Tides' impact is made possible by the shared commitment of our Board of Directors, staff, and partners.
Cheryl D. Alston
Cheryl D. Alston, MBA, is Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer of Employees’ Retirement Fund (ERF) of the City of Dallas, a $3.6 billion pension fund. Ms. Alston is responsible for strategy development, finance, operations and investments. She is the first African American and the first woman to serve as the executive director of ERF. Ms. Alston has over 20 years of expertise in the financial services industry, including positions at ERF, Cigna Corporation and Chase Global Securities. Ms. Alston staffs a host of volunteer positions. Cheryl was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) Advisory Committee and served from 2011-2016. The PBGC protects the retirement incomes of more than 34 million U.S. workers. She also chairs the Finance & Strategy committee for a large Catholic healthcare system and a board member for the Texas Women’s Foundation. Her other board memberships include Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas City and The Arts Community Alliance (TACA). Ms. Alston is a noted speaker on asset allocation, manager selection, and risk management for institutional investor conferences. In 2016, Ms. Alston received Institutional Investor’s prestigious Investor Intelligence Network Award for her significant contributions to the industry through her work with Emerging Managers. Ms. Alston has a MBA in Finance from The Leonard N. Stern School at New York University and received a B.S. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania.
Kafi D. Blumenfield
Kafi D. Blumenfield is the founder and CEO of Alisyo, a leadership support start-up for change-making leaders. Kafi has worked with diverse NGOs, including nonprofits, governmental advisory bodies, and foundation boards to expand opportunity and build more equitable communities. She previously served as Executive Director of Discovery Cube Los Angeles, and engaging STEM education-based museum. Before the Discovery Cube, Kafi served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Liberty Hill Foundation, one of the nation’s most admired social change foundations.
Kafi is an advisory board member for Pomona College’s Draper Center and UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs, where she has served as a Luskin School Senior Fellow since 2015. In addition to Tides, Kafi serves on the Self Help Federal Credit Union and the James Irvine Foundation board. Kafi’s work has been recognized by organizations such as LAANE, the National Women’s Political Caucus LA Westside, National Council of Negro Women, and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. She holds a law degree from UCLA and a B.A. from Pomona College.
Brickson Diamond
Brickson Diamond is CEO of Big Answers, LLC, which supports senior leaders in the development and implementation of diversity and inclusion strategies. Big Answers generates new partnerships and leverages impactful connections for clients in entertainment, technology, asset management and philanthropy. Diamond previously served for five years as COO of The Executive Leadership Council, the preeminent membership organization of Black board members, CEOs and senior executives within Fortune 1000/Global 500 corporations. He held various executive roles in the investment management industry over a 15-year career with The Capital Group Companies, principally in the firm’s private wealth division. Diamond is a founding board member and chair of The Blackhouse Foundation, which works to expand opportunities for Black multi-platform content creators by providing pathways into distribution and career opportunities within film, television, digital and emerging platforms. He is a trustee of Brown University (chairing its Communications, Alumni and External Affairs committee), the Middlesex School and Tides. He serves on the investment committee of the Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands. Diamond is a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Business School.
Marc Diaz
Marc Diaz is a leader in the impact investing field, focused on scaling sustainable businesses. As Senior Vice President at TerViva, a food and agriculture technology company, Mr. Diaz directs efforts to commercialize TerViva’s pongamia oilseed food products and tree cultivation worldwide. He is committed to the company’s work toward helping farmers restore agricultural lands into productive sources of food and bioproducts in an innovative, sustainable and responsible way. Mr. Diaz works with TerViva’s stakeholders to grow carbon-negative food that achieves environmental, social and governance goals with strong financial performance. Prior to joining TerViva, Marc launched and led NatureVest, The Nature Conservancy’s impact investing platform, building a $2 billion portfolio to deliver conservation outcomes at an ecosystem scale. He helped establish the UNICEF Bridge Fund as Managing Director, providing a source of flexible capital to fast-track life-saving goods to children in need worldwide. Mr. Diaz has served in Board leadership roles in community development finance, real estate, philanthropy, theater, and The Episcopal Church. He earned his MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School and holds an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School. He graduated cum laude with a B.A. in Government from Harvard College.
Sid Espinosa
Sid Espinosa is a businessman and politician. He is the former mayor of Palo Alto, CA, notably the first Hispanic to be elected to public office in that city’s history. Sid is currently the Senior Director of U.S. Philanthropies for Microsoft Corporation. Sid graduated from Wesleyan University where he majored in Government. He later earned a master’s degree from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he developed a passion for philanthropy and “its power to transform communities and individuals.” Sid’s career has spanned the government, business, philanthropic and nonprofit sectors. After working at the Democratic National Committee during the 1994 congressional campaigns, Sid joined the Clinton Administration, and worked both at the White House and then as an Advisor to U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno at the U.S. Department of Justice. Sid has served on numerous boards of directors for business, nonprofit and educational organizations around the world.
Janiece Evans-Page
Janiece Evans-Page is the Chief Executive Officer of Tides, leading the organization as it seeks to broaden the reach of its impact and deepen its commitment to social change with dynamic tools, deep expertise, novel collaborations and innovative ideas. Ms. Evans-Page, who sits on the board in her capacity as Tides’ CEO, previously served as the inaugural Chief Sustainability and Diversity Officer at Fossil Group and Head of Fossil Foundation. She launched Fossil Group’s global philanthropy practice, leading the strategic modernization of Fossil Group’s global philanthropic investment portfolio and environmental impact framework. She was also the architect of Fossil Foundation’s signature initiative, empowering youth through innovative partnerships with social entrepreneurs. To date, the organization has impacted the lives of 1M+ underserved young people around the globe. In 2018, she was honored by Ebony Magazine as one of its Power 100 awardees in the “Women Up” category. In 2021, she was honored at the 12th Annual Powerful Women of The Bay Awards Luncheon. During her 20-plus year tenure at Hewlett-Packard Co., Ms. Evans-Page served as vice president and general manager of HP’s Imaging and Printing Attach Organization, which she launched and grew into a $600M+global enterprise. She currently serves on the boards of Southern New Hampshire University and IDEO.org. Ms. Evans-Page earned a B.S. in Social Science/Organizational Behavior at the University of California at Berkeley, and an Executive M.B.A. at Golden Gate University in San Francisco.
Michael Fernandez
Michael is Co-Founder and CEO of Threadeo, a software company building productivity tools. He is Co-founder and Chairman Emeritus of Little Kids Rock, a national non-profit restoring and revitalizing music education in disadvantaged public schools by donating instruments and music lessons to over 100,000 kids annually across the U.S. and in 25 cities. Little Kids Rock has been featured in Forbes and Rolling Stone, and supported by Bruce Springsteen, Lady Gaga, Metallica, and many other musical luminaries. Michael served on the board of NCIRE, the leading nonprofit medical research institute in the United States devoted to pioneering new treatments and providing medical care for military Veterans. He served in the US Army and was the #1 ranked Distinguished Military Graduate of his ROTC class and ranked #1 in his Officer Basic Course. He was promoted to the rank of Captain after graduating from the JFK Special Warfare Center and while serving in a special operations unit; US Army Reserves. He is a Marshall Memorial Fellow, a White House Fellowship-National Finalist, and is recognized as “One of the most influential Bay Area Latinos” by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Born in NYC, he is the son of hard-working immigrant parents and the first to attend college earning a BSE from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an MPA from Harvard University.
Antionette Klatzky
Antoinette Klatzky is Executive Director of the Eileen Fisher Leadership Institute and host and co-producer of Women Together, a series of interactive, live-stream gatherings. She facilitates leadership programming and empowerment workshops and was responsible for hosting and producing a global movement of 13,000 changemakers during COVID-19. In her role of Strategic Partner for Eileen Fisher, Ms. Klatzky developed an Emergency Relief Fund for employees affected by COVID-19, prior to which, she led the development of Choose Handloom, a human rights initiative in the Eileen Fisher supply chain and supported the launch of a recycled clothing initiative, now known as Eileen Fisher Renew. Ms. Klatzky has a certification in Advanced Facilitation from the Presencing Institute, where she also completed a two-year MasterClass and became co-faculty on their Ecosystem Leadership Program. She has been recognized by the YWCA’s Salute to Women and Racial Justice as a “Person to Watch” and continues to serve as an advisor to various networks on systemic and strategic action for racial equity and justice. She serves on the boards of Westchester Community Foundation, Presencing Institute, and Women’s Funding Network.
Edward G. Lloyd
Edward Lloyd retired from the US Fund for UNICEF in 2020 after serving for 18 years as CFO and COO. During his time with the US Fund, he oversaw finance, budgeting, IT, strategic planning, revenue processing, donor management, investments and building operations. In 2019, his last year at the US Fund, he assumed the presidency of the UNICEF USA Bridge Fund, also referred to as the Impact Fund for Children, whose objectives were to build the board and staff, develop a strategic plan and diversify program products to include impact investing to benefit children. His entire professional career has been spent in the Not-for-Profit sector and has focused on growth, compliance and sustainability. Prior to his US Fund tenure, Ed served as the Senior Vice President for Finance & Administration at the United College Fund. From 1989 to 2001, he was Executive VP & CFO for the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), a social investment bank. He has served on numerous boards and committees, including: The Abyssinian Development Corporation, Make A Wish Foundation board, and currently, president of the River Arts Cooperative Board in New York City, as well as the Tides Executive Committee and Finance Capital Committee, where he currently serves as chair. Mr. Lloyd graduated from the University of New Mexico with a BA and MA in administration, and received an MSW from The Hunter School of Social Work and an MBA from Pace University.
John Oxtoby
John Oxtoby is Vice President and Director of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Investing for Ariel Investments. Mr. Oxtoby is responsible for leading the company’s efforts to integrate ESG research into its investment process. Under his direction and in concert with Ariel Investments’ core domestic ESG research analyst, he proactively works with portfolio companies to adopt and strengthen their social and environmental impacts, and improve governance practices to create shareholder value. Prior to joining Ariel Investments, Mr. Oxtoby worked in the White House with Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett and Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers Austan Goolsbee on public-private partnerships, including the CEO-led President’s Jobs Council. He is a Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting Credential holder, which is administered by the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB). He graduated with an A.B. degree in economics from Harvard College and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Roslyn Dawson Thompson
Roslyn joined Texas Women’s Foundation as president and CEO in July 2011, moving from a 25-year career as owner of an award-winning national marketing communications firm to leading the organization she had supported since its inception. Under Roslyn’s leadership, the Foundation has undertaken ambitious strategic initiatives to impact women’s economic security and women’s leadership. The Foundation’s assets have increased by more than 54%, and its grants and programs benefiting women and girls by 180% to more than $7 million annually. The Foundation is also a leader in the gender lens investing movement, and has deployed 100% of its assets in a gendered impact portfolio that yields both financial returns and social benefits to women and girls.
Linda Verhulp
Linda Verhulp is the Executive Director of the Morgan Family Foundation, a private foundation that focuses its philanthropic goals on youth development, education, the environment and stewardship of regions and organizations. The foundation seeds promising leaders with innovative initiatives in addition to supporting established nonprofits working on society’s most difficult issues. She works with organizations to maximize their potential and impact through strategic grantmaking and leadership development. Ms. Verhulp’s professional experience includes executive positions in finance, operations and marketing in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors. She was the General Manager of the United States Embassy Employees’ Association in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during the Desert Storm conflict. Ms. Verhulp serves on the national board of the Positive Coaching Alliance, a catalyst for a positive and inclusive youth sports culture across the U.S. and was a founding board member of Teen Success Inc., a nonprofit that empowers young mothers to graduate high school, break out of the cycle of poverty and become valued members of society. She has provided leadership on governance, strategic planning and audit committees for nonprofit boards. She holds an Economics degree from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Jacob Weldon
Jacob Weldon is a change management and brand reputation strategist for corporate and nonprofit organizations focused on social justice and next-gen leadership. He previously served as Global Director of Corporate Affairs at Estée Lauder Companies Inc, joining in 2012 to modernize and strategically align philanthropic investments across the company’s 30+ brands and six global regions. His role soon expanded to include oversight of global thought leadership and stakeholder engagement for Executive Chairman William Lauder, and strategic initiatives in the company’s Sustainability, Regulatory Affairs, and Inclusion & Diversity functions. He is also the architect behind the company’s inaugural corporate identity as a family of brands, which launched in 2018 as The Global House of Prestige Beauty. Jacob conceived ELC’s NextGen Leadership Team and served as founding Chair of the company’s LGBTQ+ employee resource group. Before joining ELC, Jacob was Chief of Staff at Taproot Foundation, which connects nonprofit organizations and changemakers with pro bono expertise to solve urgent social challenges. Prior to Taproot, he held positions in Social Innovation and Corporate Responsibility at Weber Shandwick and Time Warner Inc. With a special passion for LGBTQ+ social justice, Jacob has served as a Fellow to the CEOs of GLAAD and The Trevor Project, and on the Advisory Board of The Tyler Clementi Foundation. He is a Point Scholar Alumni and graduate of Columbia University.
Tim Wang
Tim Wang is a partner at The Westly Group, one of the largest sustainability-focused venture funds in North America, with $500M under management. Mr. Wang joined the company in 2015 and manages the firm’s deal flow and due diligence process, investing in startups and companies focused on accelerating the pace of change in areas that lead toward a sustainable, equitable, and just world: energy transition, electric mobility, and healthy buildings. Previously, he was a co-founder and head of business development at ChinaScope, a China-based financial startup, where he raised $5M from Moody’s Corporation. Mr. Wang began his career as an analyst at S&P Capital IQ, a leading financial data provider for financial institutions and advisory firms. He is passionate about social justice and education and is excited about bringing his experience, institutional knowledge, and fund-raising networks to further Tides’ mission to build a world of shared prosperity and equity. Mr. Wang holds a BA in international relations from Brown University and an MBA from the USC Marshall School of Business.
Steve Zuckerman, Vice Chair
Steve Zuckerman is Managing Director of Self-Help’s California operations and President of Self-Help Federal Credit Union. Self-Help is a leading nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) founded in 1980 and now manages almost $2 billion in assets and 42 credit union branches with more than 100,000 members. Self-Help has provided nearly $6.5 billion in financing to roughly 87,000 families, businesses and nonprofits. Previously, Steve spent almost 15 years with McCown De Leeuw & Co (MDC), a private investment firm based in Menlo Park, CA that focused on middle market management buyouts. Throughout his career, Steve has served on numerous nonprofit boards in the areas of economic justice and youth development. In addition to Self-Help related boards, he currently serves on the national governing board of Positive Coaching Alliance and the New Market Tax Credit advisory board of Opportunity Fund. Steve earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a BA from Yale University. Steve is married with three children.
Tides is a network of nonprofit organizations. The Tides Board of Directors oversees Tides as a whole, and its members also make up the directors for each Tides organization.
TIDES FOUNDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS |
THE TIDES CENTER BOARD OF DIRECTORS |
---|---|
Sid Espinosa, Chair Kafi Blumenfield Brickson Diamond John Oxtoby Roslyn Dawson Thompson Linda Verhulp Jacob Weldon Steve Zuckerman |
Michael Fernandez, Chair Marc Diaz Antionette Klatzky Edward Lloyd Tim Wang Jason Wingard |