Rethink Campaigns

Is Tides Canada a client of FD Element?

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On-line records show that during 2006 and 2007, Tides Canada was a client of The Element Agency. (See below).  At some point in late 2008 or early 2009, The Element Agency was acquired by FD Element, an international P.R. agency.

According to my calculations based on Canadian tax returns, in 2009 Tides Canada paid $10,333,363 for staff and consultants. Of that, $5,588,810 was spent on professional and consulting fees.

Considering that Tides Canada is a registered charity and that the amount of money paid for consultants  is large, I believe that its fair to inquire about the services that are provided to Tides Canada by consulting firms. In particular:

 1.   What did The Element Agency do for Tides Canada during 2006 and 2007?

 2.  Does Tides Canada continue to be a client of FD Element?

Tides Canada was asked these questions by e-mail. No reply has been received.

What Motivates American Funding of First Nations in British Columbia?

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From: The National Post

Re: Haida Nation Happy To Accept Environment $$, Letter to the Editor, Feb. 25.

"Guujaaw, president of the Haida Nation, says that he is proud to receive money from U.S. environmental foundations. U.S. tax returns show that since 2003, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, based in San Francisco, has granted at least $9 million to First Nations on the north coast of British Columbia. Of that, $1.7-million was specifically for the Haida. That included $650,000 to cover court costs so that the Haida could pursue legal title over the archipelago now known as the Haida Gwaii. This money was paid to the Haida through Tides Canada and other environmental organizations (eg. EAGLE, Ecotrust and Earthlife Canada Foundation).

Guujaaw writes: "At no time did any foundation ever make any attempt to influence our strategies nor dictate a plan of action . no foundation approached us to offer money -rather, they responded to our proposals." These words are hard to reconcile with the fact that the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and Tides Canada explicitly say that they do not fund unsolicited proposals.

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$US 28 Million Paid to B.C. First Nations by Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation

Since 2003, the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation, based in San Francisco, has granted at least $28 million for First Nations on the north coast of British Columbia, tax returns and on-line records show.  

In addition to the $28 million, it is likely that a substantial portion of the total amount (> $90 million) that the Moore Foundation has granted to B.C. environmental organizations has gone to B.C. First Nations. 

Part of the  money granted by the Moore foundation was for legal action to enable the Haida to gain title over their traditional territories in what was formerly known as the Queen Charlotte Islands, now called the Haida Gwaii. At least $650,000 ($400,000 and $250,000) was specifically for the Haida to pursue title of these islands. Moore also granted $175,000 for which the stated outcome is that government-to-government negotiations for Haida Gwaii Land Use Vision are completed, protecting a significant portion of CHN’s traditional territory.

The Moore Foundation states, "EAGLE (Environmental-Aboriginal Guardianship through Law and Education) is using this grant to develop the Haida Title Case, in which British Columbia's Haida Nation is seeking a court declaration of aboriginal title. If successful, this case will establish the aboriginal right to have management authority over half of land base within the archipelago known as Haida Gwaii (also Queen Charlotte Islands).

Of all the aboriginal people in the world - including aboriginal people in the United States, one has to wonder why the Moore foundation has chosen to finance the B.C. First Nations on the north coast of B.C. - which just happens to be right smack where oil tankers export bound for Asia would need to travel.

As shown below, the stated outcome of one of Moore's grants is "... a court declaration awarding Haida aboriginal title to Haida Gwaii and its surrounding waters." The Moore Foundation refers to this as "a groundbreaking test case related to aboriginal rights and title to the lands and water of Haida Gwaii."

"The legal framework for aboriginal rights and title in Canada has the potential to have a significant impact on land and natural resource conservation in affected regions," notes the Moore Foundation. No kidding.

Links to grants to support First Nations on B.C.'s north coast, for $22 million:

B.C. First Nations Fisheries Council

• $261,929 in 2012 for First Nations Engagement in Freshwater Stewardship
  

Earthlife Canada Foundation:

• $510,000 in 2003 for Haida Gwaii Habitat Protection
• $300,000 in 2006 for Haida Gwaii Land and Resource Management Plan

Ecotrust Canada:

• $500,000 in 2003 for Wild Salmon Conservation, Heiltsuk Nation Traditional Territory
• $550,000 in 2003 Haida Gwaii Protection
• $175,000 in 2006 for Haida Gwaii Conservation – Salmon Habitat Protection

Environmental-Aboriginal Guardianship Through Education & Law (EAGLE):

• $400,000 in 2003 for the Haida Gwaii Title Case

Hartley Bay Village Council

• $324,413 in 2012 for Implementing First Nations’ marine spatial plans

Kitasoo/Xaixais Band Council

• $266,184 in 2012 for Implementing First Nations’ marine spatial plans

Nanwakolas Council:

• $1,162,974 in 2010 for the Nanwakolas Council Marine Spatial Planning

Pew Charitable Trusts

• $710,000 in 2008 for British Columbia Mining Reform
• $1,300,000 in 2011 for BC Mining Reform 2

Round River Conservation Studies:

• $600,000 in 2003 for the Taku River Wildlife Conservation Project
• $1,450,000 in 2004 for the Taku River Conservation Project
• $2,375,000 in 2008 for the Taku Watershed Conservation Project

Tides Canada Foundation:

• $277,525 in 2004 for the Transboundary Watershed Alliance
• $469,227 in 2006 for Taku Watershed Conservation – Salmon Habitat Protection
• $500,000 in 2006 for Stikine Conservation Network
• $5,842,736 in 2006 for British Columbia Salmon Conservation - Great Bear Rainforest
• $250,000 in 2007 Test Case -- Legal Framework for Aboriginal Rights and Title
• $529,629 in 2007 for Great Bear Deal Implementation/ Coast Opportunities Funds Start-up
• $2,496,506 in 2011 for the Taku Tlatsini Conservation Fund

Turning Point Initiative Society:

• $3,562,658 in 2007 for First Nations Area-Based Management
• $247,727 in 2009 for First Nations Marine Spatial Planning Leadership
• $216,338 in 2010 for Integrating First Nations' Marine Spatial Plans
• $2,404,350 in 2010 for Integrating First Nations' Marine Spatial Plans
• $576,614 in 2011 for Communications and Training for Marine Spatial Planning (for the Great Bear Rainforest Initiative)
• $314,472 in 2012 for First Nations Coastal Stewardship.

Note: In June of 2012, the Moore Foundation also granted $600,313 to Tides Canada for "Protecting Ecological Flows in BC." That's a total of $914,785 from Moore to B.C. enviro groups in June of 2012.

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"No Unsolicited Proposals Accepted," by U.S. Foundations that heavily fund ENGOs & B.C. First Nations

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In a recent op-ed in the National Post, I tried to raise my concerns about a U.S.-funded campaign to sway the B.C. Liberal party's leadership vote which recently elected Christie Clark as Premier-to-be of Premier of British Columbia. In response to my op-ed, Guujaaw, president of the Haida Nation wrote a letter to the National Post in which he said that The Haida Nation has also received money from American foundations, and that he's proud to do so.

U.S. tax returns show that since 2003, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, based in San Francisco, has granted at least $9 million to First Nations in British Columbia - but only on the central/north coast. Of that, $1.7 million was specifically for the Haida. That included $650,000 to cover legal costs so that the Haida could pursue title over the archipelago now known as the Haida Gwaii. That money was granted through Tides Canada ($250,000) and other environmental organizations.

Guujaaw says "At no time did any foundation ever make any attempt to influence our strategies nor dictate a plan of action." He says "No foundation approached us to offer money - rather, they responded to our proposals." These words are hard for me to reconcile with the fact that the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation and Tides Canada explicitly say that they do not fund unsolicited proposals.

Tides Canada says that it operates on a ‘donor-advised’ model, whereby donors recommend grants. "We do not accept unsolicited grant proposals or respond to requests for funding," says Tides Canada.

Since 2000, American foundations have paid nearly $57 Million to Tides Canada, according to U.S. tax returns and on-line records.

In 2008, Tides Canada paid $US 27.3 Million to two small B.C. First Nations, in a single grant. That money originated almost entirely from U.S. foundations - except for a reported donation of $500,000 from the Royal Bank.

The David & Lucile Packard Foundation ("Packard"), and the Bullitt Foundation, also do not accept unsolicited proposals (see below). The Rockefeller Brothers Fund Inc. says, "the Fund is a proactive and engaged funder and therefore rarely able to fund unsolicited requests for support."

The Packard Foundation has a long history of supporting First Nations on the coast of British Columbia, going back to 1996, perhaps earlier.

Of all the aboriginal people in the world, why are U.S. foundations so keen to support the First Nations on the north coast of British Columbia - right smack where oil tankers, export-bound for Asia, would need to travel?

Why do American billionaires support aboriginal people in Canada rather than in their own country?

Is this purely about protecting the marine environment? Or is this partially about the blocking Canadian oil exports to Asia so that the U.S. continues to have a virtually monopoly on Canadian oil exports?

Source: The Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation

Source: Tides Canada Foundation

Source: The David & Lucile Packard Foundation

Source: The Bullitt Foundation