Person

Ben Walton

Born:

1975

Nationality:

American

Occupation:

Businessman and Philanthropist

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Ben Walton is a left-of-center philanthropist and businessman based in Denver, Colorado. He is the grandson of Walmart founder Sam Walton.

Walton is the co-founder and creator of Zomalab, his family office, which houses his investment firm Zoma Capital. The firm invests in companies tackling environmental and social problems, specializing in energy and water investments. It also houses his charitable foundation, the Zoma Foundation, which makes charitable contributions to various causes in Colorado and Chile. 1

Unlike many members of his family, Walton is a contributor to Democratic Party politicians. Starting in 2013, he made small donations to Democratic Party candidates but in 2016 he made a $10,000 donation to the Democratic Party of Colorado. 2

Walton and the Zoma Foundation generated controversy in 2020 when it was revealed that the foundation had paid to fund a position in Colorado state government. Critics alleged that the use of private money to fund the position was a way for Colorado’s governor to avoid transparency and accountability from the state legislature. 3

Early Life

Ben Walton was born in 1975. He is the son of Rob Walton and the grandson of Walmart founder Sam Walton. 4

Walton studied psychology and economics at Georgetown University. He graduated with a degree in environmental design with a focus in architecture from the University of Colorado. 5

In 2002, he met Chilean psychologist Lucy Ana Aviles at the Valle Nevado winter resort. In 2007, they were married at Vina Santa Rita, Chile. Many members of Walton’s family arrived in Chile via private jet. 6

Zoma Capital

In 2004, Walton founded Zoma Capital, which invests in energy, water, and other economic resiliency projects in Colorado and Chile. The company eventually became a part of his family office called Zomalab. 7

In 2017, Zoma Capital co-founded sustainable seafood investment holding company Pescador Holdings. Pescador Holdings went on to acquire Chile’s Geomar, a “shore to shelf” sustainable seafood company. Pescador Holdings was founded with a $10 million commitment from Zoma Capital. 8

Zoma Capital is also a major investor in Colorado’s switch from reliable conventional sources of energy to weather dependent and intermittent sources of energy. In 2018, it announced that it had led financing worth $150 million for Amp Solar Group. Also in 2018, it was announced that it had invested in Guzman Energy, a solar company that was buying up and shutting down utilities that operated coal-fired power plants. 9

Zoma Foundation

In 2016, Walton and his wife founded the Zoma Foundation. The foundation was seeded by $191 million in Walmart stock and $51 million in grants from the Walton Family Foundation, which at one time hosted a Ben and Lucy Ana Walton Fund. 10

A major focus of the foundation is early childhood development. The foundation makes more grants in that field than any other. In 2020, grants went to two Denver-based childhood development groups, Tennyson Center for Children ($500,000) and UCHealth’s Bright by Three program ($450,000). 11

During the COVID-19 epidemic, the Zoma Foundation made many grants to combat the spread of the virus. Major COVID awards went to the SCL Health Foundation ($500,000), Denver Health Foundation ($500,000), University of Colorado Foundation ($365,000), and Mile High United Way ($355,000). 12

The foundation also awarded grants to help rural communities affected by the epidemic. In 2020, it partnered with Ben’s brother Sam Walton’s Catena Foundation and the Gates Family Foundation to create a $3 million rapid response fund focused on rural small businesses and nonprofits in Colorado, hosted by the First Southwest Community Fund. In May 2021, the foundation joined with Philanthropy Colorado, Telluride Foundation, and the Denver Foundation to provide $1.5 million in unrestricted grants for rural communities affected by the pandemic. 13

The foundation also makes donations related to the environment. In 2017, it provided $1.5 million in seed funding for a 10,000 square foot water treatment research facility at the Colorado School of Mines. It has also awarded grants to the Energy Foundation, a left-of-center charitable foundation. The foundation also supports The Nature Conservancy’s Enduring Earth initiative, which aims to preserve 30% of the planet from development by 2030. 14

Political Contributions

Unlike many members of the Walton family, Ben Walton is a donor to the Democratic Party. Since 2013, he has made some small donations to Democratic candidates every year. In 2016, he gave $10,000 to the Democratic Party of Colorado. 15

Funding Colorado State Government Positions

In 2020, it was revealed that Walton and the Zoma Foundation had been funding positions in the Colorado state government. The Zoma Foundation donated $20,000 towards funding a coordinator for a two-generation economic security program. 16

Critics alleged that the donations were used to circumvent transparency requirements. In addition, critics argued the donations bypassed the Colorado state legislature’s oversight of state spending and allowed the foundation to influence Colorado state policy. 17

References

  1. “Zoma Capital.” Crunchbase. Accessed July 4, 2022. https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/zoma-capital.
  2. McKay, Serenah. “Data Shows Some Walton Giving Leans To Left.” Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Oct. 18, 2020. https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2020/oct/18/data-shows-some-walton-giving-leans-to-left/.
  3. Frank, John. “Documents Show Polis Taking $1M In Donations For Top Jobs.” AP News. August 15, 2020. https://apnews.com/article/climate-colorado-jared-polis-steve-jobs-immigration-4d352b9bc8af4b5b23a137502b268946.
  4. Metcalf, Tom, and Tom Maloney. “How The World’s Wealthiest Family Invests Its Fortune.” Financial Advisor. Aug. 16, 2019. https://www.fa-mag.com/news/how-the-world-s-wealthiest-family-invests-its-fortune-51148.html.
  5.  “About ZOMALAB.” Zomalab. Accessed July 4, 2022. https://zomalab.com/about-zomalab/#our_team
  6.  “Lucy Ana Avilés, The Chilean Psychologist Who Became A Philanthropist And Managed The Arrival Of The Supertanker.”  Emol. Jan. 24, 2017. https://www.emol.com/noticias/Nacional/2017/01/24/841522/Lucy-Ana-Aviles-y-Benjamin-Sharpe-Walton-El-romance-que-beneficia-al-mundo.html.
  7. “Zoma Capital.”  Crunchbase. Accessed July 4, 2022. https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/zoma-capital.
  8. “Zoma Capital And Encourage Capital Launch Pescador Holdings, First-Ever Sustainable Seafood Investment Holding Company.”  Business Wire. Feb. 15, 2017. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170215006009/en/Zoma-Capital-and-Encourage-Capital-Launch-Pescador-Holdings-First-Ever-Sustainable-Seafood-Investment-Holding-Company.
  9. Best, Allen. “A Small Company Sees Opportunity In Revolutionizing Colorado’s Energy Supply.” Energy News Network. May 28, 2019. https://energynews.us/2019/05/28/a-small-company-sees-opportunity-in-revolutionizing-colorados-energy-supply/.
  10. Kavate, Michael. “Here’s What We Know About A Walton Heir’s Zoma Foundation, A Big Backer Of Maternal Health.” Inside Philanthropy. Jun. 23, 2022. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/6/23/heres-what-we-know-about-a-walton-heirs-zoma-foundation-a-big-supporter-of-early-childhood.
  11. Kavate, Michael. “Here’s What We Know About A Walton Heir’s Zoma Foundation, A Big Backer Of Maternal Health.” Inside Philanthropy. June 23, 2022. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/6/23/heres-what-we-know-about-a-walton-heirs-zoma-foundation-a-big-supporter-of-early-childhood.
  12. Kavate, Michael. “Here’s What We Know About A Walton Heir’s Zoma Foundation, A Big Backer Of Maternal Health.” Inside Philanthropy. June 23, 2022. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/6/23/heres-what-we-know-about-a-walton-heirs-zoma-foundation-a-big-supporter-of-early-childhood.
  13. Kavate, Michael. “Here’s What We Know About A Walton Heir’s Zoma Foundation, A Big Backer Of Maternal Health.” Inside Philanthropy. June 23, 2022. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/6/23/heres-what-we-know-about-a-walton-heirs-zoma-foundation-a-big-supporter-of-early-childhood.
  14. Kavate, Michael. “Here’s What We Know About A Walton Heir’s Zoma Foundation, A Big Backer Of Maternal Health.” Inside Philanthropy. June 23, 2022. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/6/23/heres-what-we-know-about-a-walton-heirs-zoma-foundation-a-big-supporter-of-early-childhood.
  15. [1] McKay, Serenah. “Data Shows Some Walton Giving Leans To Left.” Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Oct. 18, 2020. https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2020/oct/18/data-shows-some-walton-giving-leans-to-left/.
  16. Frank, John. “Documents Show Polis Taking $1M In Donations For Top Jobs.” AP News. August 15, 2020. https://apnews.com/article/climate-colorado-jared-polis-steve-jobs-immigration-4d352b9bc8af4b5b23a137502b268946.
  17. Frank, John. “Documents Show Polis Taking $1M In Donations For Top Jobs.” AP News. August 15, 2020. https://apnews.com/article/climate-colorado-jared-polis-steve-jobs-immigration-4d352b9bc8af4b5b23a137502b268946.
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