Climate Breakthrough Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 880587390
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2022–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Berkeley, CA, USA
- Phone
- 5102244184
- Rating
- 78
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Human Service Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $20,574,971
- Expenses
- $10,511,956
- Assets
- $61,061,622
- Liabilities
- $4,364,558
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
16 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- RACHEL A FERGUSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- RACHEL A FERGUSON (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $263,617 total reported compensation
- DAWN BICKETT (DIRECTOR, FINANCE & OPS): $209,081 total reported compensation
- ALEXANDRA WANG (DIRECTOR, PROGRAMS): $192,300 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To launch breakthrough climate mitigation efforts by identifying, supporting, and unleashing innovative leaders with transformative strategies.
What it reported doing in 2024
Climate breakthrough worked with our network of scouts around the globe to identify potential grantees and award grants in support of large-scale climate mitigation strategies. Climate breakthrough supported grantees with capacity building services, including those focused on impact and learning, organizational development, and executive coaching.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 98% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 76% of its reported program spending out as grants.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - A large share of total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 63
- Transparency & Controls: 81
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 80
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 45.1%; rating input score 45
- Program expense ratio: 86.5%; rating input score 86
- Fundraising efficiency: $89.24 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
- Requires narrative reports: Fail
- Conducts field audits: Fail
- May suspend future funding: Fail
- Requires financial reports: Pass
- Conducts site visits: Fail
- Requires grant agreements: Pass
- May require repayment: Pass
- Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 48.9%; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.81; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.07; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 13.8%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 47.3% per year; rating input score 100; 98th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 14.8% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 58.4% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 45.1% of revenue deployed · 86.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 8 of 8 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $9.1M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $264K · 16 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 2 contractors listed · $239K reported
- Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
- Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 3 filing years from 2022 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 15 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 7 filed related-organization links
- 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.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 45/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 4 of 8 not reported.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.