Sunscreen to Strategy: Exposing EWG’s Hidden Network of Power Players

A deep dive into so-called consumer advocacy reveals yet another maze of lobbyists, media firms, and politically driven funding, proving once again that one must follow the money

How It Began: Searching for Safe Sunscreen

I went looking for one last source to include in my sunscreen article and landed on the Environmental Working Group (EWG). At first glance, it seemed like a solid overview—summarizing the research on toxins, hormone disruptors, and which SPF ingredients to avoid. But then I started digging deeper.

EWG has built an entire media and product ecosystem: a tap water health database, a cosmetics safety database, a cleaning product guide, and a label called EWG Verified that appears on “safe” consumer brands. They’ve launched The New Lede, an environmentalist online journal, and even partnered with a Kardashian to release a Healthy Living App. The branding is airtight and the influence is massive.

Then I looked at the organization itself: seventy-three staff, nine employees earning six figures, and twenty-two board members. For a nonprofit, that’s a serious operation.

So I opened their IRS Form 990 to see how the money moved—and that’s when the real rabbit hole began.

The Contractors EWG Pays

According to EWG’s 2023 IRS Form 990, the nonprofit paid five independent contractors over $100,000 each, amounting to over $1.4 million in outsourced strategy, lobbying, media, and fundraising services.

NVG, LLC—a Washington lobbying firm behind the Adult Vaccine Access Coalition (AVAC)—received $210,633 for coalition management and government affairs.

The Full Picture, LLC, known for its celebrity-driven media work, took in $435,100 for brand strategy and PR. Meanwhile, Cornucopia, Inc. was paid $274,200 for additional media and PR strategy, raising questions about redundancy and narrative control.

International Fulfillment handled event logistics at a cost of $283,608, and EveryAction, Inc. received $223,931 for digital fundraising and communication efforts. These are not minor vendors, they're political operatives, strategists, and brand architects shaping the public face and policy influence of an organization that markets itself as a grassroots consumer watchdog.

NVG, LLC: The Power Broker Behind AVAC

Founded in 2002 by former members of the White House and Congress, NVG, LLC bills itself as an impact-driven government relations firm specializing in policy strategy, advocacy, outreach, and legislative planning. Their website outlines expertise across healthcare, intellectual property, labor, immigration, education, civil rights, food systems, appropriations, and employee benefits, claiming that they have the ability to “broaden conversations and see connections others miss.”

Public lobbying records confirm NVG has represented more than 45 clients during 2025, including major healthcare stakeholders like the Adult Vaccine Access Coalition (AVAC), Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Omidyar Network, and several nonprofit advocacy and public health groups. This list is drawn from filings accessible via LobbyLinx and LegiStorm, linking NVG directly to pharmaceutical lobbying efforts and coalition-building for public policy influence.

The Full Picture, LLC (a.k.a. Full Picture Productions)

The Full Picture caught my attention for a reason—EWG paid them $435K in 2023 alone for “brand strategy, PR, and media.” That’s not pocket change for a nonprofit claiming to be all about science and advocacy. What’s even more interesting? The Full Picture seems to exist in two flavors: one as “The Full Picture, LLC” and another as “Full Picture Productions.” They’ve got separate websites, separate Instagram accounts, and a client portfolio that screams high-gloss PR: we’re talking Kim Kardashian, Urban Decay, Skims, UNICEF, and L’Oréal. Not exactly grassroots public health stuff. It’s clear this isn’t just about media support, it’s about highly curated image control. The fact that EWG also paid another media contractor (Cornucopia, Inc.) makes it even more obvious: this is layered, strategic narrative management, not just consumer education. When a nonprofit needs two different PR firms, you’ve got to ask: who are they really trying to reach, and why does it take this much spin to sell “science”?

EveryAction Is the Backbone of Democratic Campaign Tech, Not a Neutral CRM

Originally launched by NGP VAN, the digital backbone of the Democratic Party, EveryAction was built to help mobilize voters, run campaign outreach, and manage political data infrastructure.¹ This is the same NGP VAN that’s powered almost every major Democratic campaign since the early 2000s—including Obama, Hillary, and the DNC itself.

In 2021, private equity firm Apax Partners scooped up EveryAction and rolled it into Bonterra, a newly branded nonprofit tech empire that also absorbed Salsa Labs, GiveGab, and others.² NGP VAN, Mobilize, ActionKit—they all still live under the Bonterra roof. These aren’t just CRMs; they’re campaign weapons.³

So when the Environmental Working Group dropped over $220,000 on EveryAction for “digital fundraising and communications,” it was buying into the exact same infrastructure used by Planned Parenthood, the DNC, and a long list of progressive movement organizations.

From Madoff Millions to Political Machinery: The JPB-to-Freedom Together Pipeline

One of the nation’s largest progressive funders was literally built on Madoff money. After Jeffry Picower’s death, his widow Barbara Picower transformed that fortune into the JPB Foundation in 2011. Then in late 2024, JPB quietly rebranded as the Freedom Together Foundation (FTF) — now led by movement organizer Deepak Bhargava, who signaled a sharp shift toward democracy infrastructure and power-building philanthropy.⁴

Between 2015 and 2019, under the JPB name, they granted nearly $39 million to Planned Parenthood, over $25 million to the Center for Community Change, and millions more to intermediary grant makers like NEO Philanthropy, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, and the New Venture Fund—all left-of-center infrastructures.⁵

In 2024, the newly minted FTF committed close to $500 million in grants, including up to $100 million earmarked for new civic organizers, targeting groups focused on racial justice, community power, reproductive rights, and youth engagement:⁶

• Everybody Votes

• Trusted Elections Fund

• Alliance for Youth Organizing

The Walton Family Footprint

The Walton Family Foundation is one of the financial backers of the Environmental Working Group, the nonprofit that positions itself as a crusader for “safer” consumer products and public health.

Consider the irony: the same family behind Walmart, which distributes vast quantities of food, pharmacy medications, and packaged goods, is funding an organization that criticizes the chemical market. That shouldn’t just trigger curiosity, it should raise eyebrows.

Even more interesting is that Time just published an article last month about Alice Walton opening the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine, based in Arkansas that touts a “holistic,” arts-integrated approach to healthcare. Yet, like every accredited U.S. medical program, it requires full compliance with standard vaccine mandates—a clear reflection of mainstream pharmaceutical norms rather than alternative, integrative health paradigms.

What Started With Sunscreen Turned Into a Full-On Tale of Corruption

I wasn’t trying to unravel a conspiracy, I was trying to avoid toxic SPF. One click into EWG’s sunscreen rankings turned into a wormhole of PR firms, pharma lobbyists, political coalitions, billion-dollar donors, and a so-called consumer watchdog group that’s anything but independent.

The money trail never lies, even when people do. Once you follow it, you start to see the pattern: the same names, the same firms, the same narratives, just wrapped in “nonprofit” packaging.

If this rabbit hole rattled you like it did me, consider becoming a paid subscriber because your support fuels my late nights, my tax form deep dives, and my myth-busting that keeps this work alive.

If you want more truth bombs that “they” would rather stay buried, grab a copy of my book, Get Healthy or Get Dead because good health is rebellion and self-defense.

1. Princeton Strategies. “Deep Dive on the History of NGP VAN.” Princeton Strategies Blog. Accessed August 5, 2025. https://www.princetonstrategies.com/post/deep-dive-on-the-history-of-ngp-van.

2. NonProfit Pro. “After Acquisitions, Nonprofit Tech Companies Rebrand as Bonterra.” NonProfit PRO, March 30, 2022. https://www.nonprofitpro.com/article/after-acquisitions-nonprofit-tech-companies-rebrand-as-bonterra.

3. InfluenceWatch. “NGP VAN.” InfluenceWatch.org. Capital Research Center. Accessed August 5, 2025. https://www.influencewatch.org/for-profit/ngp-van.

4. Alex Daniels, “Activist to Foundation Leader: JPB’s Deepak Bhargava to Deliver ‘Lightning Bolt’ to Philanthropy,” Associated Press, March 7, 2024.

5. InfluenceWatch, “Freedom Together Foundation,” accessed August 5, 2025, https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/freedom-together-foundation/.

6. “Press Release: The JPB Foundation Announces New Funding to Strengthen Democracy as Deepak Bhargava Enters Role as President,” Freedom Together Foundation, February 6, 2024.