The Windward Fund is an environmentalist fiscal sponsor organization in the network of “dark money” organizations controlled by philanthropic consultancy Arabella Advisors. The Fund was created in February 2015 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with startup funding of $5.25 million provided by an unknown source. According to its bylaws, Windward will promote “conservation and environmental protection issues” through grants and fiscal sponsorship. The Windward Fund is smaller than the other Arabella-controlled Funds, and revenues fell from $15.8 million in 2016 to $12.7 million in 2017. [1]
The Windward Fund often operates alongside its “sister” nonprofits, primarily the 501(c)(4) Sixteen Thirty Fund and 501(c)(3) New Venture Fund, which both provides similar funding and fiscal sponsorship services to center-left advocacy organizations. All three funds are administered by Arabella Advisors, a Washington, D.C.-based philanthropy consulting firm that caters to left-leaning clients. The Hopewell Fund, another 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is also managed by Arabella Advisors and performs similar functions, particularly concerning fiscal sponsorship of other left-of-center groups. [2]
Windward Fund describes itself as a fiscal sponsor of “various ‘projects,’ which focus on a range of environmental issues. Windward provides legal compliance, finance, and HR services to its projects, and additionally seeks to help its projects create greater impact through facilitating connections, providing access to information, and capacity building.” [3]
Campaigns and Projects
While the Windward Fund sponsors at least 9 projects, most are not known. The following are examples of groups identified as Windward Fund projects.
Water Funder Initiative
The Water Funder Initiative is a Windward Fund project promoting “water sustainability” in conjunction with the center-left Energy, Hewlett, Packard, Walton, S.D. Bechtel, Mitchell, and Rockefeller Foundations. Among other things, the Initiative seeks to create a “water fee” in key states such as Texas, California, and Colorado to pay for “affordable basic [water] supplies for disadvantaged communities”; “reform municipal and green bond rules” to encourage more public financing of environmentalist projects; and support politicians who want to alter water rate structures in order to “incentivize conservation.” [4][5]
Institute for the New Food Economy
The Institute for the New Food Economy is an investigative journalism project of Windward Fund that reports on genetically-modified organisms (GMOs), cell-cultured meat, pesticides, and the food industry in general.
Board of Directors
Lee Bodner is the board chair of Windward Fund. He previously served as President of New Venture Fund, board chair of Hopewell Fund, and as managing director of Arabella Advisors. During his time at Arabella, Bodner played a leadership role in incubation projects housed within NVF and its lobbying affiliate, the Sixteen Thirty Fund, particularly concerning environmentalist groups. [6]
Eric Kessler previously served as board chair for Windward Fund before being replaced by Lee Bodner in 2016. Kessler is the founder and senior managing director at Arabella Advisors. [7]
Adam Eichberg was a member of the founding board of directors for Windward Fund. He previously worked as a deputy legislative director to Democratic Colorado Governor Bill Ritter. He also works as an environmentalist consultant running the Denver based Headwater Strategies, a legislative advocacy organization hat focuses mainly on environmental issues. [8]
Harry Drucker was a member of the founding board of directors for Windward Fund. He previously served as a board member for New Venture Fund, environmental activist, and realtor. He also served on the board of the National Environmental Policy and Law Center and the Illinois chapter of the Nature Conservancy. [9]
Andrew Schulz serves as general counsel for Windward Fund. He also serves as general counsel for Arabella Advisors as well as Hopewell Fund. [10]
Kristen Grimm is a member of the board of directors for Windward Fund. She is also a fellow at the Aspen Institute and founder of Spitfire Strategies, a consultancy firm which caters to left-leaning clients. [11]
Wilbur Priester is a member of the board of directors for Windward Fund. He also works as the CFO of Arabella Advisors. [12]
Bruce Boyd is a member of the board of directors for Windward Fund. He also works as the senior managing director for Arabella Advisors. [13]
Aileen Lee is a member of the board of directors for Windward Fund. Lee is a venture capitalist operating mainly out of California. [14]
Charles “Chuck” Savitt is the treasurer of the board of directors for Windward Fund. He is the founder of environmentalist publishing company Island Press, which has published books by population control advocate Paul Ehrlich. [15]
John Nordgren is a project director for Windward Fund and the only member of the board who received compensation from the organization. Nordgren is the managing director of the Climate Resilience Fund, an environmental advocacy project of Windward Fund based in Washington state. [16]
Financials
While Windward Fund took in more than $3 million less contributions in 2017 than the prior year, the organization’s assets grew by almost $1 million in the same period. The organization reported $11,230,157 in net assets and $12,656,323 in total revenue for 2017 according to IRS 990 returns. [17]
John Nordgren, a project director for Windward Fund was the only employee of the organization who reported compensation. He was paid $154,000 in base compensation and $28,136 in “other compensation.” [18]
Funding
Windward Fund has received a number of major grants from left-of-center advocacy philanthropies.
- The Rockefeller Foundation has made multiple grants to Windward Fund totaling $1.5 million since 2016. [19]
- Agua Fund, a left-leaning philanthropic foundation, made a $45,000 grant to Windward Fund in 2017. [20]
- Walton Family Foundation, philanthropic organization associated with Walmart founder Sam Walton’s family, made grants totaling more than $2.5 million between 2016 and 2018. [21]
- D. Bechtel Foundation, a left-leaning philanthropic organization, made donations to Windward Fund totaling $15.3 million between 2016 and 2018.
- Wallace Global Fund II, a left-leaning philanthropic organization, made a $100,000 donation to the Windward Fund in 2018.
Gates Family Foundation has made grants totaling $325,000 since 2016. [22]“Windward Fund Grants.” Gates Family Foundation. Accessed April 18, 2019.
Documents
IRS Annual Filings (Form 990)
The Windward Fund’s Form 990 IRS filings obtained by the Capital Research Center are available here:
Application for Recognition of Tax Exemption
The Windward Fund filed its Application for Recognition of Exemption from income tax with the IRS (Form 1023) in 2015. The document is available here.