Editor’s Note
The following is an excerpt from Enemies of Energy, a research report created for the Capital Research Center. The full report can be accessed here.
Donor Type: Direct Grant Maker
With an estimated net worth of $4.6 billion as of April 2026, Yahoo co-founder David Filo ranks 334th on the 2025 Forbes 400 list of richest Americans. In 2000, Filo and his wife Angela established the Yellow Chair Foundation, which they have since renamed the Skyline Foundation. According to the foundation’s most recent IRS filing for 2024, Skyline reported net assets of nearly $1.2 billion.
Skyline has emerged as one of the largest known donors to prominent anti-energy NGOs and the pass-through foundations that fund them, with combined grants amounting to $14.5 million for these recipients in 2024.
Key Financial Contributions
- Nearly $10.8 million to six anti-energy NGOs.
- An additional $3.7 million to three major pass-through donors.
Skyline maintains an online grants database that provides insight into more recent grants and future commitments. Notable 2025 grants include:
- S. Energy Foundation: $7 million over 4 years
- Climateworks Foundation: $4 million over 4 years
- Earthjustice: $6 million over 6 years
- Rocky Mountain Institute: $3 million over 3 years
While not widely recognized, Skyline has been a significant donor to anti-energy NGOs for over a decade. In a profile by Inside Philanthropy in July 2015, it was noted that while the foundation prefers to remain under the radar, it had quietly become a major contributor to the Sierra Club’s “Beyond Coal” campaign. In 2013, the foundation donated approximately $9 million, including substantial grants to the Energy Foundation, Environmental Defense Fund, and the Sierra Club.
