Chairman's Message

Rising Tide is growing – in many dimensions, and always with our grantees and the people we serve in mind. It’s long-term growth we are aiming for, using the momentum we have built over the last decade. 2023 very much signifies this growth:

• We hosted our first ever Ambassador dinner in Zurich with 50 people, among them many liberal thinkers, cancer specialists, Rising Tide Board and Advisory Board members who were exchanging ideas and strengthening their networks. It was a great success, and we are already discussing plans to repeat it.
• We launched our new website to even better show how we contribute to improve quality of life everywhere through our grants.
• We have increased the capacity in our core teams to bring even more power to the support of our partners and grantees.
• We extended the Freedom in Practice scope of our Rising Tide Foundation: While we continue to support the efforts of those on the lowest rung of the economic ladder achieve prosperity, there are other areas of our funding focus that are increasingly under threat. Rule of Law issues proliferate around the world, and not even Western democracies have been spared. Free speech is being hampered implicitly and explicitly by private industry and governments, even in those countries that have most defended the right to free speech historically. The rising costs of energy due to regulatory hurdles and bureaucratic malaise have impacted individuals and families around the globe. Our Freedom in Practice team is prepared to take on these major global challenges, placing the human person at the center as we empower individuals to live on their own terms.
• We also sharpened the focus of our Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research on two key themes: Bringing medical care to underserved areas, and pediatric oncology.

The grants program for underserved areas aims to propel clinical cancer research forward in partnership with patients to tackle two primary issues identified: (1) Advancing clinical cancer research for rapid impact on patient outcomes, and (2) enhancing research capacities to empower applicants from these countries to effectively compete as leading investigators for NCI-funded research opportunities in the future. Our first pilot will be launched this year in Uganda and Kenya.

The pediatric oncology focus is tackling another key issue: Worldwide, it is estimated that 328,000 children die from cancer each year. Despite significant advancements in the field of pediatric oncology, there is still a need to find new therapies to increase survival of children with cancer. Traditional treatments for pediatric brain tumors have significant short-term and long-term consequences on the developing brain and body. Since pediatric brain tumors are rare compared to the common types of adult brain tumors, the commercial incentive to develop specific targeted therapies for the pediatric community is reduced. Therefore, RTFCCR launched a call for proposals on therapy de-escalation in pediatric neuro-oncology with the aim to reduce both short- and long-term treatment-associated toxicity while maintaining efficacy and overall survival. 

• And we are especially proud of our 2023 World Cancer Day engagement for BEABA, a small Brazilian initiative that helps train primary healthcare professionals and family members to identify the early symptoms of childhood cancer. 

Through all these activities, we have gained a lot of energy to accelerate Rising Tide’s meaningful contributions to enhancing freedom and prosperity and to empower individuals to live on their own terms. We can make a difference – every single one of us.