Earth Island Institute

According to the Earth Island Institute tax filing for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, Earth Island received in-kind contributions of donated services and use of facilities in fiscal 2020 on which it placed a total value of $3,329,984 (IRS Form 990, Schedule D, Part XI).

[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 Earth Island Institute audit of June 30, 2020 (Note 10, Deposit for Land Purchase – Kelly Creek Protection Project):

"During the year ended June 30, 2018, the Organization started the Kelly Creek Protection Project to raise funds to purchase land in Petaluma named the Helen Putnam Regional Park extension. The Organization raised $3,040,000 during the year ended June 30, 2018 and raised another $1,087,000 during the subsequent year ending June 30, 2019 for a grand total of $4,127,000 for the project.

"In May 2018, the Organization made a deposit of $2,100,000 for the purchase of the land. In August 2018, the Organization made another deposit of $2,000,000 for a total of $4,100,000 which is currently being held as a deposit in escrow for the purchase of the land."

According to the Earth Island Institute audit of June 30, 2020 (Note 21, Related Party Transactions):

"The Organization leases office space from the David Brower Center (see Note 20 [portions cited, below]). Furthermore, the Organization has several board members that serve on the board of the David Brower Center."

According to the Earth Island Institute audit of June 30, 2020 (Note 20, Leases):

"The Organization's main office is located at the David Brower Center in Berkeley, California. This lease is for five years commencing on May 1, 2019 with three five-year renewal options. The monthly rent is currently $27,716.

"The Organization has been subleasing some of its office spaces at David Brower Center to other unrelated parties. These subleases are currently on a month-to-month basis.

"The David Brower Center building was owned by Oxford Street Development, LLC until December 2014 when the David Brower Center acquired the building. The David Brower Center held a master lease for the building before its acquisition of the building. Oxford Street Development, LLC has two members, one of which is the David Brower Center, a California non-profit organization... The David Brower Center has designated two supported organizations – one of them is the Earth Island Institute, Inc. The David Brower Center engages in efforts to protect the natural world, educates the public about the natural world, and promotes sustainable human communities.

"In addition, the projects of the Organization also have separate offices that are under noncancelable term leases, one-time lease, and/or month-to-month leases. The Organization also pays some of the project directors for the usage of their home offices..."

According to the Earth Island Institute tax filing for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, in response to the question re: the existence of a family or business relationship among officers, directors, trustees, or key employees (IRS Form 990, Part VI, line 2), Earth Island reports:

"Barbara and Ken Brower are board members and sister and brother" (IRS Form 990, Schedule O).

In addition to being a board member, Ken Brower is also reported as Vice President. Earth Island reports having 10 voting members on its board at the end of fiscal 2020, including Barbara and Ken Brower (IRS Form 990, Parts VI & VII).

According to the Earth Island Institute audit of June 30, 2020 (Note 14, Paycheck Protection Program Loan Payable):

"In April 2020, the Organization obtained an SBA [Small Business Administration] Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan through Bank of the West in the amount of $1,530,727 to finance operations during the Coronavirus Pandemic... The PPP loan bears an interest rate of 1% and is payable in monthly installments of $85,726 beginning October 2020 through March 2022. However, the PPP loan can be forgiven in accordance with the requirements of the Paycheck Protection Program... There is no guarantee that the Organization will receive forgiveness of any portion of the Loan. Forgiveness is conditioned on SBA Approval and SBA reimbursement to the Lender."

According to the Earth Island Institute audit of June 30, 2020 (Note 22, Coronavirus Pandemic):

"In December 2019, an outbreak of a novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) began to spread among various countries, including the United States. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization characterized COVID-19 as a pandemic. In addition, multiple jurisdictions in the U.S., including California, declared a state of emergency and issued shelter-in-place orders in response to the outbreak. The immediate impact to the Organization's operations included restrictions on employees' and volunteers' ability to work, and it is anticipated that the impacts from this pandemic will continue for some time. As of the report date [November 4, 2020], the financial impact of the coronavirus outbreak cannot be measured."