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Top Rated

Amazon Conservation Team

CharityWatch report issued
October 2022

Top-Rated Charity
A
CharityWatch Grade
Our independent grade based
on a number of factors.
 
83%
Program Percentage
Amount spent on programs
relative to overhead.
 
$2
Cost to Raise $100
Amount spent to raise
$100 of contributions.

Contact Information

Amazon Conservation Team
101 Park Washington Court
Falls Church, VA 22046

Other Names

None

Tax Status

501(c)3

Stated Mission

Partners with indigenous and other local communities to protect tropical forests and strengthen traditional culture.

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Data based on Fiscal Year Ended 12/31/2021

Program Percentage: 83%

The percentage of Amazon Conservation Team's cash budget it spends on programs relative to overhead (fundraising, management, and general expenses).

$8,500,000

Calculated Total Expenses

(rounded)

 

Cost to Raise $100: $2

How many dollars Amazon Conservation Team spends on fundraising to raise each $100 of contributions.

$27,000,000

Calculated Total Contributions

(rounded)

Government Funding

0% to 24%

Percentage of cash revenue
coming from government sources

 

Financial Documents

Entity Document Type Tax ID
Amazon Conservation Team & Affiliates Audited Consolidated Financial Statements multiple
Amazon Conservation Team IRS Form 990 54-1915987
Entity: Amazon Conservation Team & Affiliates
Document Type: Audited Consolidated Financial Statements
Tax ID: multiple
Entity: Amazon Conservation Team
Document Type: IRS Form 990
Tax ID: 54-1915987

Governance & Transparency

CharityWatch evaluates certain criteria related to a charity's Governance and Transparency. Donors may want to consider a charity's willingness to be open and transparent with CharityWatch to be a good litmus test for determining its commitment to public accountability.
This charity is Top-Rated
What does it mean to be Top-Rated?
 
Amazon Conservation Team
meets governance benchmarks.
 
Amazon Conservation Team
meets transparency benchmarks.
Transparency
Provides Financial Information
Audit Accessibility
Governance: Policies
Reports regularly & consistently monitoring & enforcing compliance with a written Conflict of Interest Policy
Reports required, annual disclosure by officers, directors, and key staff of interests that could give rise to conflicts
Reports having a written Whistleblower Policy
Reports having a written Document Retention and Destruction Policy
Governance: Financials
Reports providing copy of tax form to all board members prior to filing it with IRS
Reports that financial statements were audited by an independent accountant
Governance: Board of Directors
Reports at least 5 voting board members
51% or more of voting board members reported as independent
Reports documenting minutes of board and board committee meetings
Privacy Policy
Privacy Policy No Sharing  

  Name Title Compensation
1 Mark J. Plotkin President $194,648
2 Liliana Madrigal Executive VP $179,330
3 Karla Lara-Otero Senior Director, Finance & Operations $138,251
1
Name: Mark J. Plotkin
Title: President
Compensation: $194,648
2
Name: Liliana Madrigal
Title: Executive VP
Compensation: $179,330
3
Name: Karla Lara-Otero
Title: Senior Director, Finance & Operations
Compensation: $138,251

CharityWatch Analysts perform an in-depth analysis of charities' audited financial statements and IRS tax filings, and often review other documents such as state filings, annual reports, and fundraising contracts during their evaluations. Below are select notes that CharityWatch believes may be of interest to donors.

CharityWatch's rating of Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) also includes the financial activities of the ACT affiliates consolidated in ACT's audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2021, including ACT-Colombia, ACT-Brasil, and ACT-Suriname. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in the audit consolidation.

According to the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) consolidated audit of December 31, 2021 (Note 9, Commitments and Risks, Concentration of Revenue Risk):

"For the year ended December 31, 2021, ACT recognized revenue of $23,860,000 from four donors, which represents approximately 86% of ACT's total consolidated revenue and support, excluding the foreign currency valuation loss..."

According to the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) audited Consolidated Statement of Activities for the year ended December 31, 2021, ACT received in-kind contributions on which it placed a value of $467,784.

According to the ACT 2021 consolidated audit (Note 1 re: Donated Services):  "ACT received donated services primarily consisting of commercial satellite imagery to strengthen ACT's community-based conservation efforts in the diverse ecosystems of the Amazon rainforest..."

[Note: CharityWatch generally excludes the value of in-kind (non-cash) donations of goods and services from its calculations of Program % and Cost to Raise $100. More information on how grades are calculated and the treatment of in-kind donations can be found on the Our Process page.]

According to the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) consolidated audit of December 31, 2021 (Note 8, Note Payable):

"During the year ended December 31, 2020, ACT entered into a[n] SBA [Small Business Administration] loan with its financial institution under the PPP [Paycheck Protection Program] in the amount of $236,900. ACT submitted for forgiveness of the PPP loan, and received notice of forgiveness on August 23, 2021. As a result, ACT recognized the forgiveness of the loan and the accumulated interest in the amount of $240,118 in the accompanying [audited] consolidated statement of activities."

According to the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) 2021 tax filing, ACT reports re: the existence of a family or business relationship among any officers, directors, trustees, or key employees:  "Mark J. Plotkin, Ph.D., President, has a family relationship with Liliana Madrigal, Executive Vice President & board director" (IRS Form 990, Schedule O re: Form 990, Part VI, Section A, line 2).


ACT reports having 12 voting members on its governing body at year-end 2021, with 10 of the members being independent (IRS Form 990, Part VI, lines 1a & 1b).

According to the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) consolidated audit of December 31, 2021 (Note 11, Related-Party Transactions):

"During the year ended December 31, 2021, ACT worked through a partnership with Iniciativas para el Desarrollo Humano Sostenible (IDEHS) located in Costa Rica. This foreign entity is a separately incorporated nonprofit organization. ACT provided significant financial support to the organization. However, ACT does not have control of IDEHS, which would require [audit] consolidation under GAAP [Generally Accepted Accounting Principles]...

"ACT had entered into a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with this organization. ... Under the MOA, ACT provided a majority of the foreign nonprofit organizations' [sic] financial resources and technical assistance. The MOA also indicated that ACT, in collaboration with its partner, would execute a majority of the fundraising activities and that those fundraising activities were subject to modification at any time by both parties' mutual consent.

"For the year ended December 31, 2021, ACT provided $126,232 to IDEHS for program and operational expenses. These expenses were covered with a combination of funds with and without donor restrictions..."

According to the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) consolidated audit of December 31, 2021 (Note 14, Subsequent Events):

"ACT's management has evaluated subsequent events through August 17, 2022, the date the [audited] consolidated financial statements were available to be issued. In February 2022, ACT purchased an office building in Fairfax, VA. Also in 2022, ACT established control over a related party, ACT-Costa Rica, which will be consolidated with ACT for the year ended December 31, 2022..."