Community Nature Connection

What it reported doing in 2024

Wildfire fire resiliency and workforce developmentcnc staff facilitated the wildfire resiliency and workforce development grant agreement #3810-gf-2384. The grant consisted of 7 tasks. Five of the seven tasks were completed within the reporting period. Two remaining workshops for task 5 will be completed in fall fy25-26.task 1 - implementation of outdoor coastal access leadership institute the smmc wildfire grant supported task 1: the outdoor and coastal access leadership institute (ocali) program. Within this task, ocali engaged two cohorts with a total of 26 youth community leaders (high school (15-18) age and transitional age youth (18-21)) through a 10-week extended leadership program in nela and vista hermosa. Participants of the ocali program engaged in core curriculum of environmental justice topics like intersectionality, red-lining, wildfire education and resiliency, were shared during both cohorts. Northeast youth met at elyria canyon park met every saturday in-person and alternated friday evenings virtually for 12 weeks. For nela transitional aged-youth worked closely with the akuutet learning nursery at elyria canyon to provide hands-on instruction of native plant identification and propagation. The closely connected relationships of community partners that the nursery has cultivated in the past three years offered a rich opportunity for youth interns to network local leaders. Nearby access to the green space corridors, such as elephant hill and rainbow canyon, were included in the curriculum plans to introduce interns to the niche environmental access efforts in the area. Guest speakers from the honey block and natives 4 nature and active community members shared cultural experiences and local history. The nela cohort camped at henry cowell redwoods state park in santa cruz, ca. This camping trip influenced the development of the community action project. The vista hermosa park high school youth cohort focused on environmental access to outdoor locations through public transportation. The cohort met at vista hermosa natural park every friday evening and alternating saturdays for 12 weeks. Youth participated in team building activities, community mapping, built a corsi-rosenthal air purifier box, debated the impact of microplastics, and planned out their community action project. Field trips to the santa monica pier for ca coastal clean up day, to king gillette ranch, to local resource sites like unidad park, patton street park and echo park library, and to the octavia lab at the la central public library influenced the group's decision on the community action project. Additionally, youth enjoyed an overnight camping experience at leo carrillo state beach. A final report, which will be completed in october 2025.task 2 - implementation of emerging naturalist 1.0cnc program staff launched the 6 week emerging naturalists 1.0 program at vista hermosa park which took place from march 8th - april 12th, 2025. Program coordinators jovi nieto and javier rodriguez implemented weekly saturday in-person sessions which included a parent/guardian orientation, restoration workdays at vista hermosa park, and field trips to the santa monica mountains and beaches. At vista hermosa, participants collaborated with mrca staff to restore and clean up the front entrance of the park on toluca st. Earning skills of weeding, trimming, and working with hand tools. Through the program's built-in field trips, participants got to explore both local and distant green spaces. For example, we visited a local community garden at unidad park, where students met with diana campos-jimenez of the la neighborhood land trust to learn about community gardens/gardening, seed starting, garden maintenance, and culturally relevant herbs/produce that grow best in our local microclimate. On our trip to the santa monica mountains, students got to visit king gillette ranch where they could apply the outdoor skills they had been learning about to hiking the gillet

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 68.4%; rating input score 68
• Program expense ratio: 72%; rating input score 72
• Fundraising efficiency: $191.12 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Fail
  • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Missing
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 5.1%; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.48; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.17; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 8.5%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -2.9% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: -0.3% per year; rating input score 0; 14th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: -3.4% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings