Wild Earth Society Incorporated
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
Wildlands Network works to reconnect, restore and rewild North America so that life-in all its diversity-can thrive.
- Income
- $4.1 million
- Spending
- $3.9 million
- Spent on programs
- 81%
- Reserves
- 3.7 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 78%
- Employees
- 34
- Volunteers
- 36
- Highest pay
- $127,062, comms director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 75 out of 100. Higher than 54% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
20 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 3.7 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 5% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 5% of income.
Income trend
5 of 15Income fell 10% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1581% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 1 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 95 out of 100. Higher than 62% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2515 of 15 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
0 of 5Reports no independent review process for its chief executive's pay.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (4)
- $985,755 spent. Western Wildway: In collaboration with our partners and volunteers, we removed and modified wire from 12.3 miles of prioritized fence lines within the winter range of the Paunsaugunt mule deer herd in Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument and surveyed approximately 30 miles of fence on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land. The surveys assess which fences are acting as barriers to wildlife movement, specifically for the pronghorn that inhabit the valley. In partnership with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and Sageland Collaborative, we developed guidelines for using DWR's fence mapping app that helps identify and prioritize fences for improvement across the state. We captured a mountain lion crossing through one of the large border wall openings that were opened as a result of the 2023 border wall settlement. We published new research confirming a devastating truth: the U.S.-Mexico border wall is reducing wildlife movement by 86%. Our work was featured in "Nature Divided," a documentary following our Borderlands Program Coordinator, Myles Traphagen, as he documents both the damage and the growing promise of reconnecting cross-border habitat. We led the legislative campaign in New Mexico that secured a record $50 million investment in the Wildlife Corridors fund, the largest single appropriation ever dedicated to terrestrial wildlife crossings in the country.
- $707,985 spent. Eastern Wildway: Two more (of five total) bridges on I-40 through the Pigeon River Gorge were replaced and completed with wildlife friendly infrastructure based on Wildlands Network and NPCA's recommendations. We concluded our fourth field season monitoring wildlife use of small road underpasses at Gorges State Park, as well as evaluating the effect of fencing on crossing structure use. We're now compiling available location data in the southern Appalachian mountain region for spotted skunk, eastern box turtle, and timber rattlesnake to create maps that can inform sites where NC State Parks and Blue Ridge Parkway can help conserve and connect three of our species of conservation concern. We also participated in the first South Carolina Wildlife Connectivity Coalition meeting along with representatives from SCDOT, SC NGO's, Clemson University, and several local government agencies to begin developing a strategy for wildlife crossing implementation in SC. We complete the first full year of roadkill data collection on US 64 in the red wolf recovery area on July 31 of this year.
- $516,891 spent. Pacific Wildway: With the help of local partners, we helped California identify six new priority sites for crossings along U.S. 395 in the Northern Sierra Nevada Mountains, to help mule deer, bears, and other species safely cross this deadly road. We cosponsored the Room to Roam Act (AB 1889), requiring local governments to incorporate wildlife connectivity into general plans. We organized a policy collaborative through California Wildlife Reconnected that launched a campaign to address existing gaps to integrating wildlife crossings in transportation planning and implementation. Our trail campaign realigned its 500-mile trail proposal to focus on maintaining existing routes and limiting new routes to those closer to communities rather than building new trails. We established the Baja Connectivity coalition to share data and strategize a reform response to proposed and ongoing border construction's impacts to wildlife. We organized and drafted over $5 million in successful State Route 62 (Riverside County) WCB grants for wildlife crossing planning and design across priority corridors.
- $921,006 spent. In Virginia, we successfully advocated for a $450,000 appropriation to support high priority wildlife crossing projects identified within the state's Wildlife Corridor Action Plan. In Maryland, we were successful in supporting the passage of Maryland's Wildlife Connectivity and Crossings Act to prioritize habitat connectivity in development projects and create a coalition to manage the process. We secured funding to support new jaguar corridors between Arizona, New Mexico, and Sonora, Mexico including promoting the need for new wildlife crossings over Mexico's Highway 2 to key decision makers. As part of the NOSSA coalition we coordinated a report revealing that Mexico's budget for natural protected areas proposed for 2025 hit an 18-year low. The report garnered national and international attention with over 80 articles and headlines, placing this issue on the public agenda and in the spotlight for stakeholders and legislators.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since March 1992.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.