The Whole Systems Foundation is an environmentalist advocacy group focused on plastic pollution reduction, population reduction, and economic de-growth advocacy.
The foundation’s Project Plastic Planet involves studying the use and disposal of plastics that enter the ocean. To accomplish this, Norton Smith travels by sailboat to various Caribbean islands and observes waste management practices. Norton and foundation president Melanie Smith also set sail on a tall ship to experiment with several plastic-collecting trawls in the Pacific Ocean. 1
Background
Whole Systems Foundation was founded by Neill and Norton Smith as a nonprofit arm of their curbside recyclables pickup company. The foundation sponsored recycling classes at schools and research on recycling processes and technology, as well as various environmentalist causes. The Foundation continued funding environmental education and research over the following decades, eventually shifting its focus to plastic pollution. 2
Founder and current treasurer Norton Smith has written in opposition to capitalism and growth, proposing to “unravel capitalism” through “re-focusing our mental and emotional systems to look at what we truly want and move in that direction.” 3
Norton Smith also espouses Malthusian views on population and economic-growth issues. In his essay “The Case for Negative Growth,” Smith advocates for population reduction measures, claiming that “at the very least it needs to be stabilized at fewer than 7 billion.” Smith also advocates for restraining the growth of the economy to “fit the planet we live on.” 4 In another essay, Smith writes, “I am proposing that the solution is a radical redesign of our civilization based on a more sustainable model.” 5
The foundation’s president, Melanie Smith, is former co-owner of a construction company. 6
Activities
Whole Systems Foundations engages in a variety of environmental advocacy and education efforts. The foundation’s focus is chemical pollution and waste management, with an emphasis on the use and disposal of plastics. 7
The foundation’s Project Plastic Planet involves studying the use and disposal of plastics that enter the ocean. To accomplish this, Norton Smith travels by sailboat to various Caribbean islands and observes waste management practices. Norton and foundation president Melanie Smith also set sail on a tall ship to experiment with several plastic-collecting trawls in the Pacific Ocean. Melanie Smith also started a campaign to eliminate the use of plastic bags in Ashland, Oregon. 8
Whole Systems Foundation also seeks to direct funding to “the more critical issue of weaning ourselves from a consumer society that is dependent on growth” to avert a “collapse of the ecosystem that supports our ability to live.” 9
Funding
In 2022, Whole Systems Foundation reported assets of $120,627 in cash, $25,147 in bonds, and $161,381 in corporate stocks. In 2021, the foundation reported selling shares of oil supermajor Shell at a loss. In 2022, the foundation reported selling shares of mining company Americas Gold & Silver and shipping container company Triton International. 10 11
Whole Systems Foundation offers grants to select organizations in the United States and foreign countries for environmentalist projects, education, and activism efforts. The organization’s largest grants in 2022 were for education programs at the Klamath Siskiyou Wildlands Center, solar upgrades to the San Francisco Zen Center, and agricultural research projects conducted by Alan Kapuler. 12
References
- “Project Plastic Planet.” Whole Systems Foundation. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.whole-systems.org/project-plastic-planet/.
- “About.” Whole Systems Foundation. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.whole-systems.org/about-whole-systems-foundation/.
- Smith, Norton. “Capitalism – a Self Organizing Structure That Leads to Self Extinction.” Resilience.org, January 2, 2020. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.resilience.org/stories/2020-01-02/capitalism-a-self-organizing-structure-that-leads-to-self-extinction/
- Smith, Norton. “The Case for Negative Growth.” Whole Systems Foundation. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.whole-systems.org/the-case-for-negative-growth/.
- Smith, Norton. “The Need for a Greater Vision: Recognizing Reality.” Resilience.org, November 26, 2019. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.resilience.org/stories/2019-11-19/the-need-for-a-greater-vision-recognizing-reality/.
- “Melanie Smith.” Linked In. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniesmith99.
- “About.” Whole Systems Foundation. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.whole-systems.org/about-whole-systems-foundation/.
- “Project Plastic Planet.” Whole Systems Foundation. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.whole-systems.org/project-plastic-planet/
- “About.” Whole Systems Foundation. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.whole-systems.org/about-whole-systems-foundation/.
- Whole Systems Foundation. Return of an Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2021
- Whole Systems Foundation. Return of an Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2022.
- “Grants List.” Whole Systems Foundation. Accessed March 31, 2024. https://www.whole-systems.org/grants-list-2019/.