2025 annual report
In 2025 we received $261,808 and spent $178,774. We ended the year with $122,670 in net assets.
The year at a glance
- Money in
- $261,808
- Money out
- $178,774
- Net assets at year end
- $122,670
Our mission, as reported
To conserve ecologically and culturally significant land in Washington, Oregon, and California.
That year our return described us as "a biocentric land trust rooted in fifteen years of grassroots organizing" that protects land and provides fiscal sponsorship to grassroots ecological and social justice initiatives.
This is how we described our work to the IRS that year. We have since stepped back from holding land to focus on fiscal sponsorship and campaign help.
Where the money came from
| Source | Amount |
|---|---|
| Contributions and grants | $260,755 |
| Interest and investment income | $1,053 |
| Total | $261,808 |
Where the money went
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
| Distributions to sponsored projects | $61,614 |
| Contractors, training, and subscriptions | $44,332 |
| Salaries and wages for sponsored project staff | $39,173 |
| Office expenses | $27,178 |
| Travel | $2,823 |
| Rent and utilities | $2,250 |
| Legal and management fees | $1,404 |
| Total | $178,774 |
Our return reports all of these expenses as program services, the work we exist to do. Salaries went to people working on the projects we sponsor. Fertile Ground itself has no paid staff, and volunteers run the organization.
Net assets
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Net assets at the start of the year | $39,636 |
| Money in | $261,808 |
| Money out | −$178,774 |
| Net assets at the end of the year | $122,670 |
Board and officers
- Max Wilbert, President
- Saba Malik, Secretary
- Rahman Malik, Treasurer
- Dillon Thomson, Executive Director
No board member or officer was paid for this role.
About these figures
These figures come from our 2025 IRS return (Form 990), prepared by our accountant from our records. They are not audited financial statements.
The public copy of the return leaves out the schedule of contributors, which names individual donors. The law allows us to keep donor names private.