Merwin Conservancy Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
474653401
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Haiku, HI, USA
Phone
8085798876
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Botanical Gardens, Arboreta and Botanical Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,420,584
Expenses
$696,506
Assets
$3,476,899
Liabilities
$36,780

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARY LOCK (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • SONNET K COGGINS (EXECUTIVE DI): $147,611 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Part iii, line 1 - rooted in the convictions of renowned american poet w.s. Merwin, the merwin conservancy imagines ways of engaging with place, poetry, and practice. We care for the thriving, internationally recognized palm garden on maui that william merwin and his wife paula planted on land depleted by extractive agricultural practices; offer a residency program in the merwins' home to writers and artists who make new possibilities for language and land; and foster attention to nature and the imagination through programming and storytelling.

What it reported doing in 2025

Arts and ecology programming: through our public program series the green room, the merwin conservancy presented the work of poets, writers, and artists to local, national, and international audiences. We hosted in- person programs on maui and o'ahu featuring current and former residents and offered virtual programs to extend access to our global community. We continued our open garden days program, welcoming visitors twice monthly for guided, contemplative experiences that center the ecological and literary legacy of this place. In addition, we hosted educational groups, community organizations, and individual visitors, and launched our educator ambassador program, connecting teachers and students across maui with the conservancy through visits, program attendance, and teaching resources. These programs advanced our mission to foster meaningful connections between nature, language, and the imagination. In 2025, the merwin conservancy advanced its stewardship of w.s. Merwins literary legacy through archival preservation and public access. During the year, the conservancy completed the transfer of w.s. Merwins remaining papers to the harry ransom center at the university of Texas, ensuring long-term preservation and access for scholarship.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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 most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 45
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 76
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 33.2%; rating input score 33
  • Program expense ratio: 70.9%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.87 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 27; 27th 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; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 51%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.99; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 21.2%; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 24.1% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 9.2% per year; rating input score 100; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 14.8% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 33.2% of revenue deployed · 70.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $494K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $148K · 20 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2016 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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 33/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 27/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 15/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 59/100.