Clubs in Illinois and of Casa Michoacán. Salvador Reza is the coordinator of Tonatierra Macehualli Day Labor Project in Arizona. He teaches ESL classes at Tonatierra and is a weekly columnist for Prensa Hispana.

The JBL Awards are named after Jane Bagley Lehman, a founder of Tides and Chair of the Tides Board until her death in 1988. This is the 19th year the awards have been given by the Tides Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1976 to actively promote change toward broadly shared economic opportunity, robust democratic processes and the opportunity to live in a healthy and sustainable environment where human rights are preserved and protected.

For more info: Please visit the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA) web site.

SAN FRANCISCO — September 1, 2009 — Tides (www.tides.org) has awarded a total of $22,500 to the 2009 recipients of the JBL Awards for Excellence in Public Advocacy. Tides' JBL Awards honor policy activists and advocates by recognizing work that demonstrates innovative approaches to social change and a deep commitment to the public interest.

This year's three JBL Awards recipients — Jose Artemio Arreola, Salvador Reza, and Angelica Salas — have tirelessly advocated and organized for comprehensive immigration reform, worked to counter anti-immigrant policies and groups, and helped grassroots voices shape and influence the immigration debate at the national level. They are being honored with awards of $7,500 each on Monday, September 7 at Tides' Momentum 2009 Leadership Conference at the W Hotel in San Francisco.

Tides is further spotlighting immigration issues at its Momentum conference, with National Immigration Forum Executive Director Ali Noorani presenting on immigration reform as part of Momentum's "Rights" plenary on Wednesday, September 9 at 9:30am.
"Our immigration system is still in dire need of reform and continues to violate rights and perpetrate injustice. Fortunately, activist leaders like Jose Artemio Arreola, Salvador Reza, and Angelica Salas are working tirelessly to advance just, meaningful and comprehensive reform," said Drummond Pike, CEO and founder, Tides. "Tides is proud to honor them with this year's JBL Awards and to support their efforts."

The 2009 JBL Award Winners are:

• Jose Artemio Arreola — a community leader and labor activist, Arreola currently manages the "Reform Immigration for America" campaign in Illinois and is Political Director for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. A founders of the Federation of Michoacán's Clubs in Illinois, and of Casa Michoacán, he was also the co-founder and main organizer of the March 10th Movement that brought more than 500,000 people to the streets of Chicago for the historic immigration demonstration and he supported efforts to organize the largest immigration rally in Los Angeles's history on March 25, 2006. Arreola also helped to re-establish May Day as a workers day by organizing marches in more than 100 cities across the U.S and, as a union labor activist at Service Employees International Union (SEIU), has participated in numerous labor contracts negotiations.

• Salvador Reza — coordinator of Tonatierra Macehualli Day Labor Project, Reza works closely with migratory workers and their families on the human rights issues of employment, entrepreneurship and education. Working with the National Day Labor Organizing Project, Reza was instrumental in bringing about the investigation of human rights violations committed by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his deputies. The campaign culminated in a congressional hearing and an ongoing investigation by the Justice Department on racial profiling and civil rights violations by Sheriff Arpaio. Reza presented testimony on the abuses to the UN Committee to Eliminate Racial Discrimination in Geneva in 2008 and also helped found Centro Macehualli, a nationally recognized day labor center managed by the laborers. He also supported taco venders in Phoenix to create Union Pochteca and negotiate sucsessfully with the city to protect their right to work. Reza teaches ESL classes at Tonatierra and is a weekly columnist for Prensa Hispana. He has received numerous local and national commendations including the Ford Foundation Leadership for a Changing World Award.

• Angelica Salas — Angelica Salas is the executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA), a membership organization of immigrant rights organizations, low wage immigrant workers and immigrant youth. She is a national leader fighting for legalization with a path to citizenship, family reunification, and the protection of civil and labor rights. She is also a founding member of the Fair Immigrant Rights Movement and Reform Immigration for America Campaign. She has played a leadership role in the formation of statewide and local multi-sector coalitions working on immigration issues and workers rights.  Among her accomplishments, Angelica helped win in-state tuition for undocumented immigrant students and established day laborer job centers that have served as a model for the entire country. She also led the effort to allow all California drivers to obtain licenses and is a leading spokesperson on federal immigration policy. Salas was also a speaker at Tides' Momentum 2008 Conference and the video of her presentation, can be viewed at: http://www.momentumconference.org/speaker-presentation/speaker/angelica-salas/presentation/fighting-for-immigration-reform.

This year marks the 19th anniversary of the JBL Awards which are named after Jane Bagley Lehman, one of the founders of Tides and Chair of the Tides Board until her death in 1988. An unconventional philanthropist, her insatiable curiosity was matched by a willingness to take risks. Jane was most intrigued by the approaches and strategies of advocates and organizers and their willingness to challenge traditional assumptions. She also cared deeply that the results of these efforts be translated into the broader area of public policy.

• More information about the JBL Awards is at: www.tidesfoundation.org/jblawards
• More information about Momentum is at: www.momentumconference.org

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About Tides
Tides actively promotes change toward broadly shared economic opportunity, robust democratic processes and the opportunity to live in a healthy and sustainable environment where human rights are preserved and protected. Tides is a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 and provides an array of services that amplifies the efforts of forward-thinking philanthropists, foundations, activists and organizations to make the world a better place. Tides Foundation, Tides Center and Tides Shared Spaces have collaborated with over 15,000 individuals and organizations that have touched millions of lives across the country and around the globe. With offices in San Francisco and New York City, Tides provides fiscal sponsorship for over 200 groups across the country, operates and supports green nonprofit centers and has granted more than $108 million in 2008 alone. For more information, visit www.tides.org.

Contact:

Deborah Schneider
PR & Company
415.277.6973
dschneider(at)prandcompany.com 

Christine Coleman
Tides
415-561-6354
ccoleman(at)tides.org

See the video What Does Torture Have to Do with Democracy?  presented by Alex Gibney at the Tides Momentum 2008 Leadership Conference.

Alex Gibney’s 2008 Oscar-winning film Taxi to the Dark Side examines the controversial death by torture of Dilawar, an Afghan taxi driver at Bagram Air Base. There is no longer any doubt that torture has been committed at Bagram Air Base and Abu Ghraib despite The Geneva Convention. Taxi to the Dark Side chronicles how the practice came to Afghanistan and Iraq from Guantanamo. It’s a chilling display of how far the U.S. Government has veered from principles of human rights and justice in the “War on Terror.”

Tides is pleased to partner with this exciting conference to bring you two sessions co-sponsored by Momentum. At these sessions, you can see Momentum 2008 presenters Lawrence Lessig, Melissa Bradley, and Ken Cook, as well as Momentum 2009 presenter Ethan Nadelmann.

We hope you will join us there. It’s not too late to register for America’s Future Now, June 1-3 in Washington, D.C.

Videos

Click here to see the videos.

At Momentum, the best new thinking provokes conversation, invites debate, and creates pathways for dynamic new relationships. Momentum is more than a conference—it’s a space for creativity and connection.

WHO

Momentum 2009 hosts a group of 300 forward-thinking activists, philanthropists and social entrepreneurs. These dynamic participants come together to be informed, surprised, and engaged.

WHEN

Monday September 7, 2009 at 4:00 pm, through Wednesday night, September 9, 2009
where W San Francisco

WHY

We come together to push the envelope, challenge barriers, and focus on innovative perspectives and ideas. Speakers at Momentum 2009 will shine a spotlight on the critical issues facing our society today by inviting surprising and innovative perspectives and ideas, and illuminating actions that can lead to change.

HOW

• Plenary style presentations with theatrical quality production
• Simulcast space for bloggers and multi-taskers
• Structured opportunities for in-depth conversations with key presenters
• Entertaining and informative evening events

Please join us.

At Momentum, the best new thinking provokes conversation, invites debate, and creates pathways for dynamic new relationships. Momentum is more than a conference—it’s a space for creativity and connection.

WHO

Momentum 2009 hosts a group of 300 forward-thinking activists, philanthropists and social entrepreneurs. These dynamic participants come together to be informed, surprised, and engaged.

WHEN

Monday September 7, 2009 at 4:00 pm, through Wednesday night, September 9, 2009
where W San Francisco

WHY

We come together to push the envelope, challenge barriers, and focus on innovative perspectives and ideas. Speakers at Momentum 2009 will shine a spotlight on the critical issues facing our society today by inviting surprising and innovative perspectives and ideas, and illuminating actions that can lead to change.

HOW

• Plenary style presentations with theatrical quality production
• Simulcast space for bloggers and multi-taskers
• Structured opportunities for in-depth conversations with key presenters
• Entertaining and informative evening events

Please join us.

The LEED for Commercial Interiors is the recognized rating system for certifying high-performance green interiors that support healthier more cost and energy efficient work places and reducing environmental footprint.

By using nontoxic, recycled and sustainbable material, green building practices and continuing to support green facility practices such as the Center's recycling programs, computer area controlled HVAC systems, and green electricity sourcing, Thoreau Center New York and The Nonprofit and Philanthropy Center at 55 Exchange Place have received their LEED Commercial Interiors  (CI) Silver Certification.

Drummond was selected for his unique contributions in developing the field of grantmaking. Throughout his career, he has supported grassroots and public interest organizations through environmental and social change philanthropy. Drummond founded Tides Foundation in 1976 and pioneered the use of donor advised funds to support grassroots and public interest organizations on a national scale. Drummond’s entrepreneurial approach to promoting healthy societies also led to the creation of Tides Center, the largest fiscal sponsorship organization in nation. Through his leadership, Tides has also fostered the creation of Groundspring.org, Thoreau Center for Sustainability and Tides Canada Foundation.

“We are pleased to recognize the legacy and significant contributions of Drummond Pike to the philanthropic sector,” said Lorraine Carlson, President of the Board, Association of Fundraising Professionals, Golden Gate Chapter (AFP-GGC).  “Drummond’s vision to move away from the traditional foundation model changed philanthropy as we knew it in the seventies, and he is still challenging and changing the way that it works today. His goal of removing obstacles between people and their good intentions has grown into a impressive network of organizations providing a full spectrum of services to donors and nonprofits.”

Over the course of its 28 years, Tides Foundation has granted more than $400 million to thousands of nonprofit organizations working for positive social change. The foundation works with individual and institutional donors committed to a society based on fairness, equal justice and equally shared economic opportunities and it promotes environmental sustainability and a robust democratic process. In addition, Tides provides management and support services to more than 25 small private foundations, as well as the membership-based Threshold Foundation.

Drummond is one of seven leaders in philanthropy who will be honored during this year’s National Philanthropy Day events in the Bay Area hosted by The Association of Fundraising Professionals, Golden Gate Chapter, and Northern California Grantmakers. He was chosen for the award by unanimous agreement of a committee of nonprofit, philanthropic, and community leaders from throughout the Bay Area. The award ceremony will take place at a gala luncheon on Monday, November 15, 2004, at the San Francisco Marriott. It is hoped that the giving spirit of the awardees will inspire other individuals and organizations and spread the impact of community-giving. For more information about National Philanthropy Day, visit www.afp-ggc.org/npd/.

About Tides Foundation
Since 1976, Tides Foundation has partnered with donors and institutions by offering donor-advised funds, philanthropic advice and management services for progressive social change philanthropy. Tides Foundation is committed to strengthening community-based nonprofit organizations and the progressive movement through national and global philanthropy.

Tides Foundation is a part of The Tides Organizations, a group of nonprofit organizations that share a common vision for a healthy society—a society based on the principles of social justice, broadly shared economic opportunity, robust democratic process and sustainable environmental practices.  The Tides Organizations include Tides Foundation, Tides Center, Tides, Inc, Groundspring.org, Thoreau Center for Sustainability and Community Clinics Initiative. For more information, go to www.tides.org.

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