Oceanelders Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
453034636
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2013
Location
Hollister, CA, USA
Phone
6506199790
Rating
69
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Environmental Education and Outdoor Survival Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$34,252
Expenses
$116,303
Assets
$876,846
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Gigi Brisson (CEO)

People named in this filing

  • Sarah Woodberry Trauner (Director)
  • Jean Oelwang (Director)
  • Nikole Zoumberakis (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 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The primary mission is to protect and value the ocean and its wildlife. We include the protection of all wildlife, land and sea. Activities include a focus on the high seas, marine protected areas, prevention of deep sea mining, and species protection, including coral reefs around the world.

What it reported doing in 2025

Species protection - Ocean Elders has been working to protect species around the world since its inception. We continue to work with other NGOs in the protection of sharks, rays, turtles, corals, tuna, whales, and their habitats as ecosystems are increasingly threatened by human activity. Ocean Elders increased its focus on the protection of coral reefs within the Philippines and the Coral Triangle. We supported local efforts to study the effects of warming seas on corals and to protect those in the region. We worked with Dr. Wilfredo Licuanan, Director of the Br. Alfred Shields FSC Ocean Research Center, of De La Salle University in Manila, Philippines. Dr. Licuanan's work is critical to the health and protection of coral reefs, primarily in this region which is in the coral triangle. Ocean Elders was able to secure $34000 for his work this year through the US-based arm of De La Salle University.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 48% for direct work, and 52% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 85
  • Accountability: 53
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 64.5%; rating input score 64
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 87.2%; rating input score 87; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 60%; rating input score 60; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 43
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -239.6%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 7.54; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -21.5% per year; rating input score 0; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -32.2% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -1% per year; rating input score 0; 32nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 64.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 3 of 5 board members independent · 3 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $75K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 39 of 41 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 10/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 59/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.