Bear Trust International

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
810527298
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2019
Location
Windsor, CO, USA
Phone
4065237779
Rating
72
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Land Resources Conservation

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$186,815
Expenses
$206,133
Assets
$161,448
Liabilities
$26,152

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

7 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • LOGAN YOUNG (Executive Dir.): $61,569 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Bear trust international works to conserve all eight species of the world's bears, other wildlife, and habitat. We believe that wild bears in their natural habitat are key indicators of ecosystem health. Their ability to sustain themselves is, therefore, critical to wildlife. Bear trust strives to reinforce ecosystem viability through habitat conservation and education projects that build on timely research.

What it reported doing in 2024

During fiscal year 2023-2024, bear trust international focused very deligently on our five main platforms, education, research, management, habitat, and policy initiatives. We once again offered free lesson plans to teachers across north america and worldwide. These lesson plans included the newest lesson plan a wolverines life offered in our student scientist series. We worked with the national science teachers association, Montana fish wildlife and parks, wild sheep foundation, and numerous other learning and teaching outlets. All of the courses are offered online, self-paced, and free. We then provide passcodes to educators once we confirmed their credentials as professional educators.in terms of outreach, bear trust has been working on expanding social media presence. We have grown our facebook and instagram pages as well as consistantly updated our website. Bear trust international has been focused on producing educational films. We have also been working hard to complete our bear book, a bear.in terms of management, bear trust continued its work with indian collaborators on a program to reduce human-sloth bear conflict in gujarat, india to save lives of both humans and sloth bears. With regards to habitat conservation, bear trust and its partners successfully worked with individuals on capital hill to pass bills to protect bear habitats. In our conservation policy efforts, bear trust worked hard as an active member of the american wildlife conservation partners to contribute to conservation policy at the federal and state levels. Bear trust was also active in working on the new farm bill which will positively benefit the long-term survival of bear species in the united states. Bear trust is excited for the upcoming fiscal year and all the positive impact we can make.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 92% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 67
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 58
  • Sustainability: 24
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 72.7%; rating input score 73
  • Program expense ratio: 64.2%; rating input score 64
  • Fundraising efficiency: $13.92 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Fail
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -10.3%; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.78; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.16; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 29.9%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.7% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.2% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 72.7% of revenue deployed · 64.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 6 board members independent · 0 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $132K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $62K · 7 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 7 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 48/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 22/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 34/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 11/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 22/100.