Our Children's Trust

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
273094382
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2010
Location
Eugene, OR, USA
Phone
5413750158
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Natural Resources Conservation and Protection

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$791,233
Expenses
$1,096,864
Assets
$4,065,669
Liabilities
$784,430

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CHRIS WINTER (PRESIDENT)
  • DIANE HAZEN (PAST PRESIDENT)
  • MATHEW DOS SANTOS (CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, GENERAL COUNSEL)

People named in this filing

  • JULIA OLSON (FOUNDER, CO-EXEC DIRECTOR, CHIEF LEGAL COUNSEL)
  • CHRIS WINTER (PRESIDENT)
  • DIANE HAZEN (PAST PRESIDENT)

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

Our children's trust empowers youth to secure their rights to life and a livable climate in courts around the world, enshrine the best science in law, and compel government action to protect their futures. We represent young people in state, federal, and international courts, setting precedents as judges increasingly recognize governments' duty to protect future generations. Our plaintiffs challenged transportation departments, energy agencies, and fossil fuel promoting utility systems while supporting constitutional amendments to protect children's rights. We're using civil rights legal tactics to pursue constitutional precedent that transcends politics - creating ripples that reshape climate justice and compel action nationwide.

What it reported doing in 2025

This form 990 covers a short fiscal year from january 1, 2025 through march 31, 2025, reflecting the organization's transition to a new fiscal year ending march 31. As a result, this filing reflects a one-time limited three-month reporting period rather than a full year of programmatic activity.programmatic activities during the short fiscal year: during the january - march 2025 period, our children's trust continued active litigation, legal strategy development, youth engagement, and organizational operations consistent with our established mission and long-term program strategy. This period primarily involved continuation of ongoing cases, legal preparation, youth support, and organizational planning rather than discrete new initiatives or case resolutions.given the abbreviated nature of the reporting period, the organization does not attempt to comprehensively summarize programmatic achievements within this schedule o narrative.reference to full 2025 impact reporting: for a comprehensive overview of our children's trust's 2025 programmatic impact, litigation outcomes, youth engagement, global advocacy, and public education efforts, readers are directed to the organization's 2025 end-of-year impact report, available at: www.ourchildrenstrust.org/end-of-year-2025that report reflects the full scope, scale, and outcomes of the organization's work during calendar year 2025 and provides detailed discussion of litigation milestones, institutional impact, youth leadership, and global climate rights advocacy.public interest nature of activities: all litigation and advocacy conducted by our children's trust is undertaken in the public interest to protect the constitutional and human rights of children. The organization does not seek private benefit from its legal activities, and no fees or expenses are recovered or paid to the organization in connection with its litigation efforts unless and until permitted by law.additional information about our children's trust and its programs is available at www.ourchildrenstrust.org.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 98% 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 available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 83
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 83
  • Sustainability: 37
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 79%; rating input score 79
  • Fundraising efficiency: $4.41 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 14; 14th 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: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -38.6%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.71; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 16.3% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 11.1% per year; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 79% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 11 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $866K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 14/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 26/100.