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Nurture Nature Center

EIN 26-1934794 · Easton, PA

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood75 out of 100GovernanceStrong93 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

THE NURTURE NATURE CENTER IS A 501(C)(3) PUBLIC CHARITY THAT USES SCIENCE, ART AND COMMUNITY DIALOGUE TO ENGAGE PEOPLE IN THINKING CRITICALLY ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL RISK TOPICS IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. NNC (CONTINUE ON SCHEDULE O)MAINTAINS A LOCAL CENTER IN EASTON PENNSYLVANIA WHERE IT PURSUES THIS GOAL AND ALSO ENGAGES IN NATIONWIDE RESEARCH ON THE SUBJECT. NNC WAS FOUNDED IN THE WAKE OF MAJOR FLOODING IN THE REGION, AND A SIGNIFICANT FOCUS OF ITS WORK SINCE INCEPTION HAS BEEN ON HOW TO BEST COMMUNICATE MATTERS RELATING TO WEATHER AND CLIMATE HAZARDS GENERALLY. NNC'S RESEARCH AND OUTREACH IN THIS AREA HAS BEEN DISSEMINATED NATIONWIDE.

Income
$1.4 million
Spending
$1.4 million
Spent on programs
95%
Reserves
3.6 months of spending
Largest source of income
government grants, 73%
Employees
16
Volunteers
12
Highest pay
$177,849, secretary & ed

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Good: 75 out of 100. Higher than 53% of charities in its peer group (community improvement, $1m to $10m).

  • Reserves

    20 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 3.6 months of spending.

  • Debt

    10 of 20

    It owes 37% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 5% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 23% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    95% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 93 out of 100. Higher than 57% of charities in its peer group (community improvement, $1m to $10m).

  • Independent board

    18 of 25

    2 of 3 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, 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 (3)
  1. $631,532 spent. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH: A SIGNIFICANT PART OF NNC'S WORK CONSISTS OF SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH CONDUCTED IN CONJUNCTION WITH NATIONAL PARTNERS, INCLUDING GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, UNIVERSITIES, SCIENCE MUSEUMS AND OTHERS. THE RESEARCH FOCUSES ON FINDING THE BEST TECHNIQUES FOR COMMUNICATING ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND WEATHER-RELATED HAZARDS, AND FOR APPROACHES FOR BUILDING COMMUNITY RESILIENCY. NNC'S WORK IN THIS AREA ALSO INCLUDES FOLLOW UP TO DISSEMINATE AND HELP PUT INTO PRACTICE THE RESEARCH FINDINGS. MANY OF NNC'S RESEARCH PROJECTS ARE FOCUSED ON DEVELOPING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE (NWS) ON HOW TO IMPROVE THE FLOOD AND WINTER FORECAST PRODUCTS IT USES IN COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE PUBLIC. NNC (CONTINUE ON SCHEDULE O)HELPS IMPLEMENT THESE RECOMMENDATIONS BY DEVELOPING EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS AND PARTICIPATING IN TRAINING WITH NWS NATIONWIDE. IN 2024, NNC WORKED CLOSELY WITH THE WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER TO ANALYZE FINDINGS FROM RESEARCH RELATED TO THE URBAN RAIN RATE DASHBOARD AND DEVELOPED AND HOSTED A SEPARATE SET OF FOCUS GROUPS ON RAINFALL FORECAST PRODUCTS. NNC ALSO HOSTED FOCUS GROUPS RELATED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF FLOOD INUNDATION MAPPING AND COMPLETED ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH FROM FOCUS GROUPS ABOUT THE INFORMATION NEEDS OF HIGH-VULNERABILITY FLOOD PRONE COMMUNITIES. IN ADDITION, NNC COLLABORATED WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA ON AN EXTREME WEATHER AND SOCIETY FLOOD SURVEY AND COMPLETED A RESEARCH PROJECT ABOUT A NEW WINTER FORECAST PRODUCT FOR ALASKA, ISSUING A FINAL REPORT AND PUBLISHING A JOURNAL ARTICLE.
  2. $535,928 spent. ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY: AT ITS FACILITY IN EASTON, NNC OFFERS A VARIETY OF ART AND OTHER EXHIBITS AND ACTIVITIES DESIGNED TO FOSTER DIALOGUE ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES. NNC'S PERMANENT EXHIBITS INCLUDE NOAA'S ACCLAIMED "SCIENCE ON A SPHERE," FOR TEACHING ABOUT EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE; AN SOS EXPLORER TOUCH SCREEN KIOSK; A LARGE LIVING LOCAL MURAL INCORPORATING 80 ENVIRONMENTAL TALKING POINTS, AND AN INTERACTIVE WATERSHED EXHIBIT. IN ADDITION TO THESE PERMANENT EXHIBITS, NNC HOLDS ROTATING ART SHOWS ON ENVIRONMENTAL THEMES WITH PRESENTATIONS BY THE ARTISTS. IT ALSO OFFERS SPEAKING EVENTS BY EDUCATORS, FILMS, WORKSHOPS, AND CLASSES ON A VARIETY OF ENVIRONMENTAL TOPICS, AND MAINTAINS AN URBAN GARDEN THAT IT USES FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES. OUTSIDE ITS (CONTINUE ON SCHEDULE O)FACILITY, NNC CONDUCTS LOCAL AND REGIONAL OUTREACH IN MANY FORMS, WITH PROJECTS DESIGNED TO BUILD RESILIENCE TO ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS. IN 2024, NNC WORKED WITH SIX MUNICIPALITIES IN THE LEHIGH VALLEY AS PART OF A FEDERALLY FUNDED CREATE RESILIENCE RESEARCH AND COMMUNITY LEARNING HUB" PROJECT AND COMPLETED AN EXHIBIT OF ILLUSTRATIVE RESILIENCE MAPS FOR EACH MUNICIPALITY ALONG WITH AN ONLINE RESOURCE ABOUT RESILIENCE. NNC ALSO ENGAGED IN OUTREACH AND EDUCATION FOR A CREATE CONNECTIONS PROJECT THAT FOCUSED ON CLIMATE ACTION PLANS FOR EASTON AND BETHLEHEM; WORKED WITH COLLEGE INTERNS ON ADDITIONAL OUTREACH ACTIVITIES RELATED TO THOSE PLANS; AND HOSTED ITS 5TH ANNUAL YOUTH CLIMATE SUMMIT IN APRIL WITH OVER 120 STUDENTS ATTENDING. NNC HELD A TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP IN JUNE, AS WELL, FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHER PARTNERS AS PART OF A SCIENCE AND ART INTEGRATED CURRICULUM DESIGN PROJECT (FEDERALLY GRANT FUNDED).
  3. $142,252 spent. NNC ADMINISTERS A PROGRAM KNOWN AS BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL FOR THE LEHIGH VALLEY (BFBL-GLV), WHICH IS DESIGNED TO EDUCATE CONSUMERS IN THE LEHIGH, NORTHAMPTON AND BERKS COUNTIES ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF HEALTHY, LOCALLY-GROWN FOODS, WHILE SUPPORTING THE FARMERS AND LANDS THAT PRODUCE THEM. NNC'S LOCAL FOODS WORK ALSO SEEKS TO IMPROVE FOOD ACCESS FOR LOW-INCOME NEIGHBORHOODS AND IMPROVE THE INFRASTRUCTURE FOR THE LOCAL FOOD ECONOMY.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. 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.

  2. 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 November 6, 2026.

  3. 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.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since July 2008.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. 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 November 4, 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.