Working Toward a Freer Future: Introducing Rising Tide’s Five New Inspirational Partners
August 15, 2024
We at the Rising Tide Foundation are thrilled to have backed numerous exciting projects in recent months that embody classical liberal principles and promote private sector solutions to address societal issues.
From projects that support Ukrainian entrepreneurs offer alternative solutions to government services, place underserved Americans into immediate employment, teach thousands of Europeans classical liberal ideas, develop the tech skills of Costa Rican youth, or protect rule of law in the United States, these exciting initiatives are already empowering thousands of people and helping ensure a freer and more prosperous future. Read on to discover more about the exciting projects we have recently supported.
Project: Freedom Games
Based on open dialogue and free discussion, Freedom Games, hosted by Liberte!, is one of the premier classical liberal events in Europe. Since 2014, the annual three-day festival has taken place in Lodz, Poland.
With a program of over 100 sessions featuring 400 speakers and drawing a diverse crowd of approximately 2,000 attendees, the event is a catalyst for change. It aims to change minds and foster a community of engaged freedom supporters in Poland and beyond. With a mix of in-person and online sessions, the event reaches a broad audience, including those from across the political spectrum who may not have been exposed to classical liberal ideas before.
Project: Change Drivers 2.0
The “Change Drivers 2.0” project led by Bendukidze Free Market Center supports grassroots initiatives in Ukraine that offer alternatives to government solutions in areas such as education, healthcare, rule of law, and welfare. The project provides training, networking, media exposure, and funding opportunities to these innovative organizations.
Over the next two years, the project plans to engage with 100 new change drivers, offer training, workshops, and networking opportunities to these groups and build partnerships with entrepreneurs for funding and mentorship. These initiatives have the chance to pitch for up to 10,000 Euros in funding and work with mentors from the business community to implement their ideas.
Project: The FWD Technology & Freedom Academies
The FWD Technology & Freedom Academies (TFA) is a pioneering initiative by the Democracy Lab Foundation (Demo Lab) and CRC Endurance to promote employment and civic participation in underinvested communities in Costa Rica where youth apathy and disengagement is dangerously high. With support from the Rising Tide grant, DemoLab has developed a Freedom Curriculum which covers leadership and entrepreneurship, civic education, and financial freedom. The Freedom Curriculum is taught in parallel with a software engineering and English course, offering alumni an opportunity for employment in the global technology ecosystem as well as a civic education that promotes democratic and classical liberal values.
Participants, aged between 17- and 29-year-old from low-income backgrounds and areas affected by organized crime, will undergo a six-month in-person course that is developed in collaboration with Universidad Fransico Marroquin, Cornell University, and University of Oxford, and other experts. This project aims to enhance agency and provide skills that contribute to greater economic flourishing.
Project: Working Our Way Home
First Step Staffing (FSS), provides immediate employment, transportation to and from work, and connections to other resources and services to support those who are facing barriers to employment. Through this project, FSS will expand to two new cities and scale their Retention Services partnership with Emerging Leaders, which was first piloted through the Rising Tide Collaboration Fund.
Over the course of the two-year grant, FSS will employ 175 individuals across their two new locations and, importantly, achieve self-sustaining offices through employer staffing agreements in these two locations. This will enable FSS to employ hundreds and thousands over the coming years. During the two-year grant, FSS plans to pay out over USD 2.5 million in wages in the two new locations.
In addition to employing 175 individuals in the two years of the grant, FSS will add a new component to their retention services: the Emerging Leaders Training program. This collaboration was originally sparked by the Rising Tide Spark Fund for Collaboration. Emerging Leaders tested their training with FSS clients and staff in 2023 with great success. Because of this, FSS has identified the Emerging Leaders training as a key ingredient to their retention services, which they will be able to fully implement through this new Rising Tide grant.
Project: Restoring Rule of Law by Overturning the Unconstitutional Administrative State
Through this project, the Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) aims to enhance the rule of law and individual freedom in the United States of America by challenging the unconstitutional administrative state. They plan to do this by identifying and developing cases related to the separation of powers, push these cases to the Supreme Court to bolster their chances of nationwide regulatory form, and collaborate with partners to create regulatory reform at the state and federal level.
Throughout this project, PLF legal priorities will focus on preventing Congress from passing legislative power to unaccountable agency, stopping courters from deferring to agencies’ interpretations of norms, ensure only Senate-confirmed, presidentially appointed official can issue regulation, and ensure a fair and impartial process for those subject to agency actions. Over the past five years, through litigation and complementary activities, PLF have curbed agency overreach, held the government accountable, and established themselves as a leader in this field.