Green Forests Work Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
461296612
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Lexington, KY, USA
Phone
8592572908
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Forest Conservation

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,675,220
Expenses
$2,923,150
Assets
$3,214,950
Liabilities
$373,111

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

Leadership & pay

8 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DR CHRISTOPHER BARTON (PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • DR CHRISTOPHER BARTON (PRESIDENT)
  • STEVE FELCH (TREASURER)
  • ROD BULL (DIRECTOR)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

Green forests work exists to re-establish healthy and productive forests on formerly mined lands in appalachia.

What it reported doing in 2024

While fueling the energy needs of the nation, the practice of surface mining has severely impacted more than 1 million acres of the appalachian region's environment through the conversion of forestland into other land uses. Green forests work (gfw) has the ability and expertise to restore healthy, productive forests on previously mined lands to benefit the region, the nation, and the global environment. In 2025, gfw and our partners participated in 61 tree planting projects/events which resulted in the planting of approximately 820,000 seedlings across more than 1,500 acres in 5 states. In 2025, gfw and our partners were able to involve approximately 1,900 volunteers in these tree planting events, educating them about environmental problems and potential solutions.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 84% 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.

The verdict

STRONG - 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 some filed totals do not add up.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 71
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 70
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 58.1%; rating input score 58
  • Program expense ratio: 92.1%; rating input score 92
  • Fundraising efficiency: $36.09 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 73; 73rd 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: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 37.5%; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.1; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.12; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.5% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 22.1% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 23.6% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 58.1% of revenue deployed · 92.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 8 people listed
  • Consistency: 23 of 24 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 58/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 40/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 56/100.