The Conservation Fund

What it reported doing in 2025

Conservation real estate activitiesthe conservation fund was founded on a straightforward conviction: conservation and economic growth depend on and reinforce each other. For more than 40 years, the conservation fund has secured at-risk land with high conservation value to protect it from degradation, fragmentation, or development, working with partners to protect the land's long-term environmental and economic vitality. Top ranked for efficiency and mission effectiveness, the conservation fund has conserved over 9 million acres across all 50 states including working forests, farms, wildlife habitat, recreation areas, historic landscapes, and urban green spaces.the conservation fund moves quickly and with purpose, delivering lasting conservation outcomes for nature and people. Its core conservation function is real estate activity: purchasing at-risk properties and holding them for interim periods, providing the time needed for its partners to secure funding to acquire, steward, and permanently manage the properties. This model ensures that funding is available in time to meet the needs of the seller when a high-conservation-value property goes up for sale.funding for the conservation fund's real estate acquisitions largely comes from its "revolving fund" of capital, which is made up of charitable gifts, proceeds from the sale of donated surplus lands that the organization has sold for cash, as well as accumulated gains on and capital returned from past real estate transactions. Targeted program-related investments and a green bond also provide valuable acquisition capital. Sources of funding for dispositions to partners include federal, state, and local government funding programs and philanthropic funds from foundations, corporations, and private individuals. Once a property has been transferred to the long-term holder and the conservation fund recoups its investment, capital is returned to the revolving fund for use in other conservation projects.the conservation fund also provides expertise and support to other organizations as they seek to acquire conservation land, as well as bridge financing and technical assistance to land trusts and other organizations to protect critical natural resources in their communities. These "conservation loans" help the conservation fund's partners expand conservation impact nationwide. As of december 31, 2025, the loan program has helped conserve 167,130 acres through 422 loans in 40 states. The portfolio of loans had a principal value of $7.0 million as of december 31, 2025.working lands. Keeping working forests and farmland intact and in production is critical to ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. The conservation fund purchases at-risk forests and farms and puts protections in place to ensure these lands are sustainably managed for environmental and economic benefits. The conservation fund's working forest program conserves large intact forests in the u.s. So they remain sustainably managed, providing jobs, clean water, clean air, habitat for wildlife and outdoor recreation, and climate resilience benefits. The working forest fund's focus is on large forests with high conservation value and often significant risk of fragmentation when sold on the open market. Consistent with the conservation fund's other real estate activities, the working forest program acts as an interim owner of these forests to facilitate permanent protection through the implementation and sale of conservation easements or direct sales of the properties to public agencies or other conservation buyers. As of december 31, 2025, tcf has deployed over $1 billion into 63 projects covering approximately 1,120,777 acres of critical forests in the u.s. Approximately 780,212 acres have been transferred into permanent conservation as of december 31, 2025. The remaining acres are being sustainably managed by the conservation fund or its partners and are awaiting permanent protection through conservation easemen

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 92.8%; rating input score 93
• Program expense ratio: 95.4%; rating input score 95
• Fundraising efficiency: $16.06 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 99.7%; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 2.9%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.95; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.49; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 1.8%; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 30th percentile among comparable filings