Out of Eden Walk
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING JOURNALIST AND NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC FELLOW PAUL SALOPEK IS RETRACING ON FOOT THE GLOBAL MIGRATION OF OUR ANCESTORS IN A 24,000-MILE, MULTI-YEAR ODYSSEY THAT BEGINS IN ETHIOPIA AND ENDS IN TIERRA DEL FUEGO.
- Income
- $560,097
- Spending
- $550,364
- Spent on programs
- 50%
- Reserves
- 4.7 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 100%
- Employees
- 1
- Volunteers
- 5
- Highest pay
- $165,000, founding executive director
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 48% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).
Reserves
20 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 4.7 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 1% of what it owns.
Living within its means
12 of 15Income exceeded spending by 2% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 5% on the year before.
Spending floor
8 of 1550% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 7 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: 91 out of 100. Higher than 79% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).
Independent board
25 of 2511 of 11 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
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
6 of 15Its accounts were not audited or reviewed 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, 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 (1)
- $275,549 spent. IN 2024, OUT OF EDEN WALK ADVANCED ITS MISSION OF SUPPORTING PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING JOURNALIST PAUL SALOPEK'S GLOBAL STORYTELLING JOURNEY AND FOSTERING EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT AROUND THAT WORK. KEY ACTIVITIES INCLUDED:OUTREACH AND STORYTELLING: PAUL SALOPEK CONTINUED HIS 38,000-KILOMETER WALKING JOURNEY, REPORTING FROM 5,000 WALKED MILES FROM SOUTH KOREA, JAPAN, AND CONTINUING TOWARD BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALASKA. HIS LONG-FORM JOURNALISM, PHOTOGRAPHY, AND MULTIMEDIA DISPATCHES CONNECTED GLOBAL AUDIENCES TO URGENT ISSUES OF MIGRATION, CLIMATE CHANGE, CULTURAL RESILIENCE, AND HUMAN INTERCONNECTEDNESS.EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS: THE NONPROFIT EXPANDED ITS PARTNERSHIPS WITH SCHOOLS AND EDUCATORS WORLDWIDE. OUT OF EDEN WALK'S CURRICULUM RESOURCES, LEARNING JOURNEYS, AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS REACHED THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS, HELPING TEACHERS BRING GLOBAL STORIES INTO CLASSROOMS THROUGH ACTIVITIES EMPHASIZING SLOW JOURNALISM, EMPATHY, AND CROSS-CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING. WORK CONTINUED WITH HARVARD UNIVERSITY'S PROJECT ZERO AND OTHER COLLABORATORS TO PILOT NEW MEDIA LITERACY AND STORYTELLING INITIATIVES.COMMUNITY IMPACT AND ENGAGEMENT: IN 2024, OUT OF EDEN WALK NONPROFIT COLLABORATED WITH LOCAL PARTNERS IN KOREA TO DEBUT THE MUSEUM EXHIBITION "WALKING KOREA: CUT PIECES." THE ART AND STORYTELLING EXHIBITION LAUNCHED AS A BOLD AFFIRMATION OF CREATIVE RESILIENCE AND CIVIC VOICE. THE SHOW BROUGHT TOGETHER VIDEO INSTALLATIONS, PHOTOGRAPHY, DANCE, AND POETIC WORKS BY KOREAN AND DIASPORA ARTISTS. THEIR ART WOVE TOGETHER THEMES OF MEMORY, MIGRATION, EXILE, AND RESISTANCE IN POIGNANT RESPONSE TO SOUTH KOREA'S POLITICAL TURBULENCE. MANY VISITORS CAME DIRECTLY FROM PRO-DEMOCRACY RALLIES. THROUGH THIS INTERSECTION OF ART, NARRATIVE, AND ACTIVISM, THE EXHIBITION TRANSFORMED INTO A LIVING EXCHANGE - REMINDING ALL THAT STORYTELLING AND IMAGINATION CAN BECOME VITAL TOOLS IN DEFENDING DEMOCRACY AND SHAPING COLLECTIVE FUTURES. THE EXHIBITION WAS VISITED IN-PERSON BY MORE THAN 600 PEOPLE, MAKING IT ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR IN THE HISTORY OF THE WILLOW CREATIVE SPACE. IT FEATURED TWO PUBLIC WORKSHOPS BY CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS. IT GENERATED KOREAN AND INTERNATIONAL MEDIA COVERAGE REACHING A POTENTIAL AUDIENCE OF 1.3 MILLION. AND AS A BONUS, THE EXHIBITION HAS BEEN NOMINATED FOR THE SEOUL ARTS JURY PRIZE AS THE BEST EXHIBITION OF 2024.THE HOMESTORIES PROJECT, A MAP-BASED STORYTELLING PLATFORM DEVELOPED BY OUT OF EDEN WALK, GREW IN PARTICIPATION AND VISIBILITY. COMMUNITY MEMBERS CONTRIBUTED STORIES DOCUMENTING THE MEANING OF "HOME" ACROSS DIVERSE GEOGRAPHIES AND CULTURES, HELPING TO CREATE A LIVING ARCHIVE OF EVERYDAY HUMAN EXPERIENCE. IN 2024, OUT OF EDEN WALK OVERHAULED THE MAP'S TECHNOLOGY TO SAFEGUARD DATA AND SECURE FUTURE ACTIVITIES FOR AMPLIFYING REACH AND IMPROVING USER EXPERIENCES. THE NONPROFIT EXPANDED SOCIAL MEDIA COMMUNITIES TO INCLUDE BLUESKY, INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK, SOUNDCLOUD, VIMEO, YOUTUBE, AND LINKEDIN FOR INCREASING ACCESSIBILITY OF NONPROFIT RESOURCES TO FOLLOWERS. ALSO IN 2024, OUT OF EDEN WALK'S NGS-PARTNERED PODCAST RECEIVED A "SIGNAL" AWARD: HTTPS://WWW.SIGNALAWARD.COM/WINNERS/DETAILS/#NATIONAL-GEOGRAPHIC-SOCIETY/LOVE-HATE-THE-WEATHER-INDIA/0/524963.THROUGH THESE ACTIVITIES, OUT OF EDEN WALK CONTINUED TO ADVANCE ITS MISSION OF USING SLOW JOURNALISM AND EDUCATION TO BUILD EMPATHY AND UNDERSTANDING ACROSS BORDERS.THE OUT OF EDEN WALK IS A GLOBAL STORYTELLING INITIATIVE FOR CROSS-CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT AMONG ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS, MEDIA PROFESSIONALS, AND GRASSROOTS COMMUNITIES THAT OFFERS A POWERFUL ALTERNATIVE TO TODAY'S EXPLODING YET SHALLOW COVERAGE OF CURRENT EVENTS, AND PROMOTES PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE CONNECTIVITY VIA THE ETHOS OF "SLOW STORYTELLING." BEGINNING AT THE HERTO BOURI FOSSIL SITE IN AFRICA IN JANUARY 2013, THE PHYSICAL WALK BY PAUL SALOPEK WILL COVER ABOUT 24,000 MILES ON FOOT, FOLLOWING THE HUMAN FOSSIL RECORD AND GEOPOLITICAL LANDSCAPES, UNTIL REACHING THE "FINISH LINE" IN SOUTHERN AMERICA PATAGONIA, TIERRA DEL FUEGO. THE OUT OF EDEN WALK NONPROFIT TEAM AND BOARD OF DIRECTORS ARE COMMITTED TO SAFEGUARDING AND ELEVATING THE PROJECT'S EDITORIAL AND EDUCATIONAL IMPACT PROGRAMS FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC DURING THE ACTIVE PHASE OF THE WALK AND AFTER THE CULMINATION OF THE JOURNEY. IN AN AGE OF INFORMATION OVERLOAD, WHEN AN ACCELERATING NEWS CYCLE OFTEN STOKES CONFUSION, POLARIZATION AND DIVISION, THE OUT OF EDEN WALK HARNESSES THE POWER OF HUMANE, IN-DEPTH, SCIENCE-BASED, AND CROSS-CULTURAL REPORTING TO ILLUMINATE, THROUGH ALL TYPES OF MEDIA, THE COMPLEX CHALLENGES THAT UNITE HUMANITY AT THE TURN OF A TROUBLED NEW MILLENNIUM: FROM RISING WAVES OF XENOPHOBIA TO RESOURCE DEPLETION, FROM CULTURAL ENDURANCE TO CLIMATE CHANGE, FROM WAR TO HUMAN MASS MIGRATION, FROM TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, AND MUCH MORE. AS OF 2024, THE OUT OF EDEN WALK HAS PRODUCED 500+ IN-DEPTH ARTICLES ON TOPICS RANGING FROM CLIMATE CHANGE TO MASS MIGRATION, ARCHEOLOGY TO GRASSROOTS TECHNOLOGY, CULTURAL SURVIVAL TO ENVIRONMENTAL CRISES. ON NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY DIGITAL, OUT OF EDEN WALK HAS PUBLISHED MORE THAN 480,000 WORDS, 2,500 PHOTOS AND 750 VIDEOS, WITH TEXTS TRANSLATED INTO 34 LANGUAGES, WITH AN ARCHIVE OF 150,000 UNPUBLISHED IMAGES. ADDITIONAL EDITORIAL OUTPUTS INCLUDE:13 MAJOR FEATURE ARTICLES FOR NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE, INCLUDING THREE COVER STORIES, IN AN ONGOING SERIES.100+ MAJOR INTERNATIONAL MEDIA OUTLETS COVERING THE WALK, INCLUDING THE NEW YORK TIMES, WASHINGTON POST, THE NEW YORKER, PBS NEWSHOUR, NPR, CNN, BBC, CBC, VICE AND GQ.245,000+ FOLLOWERS WHO ACCESS THE WALK'S STORYTELLING VIA SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS.OUT OF EDEN WALK'S "SLOW STORYTELLING" METHODOLOGY AND PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE EDUCATION PROGRAMMING IMPACTS A VAST AUDIENCE: HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS ARE EXPERIENCING OUT OF EDEN WALK LEARNING RESOURCES THROUGH OUR NETWORK OF BLUE-CHIP PARTNER INSTITUTIONS. STUDENTS AND MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC, OF ALL AGES, FROM ANYWHERE ON EARTH, ACCESS AND JOIN THIS
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
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 September 7, 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 September 30, 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 September 10, 2026.
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 September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since February 2013.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 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 7, 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.