FUNDING HIGHLIGHTS
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Stewardship
Nature has been pushed to the brink as a result of human activity that has led to habitat loss and degradation, climate change, the spread of invasive species, and widespread pollution. As a result, biodiversity on Earth is declining at an alarming rate - more than a million species of plants and animals are threatened by extinction in the coming decades. To help stem this tide, the Foundation has approached the issue of biodiversity and ecosystem stewardship from a systems-based methodology and applied our venture philanthropy model that involves a fusion of grant funding, impact investing, and the talent and time of our trustees and staff.
We seek to support organizations and develop initiatives that build community with on-the-ground and online education and outreach aimed at strengthening local attitudes toward the natural world and fostering an active biodiversity movement; advance ecological management and restoration on public and private lands; and improve coordination and more explicit consensus among organizations and key individuals. To protect habitats on land and in the sea, we have supported national organizations including The Nature Conservancy, EDF, NRDC, Earth Justice, Sea Shepherd, the Sierra Club, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the National Geographic Society. To advance scientific research and foster innovation, we’ve made grants to organizations such as Revive & Restore, the Woodwell Climate Research Center, NatureServe, and the Xerces Society. The Foundation is also proud to have been the seed funder of the Torres del Paine Legacy Fund, a travel-philanthropy mechanism in Chilean Patagonia that aims to turn travel into a tool for positive environmental development.
Through the Fink Fellows program, the Foundation has also created opportunities to develop and mentor the next generation of passionate environmental leaders. The Foundation has supported fellowships and internships at organizations including the Student Conservation Association, Yale University, NatureServe, and SUNY-ESF. We also believe that storytelling is a critical ingredient in building support for a cause. To that end, the Foundation has funded environmental documentaries through their association with the Impact Partners group including Racing Extinction, The Eagle Huntress, Chasing Ice, and Chasing Coral. Supporting local initiatives that can be replicated elsewhere is another important part of our model, and we’ve been fortunate to collaborate with numerous organizations on Martha’s Vineyard and in Colorado.
Highlights of the Foundation’s current biodiversity and ecosystem stewardship initiatives are described below:
BiodiversityWorks
BiodiversityWorks promotes the conservation of biodiversity through wildlife research and monitoring while providing opportunities for people to engage in hands-on nature study. BiodiversityWorks works with conservation groups, private landowners, federal and state agencies, citizens, students, and scientists to ask questions and find answers together. The high school mentoring program at BiodiversityWorks, made possible with the support of the Foundation, provides opportunities each summer for young people interested in the field of wildlife biology and science to engage in field research and monitoring to develop their career interests and skills. In 2022, the Foundation and BiodiversityWorks launched the Martha’s Vineyard Atlas of Life (MVAL), an online destination that serves as a centralized resource for the public to deepen its knowledge of the Island’s plants and animals and share their observations.
Earthjustice
Earthjustice is the premier nonprofit public interest environmental law organization. Earthjustice wields the power of law and the strength of partnership to protect people’s health, to preserve magnificent places and wildlife, to advance clean energy, and to combat climate change. The legal work done by Earthjustice has saved irreplaceable wildlands, cleaned up the air we breathe, and fueled the rise of 100% clean energy. It has protected countless species on the brink of extinction, and secured long-overdue, historic limits on our nation’s worst polluting industries.
Torres del Paine Legacy Fund
The Foundation is proud to support the development of the Torres del Paine Legacy Fund, a travel-philanthropy mechanism in Chilean Patagonia that aims to turn travel into a tool for positive environmental development. Co-founded by Drew Fink and Dani Uribe, in partnership with Sustainable Travel International, the Torres del Paine Legacy Fund works to improve the sustainability of park visitation and operations while simultaneously creating a better, more impactful experience for visitors to the park and surrounding communities. It is the goal of the initiative to develop Torres del Paine as an economic and social resource for generations to come. To find out more about the Legacy Fund initiative, email info@supporttdp.org.
Xerces Society
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is an international nonprofit organization that protects the natural world through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitats. Xerces is a science-based conservation organization, working with diverse partners that include scientists, land managers, educators, policymakers, farmers, and communities. By utilizing applied research, engaging in advocacy, providing educational resources, addressing policy implications, and building community, they endeavor to make meaningful long-term conservation a reality.
The Foundation is proud of the organizations we have supported in the biodiversity and ecosystem stewardship landscape some of which include:
