The Rainforest Foundation US provides financial and technical support to indigenous communities and organizations to secure their rights to their traditional lands and protect their forests and livelihoods. We are tackling the world's most urgent challenges: biodiversity loss, climate change, and human rights.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
80¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$996K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2024 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
3 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $776K a year · 9% of revenue · last 5 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 3 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
80%
of spending
Looks good: 80% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$996K
to officers and key staff · 10% of spending
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 10% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
5 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 5.1 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
2
named funders · $11K
Fine: 2 funders name it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$1.4M
21% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 21% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
8
of 8 voting members
Looks good: 8 of 8 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$7.8M
-17% vs prior year
Spent
$9.8M
To programs
80%
Net assets
$5.4M
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$7.8M
FY2024▼ -17%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$7.5M
FY2021$7.1M
FY2022$11.2M
FY2023$9.4M
FY2024$7.8M
Expenses
$9.8M
FY2024-0.1%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$5.7M
FY2021$4.8M
FY2022$8.9M
FY2023$9.8M
FY2024$9.8M
Net assets
$5.4M
FY2024▼ -27%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$3.2M
FY2021$5.5M
FY2022$7.7M
FY2023$7.4M
FY2024$5.4M

From the FY2024 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Apr 1994.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

80 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 80% · $7.9M Management & general 8% · $812K Fundraising 11% · $1.1M

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

14 people listed on the 990; $996K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Program Director
$249,385Pt VII · Sec A
$190,000Pt VII · Sec A
Director of Development
$163,958Pt VII · Sec A
Policy Director
$139,097Pt VII · Sec A
Director of External Relations and Partnerships
$133,301Pt VII · Sec A
Field Sciences Director
$120,000Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Christine Halvorson’s $249K as Program Director is at the 93rd percentile of top reported officer pay among 1851 $1–10M environment 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 · 6 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Christine Halvorson$249,385$213,735$113,959$108,300$101,138
Suzanne Pelletier$190,000$193,333$180,000$170,000$143,750
Joshua Lichtenstein$139,097$189,445$109,960$105,000—
Julie Hudson$163,958$161,609———
Kim Chaix$133,301$139,396$105,467$101,000—
James Cameron Ellis$120,000$131,668———

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 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Empowers indigenous communities to protect their lands, forests, and livelihoods through financial and technical support.

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Provided by the organization

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3 programs · $7.9M · in their own filed words · FY2024
01

Strengthening indigenous organizationsorganizations with strong governance and administration are better able to manage and protect their forests. They're also better able to receive and manage direct global funding to continue the essential work they have always done to safeguard forests.

$4.8Mprogram expense
02

Rainforest protectiondeforestation is a major driver of the climate crisis. In fact, it's the second leading cause of carbon emissions, and it's a key factor pushing the planet towards an ecological tipping point.

$1.8Mprogram expense
03

Land rightsmounting evidence shows what we've known since our founding--that rainforests protected by indigenous peoples are healthier and store more carbon than even national parks. But without legal recognition of their lands and the protection of their human rights, indigenous peoples face significant challenges in safeguarding these…

$1.3Mprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 2 funders$11K

By the numbers

The FY2024 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$7.8M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$7.6M
Investment incomeLn 3$158K
Money outPt IX
$9.8M
Ln 25
Programscol B$7.9M
Managementcol C$812K
Fundraisingcol D$1.1M
Owns and owesPt X
$5.4M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$4.2M
Total assetsLn 16$6.8M
LiabilitiesLn 26$1.4M
PeoplePt VI, VII
14
listed · VII A
PaidVII A6
Voting boardVI 1a8
IndependentVI 1b8
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$7.6M
Government grantsLn 1e$1.7M
Noncash giftsLn 1g$227K
Investment incomeLn 3$158K
Gains on assetsLn 7−$10K
Total revenueLn 12$7.8M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$2.2M
SavingsLn 2$2.0M
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$4.2M
InvestmentsLn 11–13$193K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$43K
Other assetsLn 15$1.1M
Total assetsLn 16$6.8M
LiabilitiesLn 26$1.4M
Net assetsLn 32$5.4M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 531
VolunteersI 60
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY24End FY24
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$7.0M$4.2M
InvestmentsLn 11–13$110K$193K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$48K$43K
Total assetsLn 16$9.7M$6.8M
LiabilitiesLn 26$2.3M$1.4M
Net assetsLn 32$7.4M$5.4M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$2.2M$2.2M
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$237K$95K$83K$59K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$2.8M$1.7M$353K$673K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$94K$60K$12K$23K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$358K$229K$42K$87K
Payroll taxesLn 10$302K$186K$43K$73K
Legal feesLn 11b$7K$273$6K
Accounting feesLn 11c$58K$4K$54K
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$560K$487K$57K$15K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$73K$73K$161
Office expensesLn 13$160K$39K$80K$40K
Information technologyLn 14$74K$17K$21K$35K
OccupancyLn 16$213K$85K$21K$106K
TravelLn 17$467K$447K$11K$9K
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$7K$7K
InsuranceLn 23$22K$6K$17K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$2.2M$2.2M$4K$4K
Total functional expensesLn 25$9.8M$7.9M$812K$1.1M

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 Latest Viewing $7.8M$9.8M−$2.0M$5.4M 990 PDF
FY2023 $9.4M$9.8M−$420K$7.4M 990 PDF
FY2022 $11.2M$8.9M$2.2M$7.7M 990 PDF
FY2021 $7.1M$4.8M$2.3M$5.5M 990 PDF
FY2020 $7.5M$5.7M$1.8M$3.2M 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons I · Grants A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash J · Pay O · Explanations
See the full FY2024 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $7,797,512 revenue, 12 lines filed
I-8 Contributions and grantsPrior year $9,246,811$7,639,882
I-9 Program service revenuePrior year $0$0
I-10 Investment incomePrior year $166,441$157,630
I-11 Other revenuePrior year $0$0
I-12 Total revenuePrior year $9,413,252$7,797,512
I-13 Grants and similar amounts paidPrior year $2,947,390$2,211,781
I-14 Benefits paid to membersPrior year $0$0
I-15 Salaries and benefitsPrior year $3,017,657$3,766,534
I-16a Professional fundraising feesPrior year $0$0
I-17 Other expensesPrior year $3,868,539$3,841,544
I-18 Total expensesPrior year $9,833,586$9,819,859
I-19 Revenue less expensesPrior year −$420,334−$2,022,347
Part VI · Governance 8 of 8 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body8
VI-1b Independent voting members8
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $7,797,512 across 7 lines filed
VIII-1e Government grants$1,738,595
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$5,901,287
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$227,411
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$7,639,882
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $167,303$167,303
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assetsExcluded from tax −$9,673−$9,673
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $0 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $157,630$7,797,512
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $9,819,859 across 17 lines filed
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsPrograms $2,211,781$2,211,781
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $94,871 · Management $83,012 · Fundraising $59,295$237,178
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $1,749,227 · Management $352,534 · Fundraising $673,356$2,775,117
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $59,745 · Management $11,651 · Fundraising $22,859$94,255
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $228,845 · Management $42,424 · Fundraising $86,775$358,044
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $185,864 · Management $42,671 · Fundraising $73,405$301,940
IX-11b Legal feesPrograms $273 · Management $6,290$6,563
IX-11c Accounting feesPrograms $4,000 · Management $54,113$58,113
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $487,260 · Management $57,404 · Fundraising $14,935$559,599
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $72,589 · Fundraising $161$72,750
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $39,120 · Management $80,277 · Fundraising $40,159$159,556
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $17,486 · Management $21,411 · Fundraising $34,748$73,645
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $85,195 · Management $21,299 · Fundraising $106,495$212,989
IX-17 TravelPrograms $446,612 · Management $10,782 · Fundraising $9,481$466,875
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationManagement $7,338$7,338
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $5,513 · Management $16,929$22,442
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $2,193,181 · Management $4,057 · Fundraising $4,436$2,201,674
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $7,881,562 · Management $812,192 · Fundraising $1,126,105$9,819,859
Part X · Balance sheet $6,783,767 assets, 16 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $1,878,125$2,164,276
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $5,092,019$2,028,927
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $1,304,664$1,228,641
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $47,687$3,790
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $47,979$43,160
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $110,365$193,162
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $1,221,624$1,121,811
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $9,702,463$6,783,767
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $235,346$107,545
X-18 Grants payableStart of year $862,864$197,231
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $1,217,265$1,114,350
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $2,315,475$1,419,126
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $4,708,374$3,055,374
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $2,678,614$2,309,267
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $7,386,988$5,364,641
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $9,702,463$6,783,767
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $5,364,641 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$7,797,512
XI-2 Total expenses$9,819,859
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$2,022,347
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$7,386,988
XI-9 Other changes in net assets$0
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$5,364,641

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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