Communicopia

It's not every day that a campaign you've been involved with reaches a milestone like this one, but yesterday the suddenly-wanting-to-look-green Conservative government of Canada put in the final $30M to make the $120M Great Bear Rainforest campaign a reality. This matched the Province of BC's $30M announced a few years ago.

Dubbed the largest integrated conservation program in the history of North America, the Globe and Mail yesterday correctly noted that "what sets the fund apart is the $60-million commitment from private eco-friendly foundations, an unprecedented non-governmental contribution that proponents are hailing as a model for resolving environmental conflicts around the world. The private money will support conservation management and stewardship jobs for resident natives, while government funds will be invested in ecologically sustainable businesses."

Think Big. Give Wisely.

Tides Canada Foundation burst onto the Canadian charitable scene in December 2000 to provide a home for progressive donors to support leading edge organizations and shake up the often stodgy world of Canadian phinanthropy.

In 5 years, Tides Canada has made over 1100 grants totalling over $24 million to Canada's most innovative and progressive environmental and social justice charites. According to Tides Canada's Executive Director Tim Draimin, these charities are our "early warning system", identifying social issues and environmental problems that demand urgent attention. Tides Canada is a bridge, connecting donors with successful charities and helping busy donors sift through the array of 80,000 charities to find ones that fit with their objectives.

Communicopia has supported Tides with its online presence since its founding, and in 2005 we re-launched their main website to reflect how the organization has grown and to provide more relevant content for different target audiences.

Communicopia also maintains a named fund at Tides Canada to funnel some of our cash donations to the community, and has worked with Tides Canada's sister organization, The 30 year old Tides Foundation which has granted over $500M US to progressive organizations in its 30 year history.

Learn more about Tides Canada and strategic models to philanthropy at www.tidescanada.org.

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Supporting Research and Care at the BC Cancer Agency

Cancer is a disease that touches nearly everyone at some point in our lives. Few people know that British Columbia has the best cancer outcomes in Canada, and part of that is due to the world leading research work of the BC Cancer Agency.

The BC Cancer Foundation raises over $20M annually through individual donations to support breakthrough research at the BC Cancer Agency. The 70 year old Foundation needed to strengthen its brand and take advantage of new online fundraising technology so created its first standalone website in 2006.

The site tells the story of the scope and scale of the Agency to British Columbians, engaging donors and potential donors and showing - through facts and stories - the impacts of their giving. The site also supports their high profile fundraising events including the Weekend to End Breast Cancer. Through online donations, the site paid for itself in less than four months.

Learn more about the Foundation and BC Cancer Agency at www.bccancerfoundation.com.

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