Founded in 1917 by John Emory Andrus, the Surdna Foundation seeks to foster sustainable communities by focusing on social justice, healthy environments, inclusive communities and thriving cultures. The Surdna Foundation had US$ 976 million of assets under management as at June 30, 2017.
In 2014, the Surdna Foundation looked at how they could use their endowment to support their mission by providing investment capital to fund innovative, market-based approaches that address systemic challenges while generating both social and financial returns. In 2017, the Foundation created a US$ 100 million fund to allocate to Mission-related Investments and Program-related Investments.