The Oakland Institute is a progressive
think tank founded in 2004 by
Anuradha Mittal. It is headquartered in
Oakland,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.
Mission and areas of focus
Since 2011, the Institute has investigated land investment deals in developing countries, particularly where there are questions about transparency, fairness, and accountability.
The Oakland Institute's mission is to "increase public participation and promote fair debate on critical
social,
economic, and
environmental issues in both national and international forums". The institute works in
coalitions
A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces.
Formation
According to ''A Gui ...
and networks to strengthen
social movements, especially in partnership with
grassroots constituencies such as
faith-based
Faith-based may refer to:
* Faith-based organization
* Faith-based community organizing
* Faith-based school
* White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
* Faith Based (film)
''Faith Based'' is a 2020 American comedy film ...
organizations,
farm workers,
immigrant rights groups, black farmers, and international proponents of
food sovereignty and
trade justice
Trade justice is a campaign by non-governmental organisations, plus efforts by other actors, to change the rules and practices of world trade in order to promote fairness. These organizations include consumer groups, trade unions, faith groups, ...
.
The Oakland Institute categorizes its work into the following program areas:
*
Climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
*
Foreign investment
* High food price crisis
*
International aid
*
Land rights
Land law is the form of law that deals with the rights to use, alienate, or exclude others from land. In many jurisdictions, these kinds of property are referred to as real estate or real property, as distinct from personal property. Land use a ...
*
Poverty
*
Sustainable food systems
A sustainable food system is a type of food system that provides healthy food to people and creates sustainable environmental, economic and social systems that surround food. Sustainable food systems start with the development of sustainable a ...
*
Trade agreements
A trade agreement (also known as trade pact) is a wide-ranging taxes, tariff and trade treaty that often includes investment guarantees. It exists when two or more countries agree on terms that help them trade with each other. The most common tr ...
Activities
In 2011, the institute detailed a $26 million investment made by
Vanderbilt University in Emergent Asset Management, later known as
EMVest Asset Management, a hedge fund accused of abusive practices sub-Saharan countries including Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
[Vanderbilt University Divests from "Land Grab" in Africa](_blank)
Oakland Institute, February 13, 2013 The episode was covered internationally and led to student protests on campus in 2012.
[John Vidal, Claire Provost]
US universities in Africa 'land grab'
''The Guardian'', June 8, 2011
Controversies
In 2021, the Oakland Institute was involved in a watchdog complaint to the
IRS that alleged
self-dealing
Self-dealing is the conduct of a trustee, attorney, corporate officer, or other fiduciary that consists of taking advantage of their position in a transaction and acting in their own interests rather than in the interests of the beneficiaries of ...
by Mittal, who is also the vice president of
Ben & Jerry's non-profit foundation.
In 2017 and 2018, Ben & Jerry's foundation paid $104,000 to the Oakland Institute, where Mittal is the only salaried employee; during this time, the Oakland Institute paid Mittal a salary of $156,000.
Awards and recognition
''
The Nation'' magazine recognized the institute's work, and the efforts of Anuradha Mittal in particular, in their list of ''Most Valuable Progressives of 2008''. The Oakland Institute received the
United Nations Association East Bay's Global Citizen Award in 2007 and the KPFA Peace Award in 2006. in 2012, the Oakland Institute was honored by the Responsible Endowments Coalition for its leadership in drawing attention to college and university investments in land grabs in Africa. Articles and opinion pieces by The Oakland Institute's staff and fellows and/or perspectives on its work are regularly published in U.S. media outlets including ''
Alternet
AlterNet is a left-leaning online news outlet. It was launched in 1997 by the Independent Media Institute. In 2018, the website was acquired by owners of '' Raw Story''.
Coverage
Coverage is divided into several special sections related to progr ...
'', ''
Slate'', ''
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
'', ''
Inter Press Service'', and ''
The Chronicle of Philanthropy''.
www.oaklandinstitute.org/?q=node/view/101
Listing of published articles about the Oakland Institute.
External links
The Oakland Institute official website
References
{{reflist
Think tanks based in the United States
Organizations based in Oakland, California
2004 establishments in California
Progressive organizations in the United States