Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Nov 2015.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
72 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
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Who runs it and what they're paid
8 people listed on the 990; $108K paid to officers and key staff.
Chad Zibelman’s $108K as CEO is at the 86th percentile of top reported officer pay among 1636 $100K–1M international nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 1 named individual · Part VII
| Name | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chad Zibelman | $108,160 | $103,088 | $116,988 | $86,044 |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
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Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2Yes
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aNo
Programs and updates
Empowers impoverished communities with sustainable development projects.
Questions for The Sonder Project INC
Your first name shows with your question. The Sonder Project INC answers here, for everyone.
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Water Is Our Right
Clean Water Program - 11 deep-well boreholes drilled and the completion of one solar-powered water distribution system providing dependable clean water for a public, secondary boarding school and its surrounding villages in Malawi. We also rehabilitated an old non-Sonder drilled borehole in Malawi.
Education Is Power
Student Sponsorship Program - 210 students in the '23 - '24 school year provided with the resources and support necessary to stay in school through our programs 4 key pillars: Sponsorship, Mentorship, Academic Support, and Life Skills Enrichment. We also sponsored our first Education is Power graduate with post-secondary sponsorship.
Strengthening Schools
Creating Quality Educational Environments - completed the construction of one school block and latrines for a primary school in Malawi with over 500 registered students in partnership with buildOn.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2024 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY24 | End FY24 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $336K | $186K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $11K | $82K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $403K | $402K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $12K | $4K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $390K | $398K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4 | $0 | $0 | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $119K | $37K | $42K | $41K |
| Pay of disqualified personsLn 6 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $53K | $52K | $790 | $0 |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $21K | $21K | $0 | $0 |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $20K | $15K | $2K | $3K |
| Management feesLn 11a | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $13K | $2K | $11K | $0 |
| Lobbying feesLn 11d | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Professional fundraising feesLn 11e | $3K | $3K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $30K | $119 | $30K | $338 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $14K | $7K | $2K | $5K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $24K | $3K | $2K | $19K |
| RoyaltiesLn 15 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $4K | $4K | $0 | $0 |
| TravelLn 17 | $30K | $23K | $7K | $48 |
| Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $605 | $0 | $605 | $0 |
| InterestLn 20 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Payments to affiliatesLn 21 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $15K | $15K | $0 | $0 |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $10K | $4K | $4K | $1K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $254K | $254K | $0 | $0 |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $611K | $437K | $102K | $72K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 Latest Viewing | $619K | $611K | $8K | $398K | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $561K | $576K | −$16K | $390K | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $604K | $536K | $68K | $406K | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $354K | $348K | $5K | $340K | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $307K | $283K | $24K | $335K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2024 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $619,066 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 7 of 7 board members independent, 2 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $619,066 across 12 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $610,963 across 30 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $402,036 assets, 18 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $398,402 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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