214 King Street West, Suite 612
Toronto, ON M5H 3S6
Executive Director: Caroline Schultz
Board President: Kurt Kroesen

Charitable Reg. #:10737 8952 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 3/5]

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Most recent Audited financial statements available on the charity’s website.

B

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

n/r

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

68%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 68 cents are available for programs.



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OVERVIEW

About Ontario Nature:

Ontario Nature is a 3-star charity with an average results reporting score. The charity has overhead costs within Ci's reasonable range and has reserve funds which could cover two years of annual program costs.

Founded in 1931, Ontario Nature (formally Federation of Ontario Naturalists) protects vital species and habitats through conservation, education, and advocacy. It works with over 150 member groups across Ontario, comprising over 30,000 members and supporters. Its head office is in Toronto.

In F2023, Ontario Nature spent 82% of program costs on conservation and education programs, 9% on public relations and communications, and 9% on publishing the ON Nature magazine. Within conservation and education, Ontario Nature runs six main programs. These include Community Science, Nature Guardians Youth Program, Endangered Species, Boreal, Greenway, and Nature Reserves. The charity does not provide a more detailed spending breakdown.

The charity’s Community Science program invites nature enthusiasts to help collect data for research studies. Its Nature Guardians Youth Program hosts events and offers volunteer opportunities for students interested in conservation. In F2023, 304 participants attended seven youth-run events and workshops. Ontario Nature’s Endangered Species program advocates for the protection of Ontario’s at-risk species. In F2023, the charity conducted 16 snake surveys in Norfolk County.

In addition, its Boreal and Greenway programs aim to conserve Ontario’s northern boreal forests and the Greater Golden Horseshoe region, respectively. Ontario Nature calls upon the government to create stronger environmental laws. In F2023, the charity collected over 14,000 signatures opposing Bill 23. In F2023, the charity also published its Beginners Guide on Measuring Carbon Stocks to Support Conservation. Ontario Nature also conserves land directly through its Nature Reserves program. It currently protects 26 nature reserves, covering 7,798 hectares.

Ontario Nature publishes its quarterly ON Nature magazine to highlight Ontario’s natural areas and raise awareness of environmental issues. In F2023, the ON Nature magazine reached over 33,500 readers.

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Results and Impact

In F2023, Ontario Nature won a legal battle when the Court of Appeal upheld the conviction against the Town of South Bruce Peninsula for destroying piping plover habitat. This decision sets a precedent that will help endangered plovers have access to safe habitats in Ontario. The charity celebrated another legal victory when the Kingston City Council voted to deny zoning changes and a needed application for a Minister’s Zoning Order, ensuring that the Great Cataraqui Marsh in Kingston, Provincially Significant Wetlands, remained off limits to development.

While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Ontario Nature’s results and impact. This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r).

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Finances

Ontario Nature received donations of $1.9m in F2023. It also received $1.7m in government funding (44% of total revenues) and $207k in fees for ON Nature magazines (5% of total revenues).

Administrative costs are 9% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 23% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 32%. For every dollar donated to the charity, 68 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.

Ontario Nature has reserve funds of $5.9m. The charity can cover two years of annual program costs with its existing reserves.

Charity Intelligence has sent this update to Ontario Nature for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated July 20, 2023 by Kiara Andrade.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending February
202320222021
Administrative costs as % of revenues 8.9%6.9%5.6%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 23.1%15.9%27.1%
Total overhead spending 32.0%22.9%32.7%
Program cost coverage (%) 203.1%257.1%220.4%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $s
202320222021
Donations 1,936,3692,532,2091,496,729
Government funding 1,663,893919,0191,110,498
Fees for service 206,696226,052183,307
Investment income (50,512)173,607393,349
Other income 25,298695,031578,722
Total revenues 3,781,7444,545,9183,762,605
Program costs 2,890,3052,208,9821,978,689
Administrative costs 340,752303,648187,287
Fundraising costs 446,914403,690406,225
Total spending 3,677,9712,916,3202,572,201
Cash flow from operations 103,7731,629,5981,190,404
Capital spending 29,903605,3562,936
Funding reserves 5,871,2715,678,5224,360,666

Note: Ci included unrealized gains (losses) in investment income, affecting revenues by ($121k) in F2023, nil in F2022, and $240k in F2021. Ci reported government funding from the charity’s T3010 filings with the CRA and removed the amounts from donations. Ontario Nature’s F2023 filing was not available at the time of this report so the total grant amount from the audited financial statements was allocated to government funding. To report on a cash basis, Ci adjusted for deferred grants and project funding, affecting government funding and total revenues by ($48k) in F2023. For F2022 and F2021, Ci could not break out government vs non-government deferred grants and therefore adjusted for them in Other income, affecting revenues by $655k in F2022, and $538k in F2021. Ci removed amortization on a pro-rata basis from program, administrative, and fundraising costs.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 19

Avg. compensation: $74,293

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
0
$200k - $250k
0
$160k - $200k
1
$120k - $160k
0
$80k - $120k
6
$40k - $80k
3
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2022

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Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

Charity Contact

Website: www.ontarionature.org
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 416-444-8419

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