The Sustainable Markets Foundation is an environmentalist organization pushing for stricter environmental laws and bans on natural gas production. ¹ Despite its name, the group is organized as a 501(c)(3) public charity, not a foundation. The organization serves as a fiscal sponsor, providing grants as well as administrative support to other nonprofits like 350.org or Frack Action.²

In the foundation’s 2015 tax returns, revenue totaled over $9.8 million and expenses were $8.8 million.³

SMF is funded by major environmentalist groups and center-left foundations such as the Rockefeller Family Fund, Tides Foundation, and TomKat Charitable Trust. The Sustainable Markets Foundation has been criticized as a “dark money” network by the right-leaning Washington Free Beacon. ⁴ It’s also been criticized for paying an LLC, Our Next Economy, in independent contractor fees reportedly to support the Climate Investigations Center (CIC), a center-left environmental journalism group, instead of using grants. ⁵

Overview

The Sustainable Markets Foundation pushes an aggressive environmentalist agenda.⁶ The organization describes developing educational reports and materials that will raise public awareness about the effects of global warming and climate change and ways to combat these causes, promoting draconian energy regulations as the solution.⁷

To promote “Environmental Health, Protection, and Preservation,” the organization supports organizations like the radical Food and Water Watch that seek to expand government funded programs and regulations and ban exploration for natural resources.⁸

Sustainable Markets Foundation is a leading funder of the movement to restrict exploration for natural resources.⁹ This has included supporting the mass media and campaign efforts of organizations like Frack Action and Artists Against Fracking, the latter coming under fire for engaging in lobbying activities without properly registering.¹⁰

Funding

In 2015, the foundation awarded a total of $3.2 million to other nonprofits.¹¹ Example grantees that year included:¹²

• 350.org
• Center for Justice and Democracy
• Center for Media and Democracy
• Climate Science Awareness
• Food and Water Watch
• Frack Action Fund
• Greenpeace Fund
• Kitchen Table Campaign
• Mothers Out Front

Leadership

Elizabeth Hitchcock serves as President of the Sustainable Markets Foundation board.¹³ Hitchcock also serves as a Public Health Advocate for U.S. Public Interest Research Group and the U.S. PIRG Education Fund.¹⁴

Jay Halfon is the Director and General Counsel for the organization.¹⁵ Prior to his appointment, Halfron was the executive director of the New York Public Interest Research Group.¹⁶ In addition to his role with the Sustainable Markets Foundation, Halfron serves on the board of 350.org, Earthworks, and the Park Foundation.¹⁷¹⁸

Other board members include John Richard as Vice President and Steve Kleinberg as Secretary and Treasurer.¹⁹

Affiliations

In a 2014 report by the Republican staff of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Sustainable Markets Foundation was connected with the “Billionaires Club” – an elite group of donors, foundations, and organizations that control the center-left environmental movement and have influenced policies of the EPA under President Obama.²⁰

Particularly scrutinized in the report was the Sustainable Markets Foundation’s sponsorship of the organization 350.org. The report states that between 2011 and 2014, 350.org received funding from the Park Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Tides Foundation, Marisla Foundation, ClimateWorks Foundation, and Rockefeller Family Fund routed through Sustainable Markets Foundation.²¹

In 2013, Sustainable Markets Foundation received over $600,000 in grants from the Park Foundation to support anti-fracking organizations like Frack Action during Exxon Mobil’s $2 million public relations campaign to support shale-gas drilling in New York.²²

1. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
2. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
3. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
4. Todd Shepherd. “Climate Change Reporting Website Obscures Its Funding With Dark Money Network.” Washington Free Beacon. October 12, 2019. December 6, 2019. https://freebeacon.com/issues/climate-change-reporting-website-obscures-its-funding-with-dark-money-network/
5. Spencer Walrath. “CLIMATE INVESTIGATIONS CENTER UTILIZES DARK MONEY NETWORK TO OBSCURE ITS FUNDERS.” Energy In Depth. October 14, 2019. Accessed December 6, 2019. https://eidclimate.org/climate-investigations-center-utilizes-dark-money-network-to-obscure-its-funders/
6. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
7. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
8. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
9. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
10. “Sustainable Markets Foundation Money Processing Being Noticed.” Energy In Depth. Accessed May 28, 2017. https://energyindepth.org/marcellus/sustainable-markets-foundation-money-laundering-being-noticed/.
11. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
12. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
13. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
14. The Huffington Post. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/author/elizabeth-hitchcock.
15. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
16. “EARTHWORKS.” Earthworks. Accessed April 21, 2017. https://www.earthworksaction.org/about/board_of_directors.
17. “About Park Foundation founder Roy H. Park.” Park Foundation. Accessed April 21, 2017. http://parkfoundation.org/about-us/.
18. “Board of Directors.” 350.org. Accessed April 21, 2017. https://350.org/about/board/.
19. “990 Form – 2015.” Guidestar. Accessed April 20, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2015/134/188/2015-134188834-0d109496-9.pdf.
20. “How a Club of Billionaires and Their Foundations Control the Environmental Movement and Obama’s EPA.” 2014. Accessed April 21, 2017. https://www.heartland.org/_template-assets/documents/publications/billionaires_club_controls_epa.pdf.
21. “How a Club of Billionaires and Their Foundations Control the Environmental Movement and Obama’s EPA.” 2014. Accessed April 21, 2017. https://www.heartland.org/_template-assets/documents/publications/billionaires_club_controls_epa.pdf.
22. Campbell, Jon. “Foundation’s funds continue flow to fracking critics.” Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. July 21, 2013. Accessed May 28, 2017. http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/local/2013/07/21/foundations-funds-continue-flow-to-fracking-critics/2573681/.